Help Tommy In CPD Purgatory Recover Burn Injury

My name is Eric Moon. I am an Emergency Physician writing on behalf of a friend and former Chicago Police Officer, Thomas Sherry.  I met Tommy 17 years ago and over the years I have grown to know him as a good man and one of my best friends.

 

On the afternoon of October 31st, I received a call from his girlfriend, April.  Tom had been seriously injured but was unwilling to go to the Emergency Department because he was uninsured.   He lost his health insurance in February when the police department wrongly terminated him based on 15 year old allegations that were proven in court to be untrue many years ago. 

 

After seeing photos of his leg and talking with Tommy, I was able to talk him into going to the Emergency Department at Lutheran General.  From there he was immediately transferred by ambulance to the Loyola Burn Unit where he was seen by the burn specialists. He was hospitalized there for ten days and underwent painful debridement of the burnt tissue followed by skin graft surgery.  He may still require further surgery, as well as months of wound care and rehabilitation.

 

Full Story:

On the morning of the 31st, Tommy was setting up for Halloween.  His house is well known in the neighborhood.  Every year the kids look forward to seeing what new ideas Tommy will come up with.  Tommy and April always took great pride in making that moment special for the kids.

After getting the house ready for Halloween, Tommy was making a fire when his pants caught fire.  Apparently they were made from a highly flammable material.  Despite dropping and rolling, he could not extinguish the flames.  The pants quickly melted to his leg and thigh and he had to rip them off of his body.  Ultimately, he sustained extensive second and third degree burns to the entire left lower extremity.

 

Tom's health insurance was taken away in February when the Chicago Police Department served him separation papers.  His termination resulted from false allegations raised against him in 2004.  These allegations were subsequently proven false in court of law.  Despite being proven innocent and having all charges dropped, he lost his job.  Now, because of this injury Tommy can't even work the side jobs he was doing to pay his bills and support his son.

 

I am seeking donations to help him with the overwhelming financial burden that will now be exponentially worse with the medical expenses that will be incurred.  I am doing this for him because he is a proud, hard working man who doesn't like asking for help.  I know that he would never do this on his own, and so I am doing it for him.

 

Further Background:

I would also like to use this opportunity to spread the word about how he has been treated by the Chicago Police Department.

Tommy graduated from the Police Academy in May 1997.  During his time on the force he has received multiple awards and recognitions for his service.  He was eventually assigned to Chicago’s Special Operations Section (SOS), a gun and gang crimes unit that included SWAT at the time. 

In September of 2006, some of the officers on Tommy's SOS team were accused of serious wrong doing.  Multiple officers were suspended.   in 2009, after several years of investigation, all charges against Tommy and his partner were "dropped with prejudice."  Legally, "dropped with prejudice" means that the case is permanently dismissed and cannot be brought back to court.  All of the other officers on their team were charged and convicted of crimes.

 

But it didn't end there.  Even though the charges against them were dropped in 2009, Tommy and his partner were not put back to work as police officers.  Despite being found innocent in a court of law, they were sent to answer the "311" phone lines for non-emergency Services.   Tommy remained in department limbo for nearly 12 years without knowing if or when he would be allowed to resume his career.  He waited patiently for over a decade for his reinstatement, but it never came.

 

In 2018, Tommy filed a lawsuit against CPD for violation of due process.  The suit was dismissed due to the statute of limitations. CPD was not happy that he did this, and they made it known.  In February 2021 his employment with the City of Chicago was officially terminated based on the SOS events that occurred in 2004.  With his termination, his health insurance was also withdrawn. 

For "unexplained reasons", Tommy's partner was fully reinstated as a police officer at the same time Tommy was fired.  I believe his partner was allowed to return to duty while Tommy was fired because Tommy dared to stand up for the injustice against him by filing a lawsuit against the City of Chicago.

 

By stripping him of his badge and his benefits, CPD has put Tommy through 16 years of stress, anxiety, and depression.   The process has had a severe impact on his present income and on his future earnings.  He's also suffered a huge blow to his retirement contributions and his pension will not be nearly what it should be.  Now at almost 50 years old, he is forced to try and salvage what remains of his life and find a new career with the time he has left.   Adding insult to injury, his health insurance was taken from him right before he suffered this serious injury that will keep him from working.

 

This is not how a good police officer should be treated, especially not in Chicago at a time when more good officers are badly needed and in short supply.

 

Please donate and help my friend Tommy. Every bit helps and no amount is too small.  Please also repost this on your social media, and help get the word out to help  my friend.