(The Center Square) – The Illinois General Assembly has a new legislative watchdog after months of lawmaker ethics issues have been brought to light and the former Springfield investigator resigned.
One former complainant told The Center Square he’s not convinced a change in who runs the office won’t be in name only.
In September, former Legislative Inspector General (LIG) Michael McCuskey was announced to have resigned following criticism of his investigative practices, including by one lobbyist complainant who was sexually harassed by former state Rep. Harry Benton, alongside other previous complainants who have spoken to The Center Square.
In an introductory video on the state investigator’s website, Acting LIG David Risley explained how he wants to differ from his predecessors.
“Since I don’t know how long I’ll be serving in this capacity, I intend to move quickly to do as much as I can while I can to accomplish three objectives. First of all, my top priority will be to make the office of the Legislative Inspector General a safe place for victims of sexual harassment, including keeping confidential information confidential,” Risley said.
Risley, a former federal prosecutor, previously worked within McCuskey’s office.
After issues of McCuskey’s performance in the role, which included complaints he didn’t record interviews with victims of sexual harassment and misrepresented said interviews in his final reports, Risley said he wants more resources put toward the office.
“We expect to be held accountable by the legislative ethics commission and those we serve for meeting those high standards of professionalism,” Risley said. “To be an effective investigative office, we need more investigators, both in the Chicago area and downstate.”
While Risley presents changes to the office, they’d mean an expansion of the office by at least a few full-time investigative staff.
Michael Martin, a former Speaker’s office staffer and was a Legislative Coordinator for multiple lawmakers, filed a complaint listing multiple lawmakers for varying degrees of mistreatment and over the termination of his employment in 2025.
Martin, who subsequently met with Risley and an investigator from the LIG’s office after meeting with McCuskey to review his complaint – which he characterized as unprofessional – said he plans to re-file his complaint now that McCuskey is gone.
“McCuskey proudly showed me cherished items around his office at the beginning of our meeting, including a mounted photograph of him coaching none other than a spry Jay Hoffman in college baseball,” Martin said. “So these longstanding relationships with legislators and leadership are a feature, not a bug.”
Martin also made recommendations for the office that ultimately denied him a full investigation into interactions with lawmakers, staff, and management – some of which he described as “abusive.”
McCluskey did not respond to The Center Square’s request for comment.
“Since the speaker and Senate made it clear they will not allow their staff to unionize, staff should have a voting seat or two at the table when it comes to hiring these quote-unquote independent watchdogs,” Martin said. “Legislative staffers need legal advocates appointed to them when they file complaints that will accompany them and guide them throughout the process. After watching the current LIG’s introductory YouTube video that basically says, to paraphrase, ‘Trust us, we’ll do it right this time.’ To that I say, I don’t.”
