Fox Lake makes changes 1 year after Lt. Gliniewicz death

FOX LAKE, Ill. (WLS) -- Thursday marks one year since the shooting death of Fox Lake Police Lt. Joe Gliniewicz, which prompted a massive manhunt for three suspects and an eventual revelation that he committed suicide.

The memorials and tributes are gone. And some residents said they are relieved to move on but still surprised by the suicide and subsequent investigation, which rocked the Chicago area and turned the village upside down.

"Nobody in this scenario was left unscathed," said Fox Lake Administrator Anne Marrin.

Marrin first started asking questions about money Gliniewicz was spending from its now disbanded Explorers program months before his suicide, which he staged to look like a murder.

Marrin said the village policies and procedures have become more professional in the last year as they try forget past that tragic chapter for Fox Lake.

"We don't want to be recognized as the town that this wayward cop was from. We deserve better than that," Marrin said.

Changes at the Fox Lake Police Department include new leadership and some new officers. The biggest changes is the officers working together toward rebuilding trust and instituting more accountability, the village's interim police chief said.

"No one will forget the tragedies that happened here," said interim Fox Lake Police Chief Russ Laine. "But we remember the past so we don't repeat the same mistakes."

Gliniewicz's widow has since been charged with conspiracy, money laundering and misuse of charitable fund for her alleged part in spending Explorer funds.

She also is seeking to get her husband's pension, and the village is trying to prevent her from doing so arguing that the citizens of Fox Lake have been through enough and shouldn't have to pay the money.

The pension issue is on hold until the criminal proceedings have concluded.