A confrontation between Norridge Mayor James Chmura and contractors hired to put up signs for his political opponent took place March 18 outside of a resident’s home, according to a Norridge police report.
According to the report, two men associated with Norridge mayoral candidate Tom Benigno’s campaign told police that contractors hired to put up campaign signs for residents who had requested them were confronted by Chmura while putting up a sign outside a home in the 8300 block of West Sunnyside Avenue. The men told police they advised the contractors to leave the area and then traveled to the residence to speak with the homeowner, according to the report.
Both men told police they were confronted by Chmura, who had been speaking to the male resident of the home, the report stated.
In an interview this week, Chmura said he was on his way home March 18 when he saw “a couple people from my opposition putting up a sign.”
“The sign they were putting up was on the lawn of one of my friend’s houses,” he said.
Chmura said he pulled over, waited for the contractors to leave, and then knocked on the door of the residence. A female resident answered the door. Chmura, who said that person was his friend, said he asked her if she was unhappy with the village because of the sign posted on her lawn. In his account to police, Chmura said he goes to residents’ homes when he sees signs for his opponent on their property.
“That’s something we’ve always done, and it’s not to do anything but to ask people,” he told the Pioneer Press. “I think all political parties do it because it’s valuable information.”
Chmura said he doesn’t do it to “twist their arm or intimidate” but to find out what their concerns are about the village and what he could be doing better as mayor. He said he did it during his 2013 campaign for mayor and “all the parties I know out there do it.”
Chmura said the woman told him she never approved the placement of a Benigno sign on her property. He said she told her husband, who was standing next to her, to put his shoes on and remove the sign.
At that time, the two men who filed the police report, described by Chmura as between 25 and 30 years of age, pulled up to the residence in a red truck, according to Chmura’s account to police. Chmura said one of the men shouted “I’m not talking to you.” Chmura said he responded by asking the man who he was because he didn’t recognize him.
The mayor said the wife told the men that they had no right to put the sign on her lawn and that they were trespassing, according to Chmura’s account to police. Chmura said the woman also asked the men not to “disrespect” the mayor and to take the sign down.
According to the police report, the men told police that Chmura shouted at them that they had no right putting up signs on private property, but the men said they told the mayor that the residence was on a list of homes that had requested Benigno signs.
The men told police that Chmura then asked the male resident of the home if he still wanted the sign up, and he responded, “ask my wife.” The wife of the resident said that Chmura is still the mayor of the village and, as a sign of respect and to avoid problems, that she no longer wanted the sign on her property, the men told police.
One of the men then removed the sign and told police that Chmura bumped his chest into theirs and called him a “young punk” and that he “better watch yourself walking these streets,” according to the report the men filed. The men told police they did not want to sign a complaint against Chmura but wanted the incident documented. Police said both men were reluctant to provide personal information for fear of retaliation for filing the report.
Chmura said he “never got close” to either of the men. According to the report he filed with police, one of the men asked Chmura what kind of mayor he is, and Chmura responded, “all you are is a punk, and you don’t belong in this neighborhood.”
Benigno said he was “very disappointed and disturbed” by Chmura’s conduct.
“It’s very unprofessional. I’m disappointed in a lot of ways,” he said. “I would think the standing mayor would have something better to do.”
Benigno said he worries Chmura’s actions may make voters think twice about going to the polls April 4.
“It’s intimidating tactics,” he said. “We don’t knock on doors with his signs.”
Norridge Police Chief Dave Disselhorst said the department has received no similar reports or complaints of any kind involving Chmura.
Lee V. Gaines is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
