OIIG Leadership

Tirrell J. Paxton

Independent Inspector General

Tirrell J. Paxton was appointed to serve as the Independent Inspector General for the Office of the Independent Inspector General of Cook County in June 2024. 

Prior to his confirmation as Inspector General, Mr. Paxton served as Deputy Inspector General of the Compliance & Program Review Division of the OIIG from January 2010 until June 2024. Mr. Paxton’s duties involved planning and conducting government investigations, program reviews, surveys, and regulatory compliance projects. Before joining the OIIG, Mr. Paxton held positions as an auditor and senior fraud investigator at Ernst & Young LLP where he performed audits, compliance reviews, internal investigations and financial and economic loss assessments for private industry. Mr. Paxton also held positions at DLA Piper Rudnick as an associate attorney concentrating in bankruptcy law. Prior to joining DLA, Mr. Paxton served as a Law Clerk for the Honorable Judge Ronald Barliant of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

Mr. Paxton graduated from Jackson State University with an accounting degree and received his J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School. Mr. Paxton is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE). Mr. Paxton began his service with the OIIG in January 2010.

Steven E. Cyranoski 

General Counsel

Steven E. Cyranoski serves as General Counsel of the OIIG. Mr. Cyranoski provides legal advice to OIIG management and investigators and addresses all legal issues relating to office operations.

Mr. Cyranoski has practiced law for over 25 years handling litigation matters in state and federal courts at both the trial and appellate levels. Prior to joining the OIIG, Mr. Cyranoski was a partner at two private practice law firms.

Mr. Cyranoski graduated with honors from the Villanova University School of Law where he was a member of the Order of the Coif and the Moot Court Board. Mr. Cyranoski obtained his undergraduate degree in Business Administration from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

Thomas Wilson

Deputy Inspector General

Investigations

Thomas C. Wilson serves as Deputy Inspector General in the OIIG’s Investigations Division. Prior to joining the OIIG in 2019, Mr. Wilson served 23 years with the Federal Bureau of Investigation as a Special Agent, Supervisory Special Agent, and acting Assistant Special Agent in Charge in the gang and counterterrorism programs. He was assigned to the Chicago Field Office and FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C., and received multiple commendations, including an FBI Director’s Award and the CIA’s Ellis Award. Before his FBI tenure, Mr. Wilson was an attorney in private practice.

Mr. Wilson is a graduate of the University of North Dakota where he received a B.A. in political science and a J.D. from the School of Law. 

Megan Carlson

Deputy Inspector General

Compliance and Evaluations

Megan Carlson serves as Deputy Inspector General overseeing Compliance and Evaluations. Most recently, Ms. Carlson served as Deputy Inspector General for the Illinois Department of Human Services Office of Inspector General, overseeing investigations into abuse, neglect, and financial exploitation of individuals receiving mental health or developmental disability services in programs licensed by the State. Previously, Ms. Carlson worked at the City of Chicago Office of Inspector General, first as Chief Investigator for Public Safety and then as Associate General Counsel for Public Safety, supervising inspections of individual closed police disciplinary investigations, as well as programmatic reviews of the Chicago Police Department and Chicago’s police oversight agencies. Ms. Carlson has also worked as a Cook County Assistant State’s Attorney and as an investigator at the Cook County Office of Independent Inspector General. 

Ms. Carlson is a Certified Inspector General Inspector/Evaluator and has a B.A. in German from Denison University and a J.D. from DePaul University College of Law.

LaShunda Cooperwood

Assistant Inspector General

Employment Oversight

LaShunda S. Cooperwood serves as Assistant Inspector General-Employment Oversight.  Ms. Cooperwood assists the Inspector General in monitoring employment actions and providing oversight of Employment Plans for Cook County agencies.

Prior to becoming the Assistant Inspector General, Ms. Cooperwood served the OIIG as a Supervising Investigator and Investigator. Before joining the OIIG, Ms. Cooperwood was in private practice handling litigation matters. Ms. Cooperwood also served as a Cook County State’s Attorney in the Criminal Prosecutions Bureau from August 2006 until April 2019.

Ms. Cooperwood graduated cum laude from Chicago State University with a B.S. in Criminal Justice and received her J.D. from DePaul University College of Law. Ms. Cooperwood is a Certified Inspector General Investigator.

Jennifer Foether

Office Manager

Jennifer Foether serves as Office Manager for the OIIG. Ms. Foether has been a member of the OIIG since 2011. Prior to joining the OIIG, Ms. Foether was a legal assistant for a private practice law firm in Michigan. 

Ms. Foether graduated from Saginaw Valley State University with a B.A. in criminal justice and a master’s in business administration.