Thornley v. Board of Trustees of River Forest Pension Fund

Plaintiff, a surviving spouse of a deceased police officer, appealed the trial court’s order affirming the Board’s determination that while she was entitled to receive survival pension benefits, she was not entitled to receive them immediately but, rather, she was entitled to benefits on the date that her deceased husband would have turned 60 years old. The appellate court interpreted the language of section 3-112 of the Illinois Pension Code and affirmed the trial court, finding that had decedent lived he would not have been eligible to collect benefits until he was 60 years old, and that the plaintiff could not collect more than decedent was entitled to at the time of his death. (HARRIS and MIKVA, concurring)