The Appellate Court affirmed that finding, holding that employers may not terminate employees based solely on the fact that the person was arrested for particular conduct. However, the Appellate Court did note that an employer may terminate an employer for prior conduct where there is information that indicates the person actually engaged in the conduct.
The Appellate Court also held that it was an abuse of discretion for the trial court to arbitrarily reduce Murillo's attorney's costs and rates without any explanation or clear rationale. Thus, the Appellate Court remanded the mater to the trial court to: (1) reexamine its reductions of time spent by Murillo's attorneys on the case and give reasons for any reductions; (2) adjust the fee calculations in light of the attorney hourly rates; and (3) determine additional fees (and costs) for defending the appeal and the City’s 735 ILCS 5/2-1401 petition.