The Illinois attorney general’s office found Orland Park violated the Open Meetings Act in February when Mayor Keith Pekau cleared a Village Board meeting after several people called for a resolution supporting a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war.

The Public Access Bureau, in a determination written by Teresa Lim, a supervising attorney, stated the village violated people’s “right to attend all meetings at which any business of a public body is discussed or acted upon in any way.”

Michael Henry, an Orland Park resident who works in business equipment leasing and banking, filed the complaint Feb. 6, stating Pekau forced attendees to leave the previous night’s meeting because some people presented a petition signed by 800 people calling for the village to back a cease-fire resolution.

Henry, who has filed other complaints of Open Meetings Act violations by the village, said he believed the decision to clear the meeting was premeditated, as eight police officers were present and Pekau made comments that those supporting the cease-fire resolution “can go to another country.”

“At these meetings, you can’t attack people,” Henry said Friday. “They’re entitled to an opinion. And Keith Pekau just seems to think that he is God.”

The meeting record shows Pekau called for a recess following the public comment. He earlier warned that “we will remove the room so we can continue to have our meeting,” as several attendees became “disruptive,” according to the attorney general’s decision.

Pekau said simply, “We’ve recessed. Chief, clear the room.” The meeting resumed 30 minutes later with only one person returning, which was by design, the attorney general’s office said.

“The meeting recessed for the purpose of removing all attendees so the meeting could resume without members of the public present, rather than removing only the attendees who had disrupted the meeting,” the determination states. “Members of the public could not have reasonably inferred that they would have been permitted to access the meeting room after the recess.”

The village’s response to the complaint said it listened to public comments without interfering, but attendees “persistently attempted to interrupt, shout down and heckle members of the Board of Trustees during the subsequent board comment period, severely undermining the public meeting’s decorum and efficacy,” according to Lim’s finding.

The village’s response also contended the news media member who returned after recess documented the ongoing discussions and the village continued to live stream it, “affirm(ing) the village board’s commitment to transparency, allowing the public to stay informed without being physically present in the meeting space.”

ostevens@chicagotribune.com