Calumet City Mayor Thaddeus Jones faces allegations of extortion from a former employee who filed a federal lawsuit naming both him and the city as defendants.
Kenneth Jones, who was director of the city’s Emergency Services and Disaster Agency from February 2022 to August 2025, also claims the mayor retaliated against him and wrongfully terminated his employment.
Mayor Jones, through his attorney Chrstopher Parente, said in a statement he expects the court will quickly dismiss the “frivolous” lawsuit.
“Mayor Jones is disappointed to read these false allegations,” the statement reads. “The mayor will continue to focus his efforts where they have always been, and that is serving the people of Calumet City and improving the lives of all of his constituents.”
The lawsuit alleges the mayor began asking Kenneth Jones in 2024 to make monthly cash payments of $3,000 to the mayor to keep his job. Jones was hired with an $87,000 salary and worked 40 and 60 hours per week, according to the lawsuit.
“Mayor Jones told plaintiff words to the effect of ‘don’t forget who put you in that job,’ despite the fact that Plaintiff had applied for and obtained the position through Calumet City’s standard hiring procedures,” the complaint, filed Dec. 5, alleges.
The demands for payment allegedly continued, with the mayor and a member of his campaign staff telling Kenneth Jones later in the year that he would have to pay them $100,000 for his “continued employment, positions on boards and other potential benefits,” including a pay raise. Jones is also on the city’s Board of Fire and Police Commissioners and is listed on the website for the mayor’s political slate, Calumet City Democrats United, as having once sought a seat on the park board.
Jones allegedly refused to pay the $100,000, leading Mayor Jones in early 2025 to instead demand $13,000 divided into a $5,000 payment to his campaign for reelection as state representative, $5,000 in cash to him personally and $3,000 for Chicago Cubs season tickets, the lawsuit alleges.
“Mayor Jones also directed plaintiff to use over $1,500 of his personal funds to purchase campaign materials, liquor and meals,” the lawsuit alleges. The mayor also allegedly compelled him to work on his political campaign without compensation and under threat of retaliation, it alleges.
Illinois State Board of Elections data shows Kenneth Jones contributed $6,700 to Thaddeus Jones’ political campaigns in 2025, donating $200 and $500 to his state representative political committee in February and May, respectively, and $6,000 to Calumet City Democrats United Aug. 18.
Kenneth Jones, through his attorney, Whitney Barr of Caffarelli and Associates, declined to be interviewed, saying the lawsuit speaks for itself.
The lawsuit states that Kenneth Jones began pushing back again by summer 2025, refusing to continue paying the mayor, in turn facing retaliation that included threats, intimidation and the firing of his daughter’s boyfriend from the city.
Kenneth Jones also alleges the city interfered with rights provided under the federal Family Leave and Medical Act, which entitles eligible workers to take unpaid, job-protected leave for family and medical reasons. Jones was allegedly hospitalized after falling at work July 31, 2025, and shortly after requesting a leave of absence was demoted, suspended and, finally, fired from the city, the lawsuit alleges.
Jones said he was fired Aug. 18 due to his continued refusal to make illegal payments to Jones, though the reason stated was that he failed to return city property, according to the lawsuit.
“Other Calumet City employees who did not return City property under similar circumstances were not terminated, and plaintiff was unable to return any such property on demand because of his physical condition resulting from the injury,” the lawsuit alleges.
Jones is seeking punitive damages against the mayor as well as compensatory damages, statutory damages under the Family Leave and Medical Act and the Illinois Whistleblower Act, and attorney’s fees and costs. He is also seeking reinstatement to his position with the city, removal of negative information from his personnel records, implementation of anti-retaliation policies and monitoring of the city’s employment practices.
After the lawsuit’s filing, Calumet City 2nd Ward Ald. Monet Wilson, who is considering running against Thaddeus Jones in his bid for reelection as state representative this year, said the claims “underscore why transparency, ethical governance, and fiscal accountability must remain at the center of our city’s leadership.”
Wilson recently spearheaded efforts for the City Council to hire its own legal counsel after previously raising concerns about the mayor’s spending.
“Residents deserve honesty and fairness at every level of government,” Wilson said. “As always, I will continue to advocate for oversight, responsible management of public funds and restoring public trust through facts, not fear.”
ostevens@chicagotribune.com
