Editorial: Why we shouldn't forget Gliniewicz case
Things aren't always as they seem.
The platitude often slips off the tongue with little meaning, but people in Fox Lake feel it to the core.
It's one of the lessons following the death a year ago of Police Lt. Charles Joseph Gliniewicz.
Immediately eulogized as the officer everyone knew who loved taking kids to “Shop with a Cop” and led the youth Explorer Post, Gliniewicz turned out to have taken money that wasn't his and faked a murder scene before killing himself in an apparent attempt to claim a hero's legacy. As Fox Lake moves forward and rightly tries to leave the notoriety and pain behind, it's nevertheless appropriate to focus on some things none of us should forget.
Such as the forces that led police, the community and the news media to respond to Gliniewicz's Sept. 1, 2015, death with the “slain hero” narrative that played out in a funeral that attracted thousands. Later, investigators' public silence as they began to discover what really happened infuriated some to the point of making threats against authorities. Could police have been more forthcoming? Perhaps. Could those outside the investigation have been more patient? Certainly.
Primarily, the Gliniewicz case is worth remembering as a caution against jumping to conclusions and as a powerful reminder of the importance of holding up to the light contradictory information that doesn't fit the storyline. That led to the truth.
For officials in Fox Lake, one year isn't enough to make repairs. The police force was shaken and needed to recover, but its leaders also had to deal with a structure that promoted Gliniewicz despite past disciplinary issues. The village administration had to regain the confidence of a deeply traumatized populace, while also fixing a system that let misuse of Explorer Post funds go on for years.
Village Administrator Anne Marrin, hired in 2014 and whose audit apparently triggered Gliniewicz's desperation, and interim Police Chief Russell Laine, hired in January, are among those who've worked hard to set things right. That job isn't done and might never be. It'll take vigilance to keep Fox Lake from settling back into its old ways.
Looking back, one Fox Lake resident of 53 years says it's hard even now to imagine the fear he felt one year ago as his family sat inside with doors locked while consumed with thoughts of armed cop killers outside.
It's good to hear wounds like that are fading away.
But other lessons, learned the hard way, are worth remembering.