CTA VP Fired For Driving Drunk Hired As First Deputy Aviation Commissioner

A former Chicago Transit Authority vice president, who quit under pressure after being charged with driving a CTA car while drunk, was chosen Monday as the city's first deputy aviation commissioner. His salary: $137,160 a year.

The city's new aviation commissioner, John Roberson, said he knew about the 1998 drunk driving incident, but decided to overlook it and make Patrick Haney the most important staffer on his management team.

"I haven't asked about it. I didn't get into it. People have to be judged on their professional abilities and expertise. That's what I judged him on. I didn't judge him on what happened before," Roberson told the Chicago Sun-Times. "He's a good solid performer who knows the people, understands the operation and can make sure we run the airport in a businesslike manner. He's been dealing with the airlines and working on capital projects here for years. I felt he was the best person for the job."

Roberson said he didn't know if Haney would be issued a government vehicle, as is the case with first deputies in the past.

"I've made my expectations to him very clear. I've always been a person who believes that, once you make your expectations clear to people, the only thing you can do after that is hold people accountable to those standards. That's what I would do with any manager," he said.

Haney was dumped from his job as the CTA's chief of construction and maintenance in 1998, after his city-issued car slammed into the back of another vehicle. Two weeks later, he quit to avoid being fired, saying he accepted responsibility for his "lapse in judgement."

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