Police investigators know their jobs — investigating crimes. Most do not know much, if anything, about the details of employment law, especially as it applies to private (i.e. nongovernment) jobs. It may well be that for his civil service government job such a termination would be wrongful because civil service jobs tend to have different rules than those that apply in the private sector. But I think he got it wrong here.

A private employer does not need a good reason (what is called in the law good cause) to fire you in all but one state, and that one state is not Illinois. When the employer is not a government agency, then the employer may legally fire you for any reason (or no reason at all) except for a few reasons prohibited by law. The prohibited reasons include firing you because:
  • of your race, color, religion, sex, national origin, citizenship, age, disability, or genetic test information under federal law (some states/localities add a few more categories like sexual orientation);
  • you make certain kinds of reports about the employer to the government or in limited circumstances to specified persons in the employing company itself (known as whistle-blower protection laws);
  • you participate in union organizing activities;
  • you use a right or benefit the law guarantees you (e.g. using leave under FMLA);
  • you filed a bankruptcy petition;
  • your pay was garnished by a single creditor; and
  • you took time off work to attend jury duty (in most states).


The exact list of prohibited reasons will vary by state.

You were in an accident and the police cleared you of any criminal wrongdoing. But you and your employer could still be sued over the accident and if you had been negligent the plaintiff (presumably the other driver’s estate) could win a judgment for the damages suffered as a result. The standards for criminal prosecution and civil liability are quite different. So, even though the police cleared you that is not necessarily the end of any legal issues out of the accident. Your employer is free to terminate you over this accident even though no criminal charges were filed and even if you were not negligent in causing the accident. Your employer can do that because the employer may terminate you for any reason at all except for those few reasons like those listed above that the law says cannot be a basis for termination. Feel free to consult an IL attorney who litigates wrongful termination cases to be sure there isn’t something here for which you may sue your employer, but be prepared for the very likely possibility that you will hear that there is no case here.

You certainly may apply for unemployment benefits and should do so promptly. You only get UI benefits for the weeks after you apply; so once terminated you don’t to delay applying for benefits.