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Rep. Tarver says CPS general counsel needs to be forced out over rape case (Updated)

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* Background is here if you need it. Rep. Curtis Tarver (D-Chicago) rose to make a point of personal privilege during yesterday’s House session…

This is my first point of personal privilege since my daughter was here five years ago, but I feel compelled to speak.

Yesterday, you may have read in Capitol Fax, and was in the news otherwise, that the Chicago Public Schools paid an expert $40,000 to testify in her deposition… to testify that not all sexual assault is traumatic.

That was taxpayer money. That was approved by the General Counsel CPS. The mayor appoints the board. The mayor ahas the ability to have a conversation with CPS top brass. CPS General Counsel, Ruchi Verma needs to go. Not only did she sign off on this expert, but they filed a motion - I have the motion in limine copy right here - to force this woman to use her real name.

This has been going on for a couple years. It just got to trial. Motion in limine. Now all of a sudden, they want her use her real name instead of Jane Doe. Why do you think that is? Maybe it’s because they had a mediation last week. They put $50,000 on the table and she didn’t take it. So to penalize her, to punish her, to shame her, they want her to use her own name.

So that 37 year old woman now will be known as a person who had sex with a high school damn teacher. It’s shameful! it’s shameful!

Walter Glascoff is a rapist. He’s a rapist. He lied to CPS initially, but ultimately in his deposition he testified he did not have sex with her, he only had oral sex until she was 17. Sex is in the very definition what he said. He then started having sex with her when she was 18 as well. We can’t do anything about that.

But he groomed her. He groomed her and what happened? CPS confronted him, he lied about it. They allowed him to resign. So who do you think pays his pension? We do.

I want to read to you a little bit from what I FOIA’d, so this is public information, so the judge doesn’t get upset.

‘For relevant time periods when you were a teacher at Hubbard high school during the 2001 to 2004 school year, you were involved in a sexual relationship with Jane Doe, a student at the same school, date of birth, between January 31 2002 and January 2003, you engaged in sexual intercourse with Jane Doe during the spring of 2004, sexual intercourse with Jane Doe.’ Took her to Navy Pier, took her to his home, drove her to her home and met her parents. You know what happened between 2012 and 2016? He was transporting other students. All under CPS’ watch.

I don’t have a dog in the race. This ain’t my case. It’s not my daughter. But we should all care. And there’s no way on God’s green earth that a duly licensed attorney who takes the same exact oath we take when we’re sworn in, the same exact oath, should ever put defending a case over what’s right.

Now the mayor came down here and everybody saying Chicago is owed a billion dollars. CPS does need more money, so does the rest of the state. I’m all for public education. That’s not the question.

The question is, what is Jane Doe owed? And I don’t mean financially. We can’t even talk about justice without basic respect. Forcing a woman or male or whoever to use their name in a lawsuit to pressure them, to shame them is unconscionable and is worth - I know the mayor doesn’t discuss personnel issues in the public he says - but this is something that needs to be addressed. And I’ll be wrapping up in just a moment.

Representative EliK had a bill I believe a year or so ago, House Bill 1275. One of the things that it says is that you cannot use comparative fault or contributory negligence with a minor. I don’t know what happened to the bill, it never moved. But I would hope as a chamber on a bipartisan basis we would look at that. Whether it needs an extension or otherwise.

How do you have a defense to suggest that a child, a child is comparatively at fault for their own being raped?

I had a bill. I’m not biased, but I had a bill that said at least in these situations, we should have a process, an administrative process to strip the pension of individuals. You can’t say well, if you rape the kid on Hubbard’s campus, we can take your pension, but if you take her to Navy Pier or to your house, we can’t because it’s off school grounds. So I appreciate you all indulging me I am beyond frustrated.

Rep. Tarver’s voice began to crack and he sat down.

Please pardon all transcription errors.

