Board of Fire & Police Commissioners
Jul 16, 2026
The lede
- The Board approved promotional examination notices for Fire Captain and Lieutenant positions, with testing materials to be placed in stations by October 1, 2026
- Two entry-level applicants (Michael DeFrancisco and Esteban Castanon-Duron) were approved and appointed as probationary police officers after passing psychological and medical exams
- The Board terminated probationary Police Officer David Sanders following an executive session to discuss his employment status
- Multiple bills were approved for psychological screening and polygraph testing of police candidates
Decisions & votes
All votes were unanimous (3-0) with Commissioners Menge, Villareal, and Hunter voting:
- Approved minutes from June 25, 2026 special meeting
- Approved payment of $400 to Braden Counseling Center for psychological screening (Jacob Sampson)
- Approved payment of $420 to Trotsky Investigative Polygraph for polygraph tests (DeFrancisco and Castanon-Duron)
- Approved payment of $625 to Police & Fire for pre-employment psychological exam (Esteban Castanon-Duron)
- Approved payment of $625 for pre-employment psychological exam (Michael DeFrancisco)
- Adopted Fire Captain and Lieutenant promotional examination notices with no minimum passing score; authorized Fire Chief to post by July 22, 2026
- Approved entry-level psychological and medical exams for Michael DeFrancisco
- Approved entry-level psychological and medical exams for Esteban Castanon-Duron
- Appointed Michael DeFrancisco and Esteban Castanon-Duron as probationary police officers
- Terminated employment of probationary Police Officer David Sanders
Discussion items
Police Chief’s Report: Provided updates on officer training status - Officer Drop finishing Step #2 of FTO Program; Officer Amundson has two weeks left in Step #2; Officer Norris in Week #9 of Basic Law Enforcement Academy at Sauk Valley in Dixon; Officer Rossi in Pre-Academy Training Program; Officer Sanders in Step #4.
Fire Chief’s Report: Creating eligibility list; accepted applications from June 1-30, 2026.
Fire Promotional Examinations: Board authorized Fire Chief to retain I-Chiefs for testing and assessment, place study materials in each station by October 1, 2026, and notify both unions to designate observers.
Executive Session: Board entered executive session at 5:47 p.m. to discuss an employee matter, with Deputy Chiefs Bird and Smaha and Sgt. Ball present; session ended at 6:03 p.m.
Financial / operational notes
Total expenses approved: $2,070
- $400 - Psychological screening (Braden Counseling Center)
- $420 - Polygraph testing for two candidates (Trotsky Investigative Polygraph)
- $625 - Pre-employment psychological exam (Castanon-Duron)
- $625 - Pre-employment psychological exam (DeFrancisco)