…Adding… MrJM in comments…

Intentionally or not, in fighting Jane Doe’s lawsuit, CPS is telling its students and parents that if you try to hold them to account for endangering or harming a student in their care, CPS will pay tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars to drag you and your reputation through the mud.

Utterly despicable.

posted by Rich Miller
Thursday, May 16, 24 @ 12:28 pm

Comments

  1. Right on Representative Tarver, good for you for standing up on this.

    Comment by OneMan Thursday, May 16, 24 @ 12:52 pm

  2. Thank you Rep Tarver for shining a light on this…

    Comment by Lincoln Lad Thursday, May 16, 24 @ 1:01 pm

  3. Intentionally or not, in fighting Jane Doe’s lawsuit, CPS is telling its students and parents that if you try to hold them to account for endangering or harming a student in their care, CPS will pay tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars to drag you and your reputation through the mud.

    Utterly despicable.

    – MrJM

    Comment by @misterjayem Thursday, May 16, 24 @ 1:03 pm

  4. This is straight up Troy Akin “legitimate rape” stuff.

    The General Counsel should be dismissed, and the district should settle or proceed with the case as Jane Doe.

    Comment by Thomas Paine Thursday, May 16, 24 @ 1:05 pm

  5. This is especially revealing after reading the part of “City Is Up For Grabs” when the City’s Law Department truly did not understand the problem in going after Anjanette Young in legal proceedings, even after city leaders identified that CPD botched the raid. They see their job as defending the institution legally at all costs, no matter who it harms.

    Comment by NIU Grad Thursday, May 16, 24 @ 1:35 pm

  6. CP legal exists to protect the agency not kids.

    Rep Tarver is correct in calling out CPS Legal and we can go farther — CPS needs a full reorg. CPS Legal is the counsel of the Board; CPS Legal is the counsel of CPS OIG. CPS Legal runs CPS Ethics.

    CPS lawyers are mandatory reporters themselves.

    The entire structure is incentivized for moral rot.

    Comment by Chicago Voter Thursday, May 16, 24 @ 1:50 pm

  7. How can we trust our children to an organization that fights against our children’s safety? Unspeakable and as previously said, despicable.

    Comment by Just a Citizen Thursday, May 16, 24 @ 2:19 pm

  8. I mean, good for Curtis Tarver. I love that guy. He’s never afraid to stand up an speak some truth.

    Comment by McGuppin Thursday, May 16, 24 @ 2:29 pm

  9. There is a lot of pressure in public sector legal departments to be despicable like the “real” lawyers in the private sector. It always ends poorly.

    Comment by Three Dimensional Checkers Thursday, May 16, 24 @ 2:29 pm

  10. What a great speach on a horrid subject. He is a thousand per cent right. But one of the worst parts is CPS wanting to reveal her name. It is akin to blackmail

    Comment by DuPage Saint Thursday, May 16, 24 @ 2:41 pm

  11. “But one of the worst parts is CPS wanting to reveal her name. It is akin to blackmail”

    I find myself wondering about the attorney decision making at CPS legal. If your managing attorney tells you to do something like this, i.e. something you should be able to see is repellent and also probably a tactical misfire, it’s not a bad idea to run it by the ARDC ethics hotline first, before everyone looks terrible in public.

    Comment by Larry Bowa Jr. Thursday, May 16, 24 @ 3:15 pm

  12. The abhorrent motion is one thing but here’s a case where reading the briefs would probably shed more light on why this case has apparently drug on for so long for what looks like a slam dunk issue. But this is your periodic reminder that in 2024, the public still can’t access cook county court documents online. Maybe this kind of thing helps Rep. Tarver finally pass his judicial FOIA bill.

    Comment by Capt. Jack Ross Thursday, May 16, 24 @ 4:45 pm

  13. Ruchi Verma is certainly one of the top two or three most talented, able, and ethically grounded people I have ever worked with.

    Comment by Du Sable Thursday, May 16, 24 @ 9:20 pm

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