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DISCOVERY OF SURPLUS AT POLICE EXPLORERS POST COULD HAVE LED TO GLINIEWICZ’S SUICIDE
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Attorney to run against Bianchi
Regna enters race for state’s attorney in McHenry County By KEVIN P. CRAVER kcraver@shawmedia.com
Matthew Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
Fox Lake Village Administrator Anne Marrin looks Thursday through boxes full of surplus military items purchased by Lt. Joe Gliniewicz for the Police Explorers program he oversaw. The items were stored in the basement of an infrequently used village community building in Fox Lake and were boxed for inventory by an outside company.
Officer kept secret stash of military equipment By KEVIN P. CRAVER kcraver@shawmedia.com
FOX LAKE – The basement that is home to the Fox Lake Police Explorers post looks like disgraced Lt. Joe Gliniewicz was preparing for a zombie apocalypse rather than teaching youth about police work. The room at the bottom of a flight of stairs behind a padlocked door at the village community center is packed full of military
Inside Judge extends freeze on Fox Lake Lt. Joe Gliniewicz’s widow’s bank accounts. PAGE A3
gear meant to equip combat troops. Kevlar helmets, including several with built-in radio sets for tank drivers, fill several boxes and bins, as do numerous pairs of combat fatigues in woodland and
desert colors. Other boxes hold bulletproof vests, gas masks and load-bearing vests that allow soldiers to carry high-capacity magazines and hand grenades. It’s a stockpile that authorities said Gliniewicz illegally obtained over the years through a controversial program that has allowed law enforcement nationwide to obtain military weaponry, vehicles and equipment at little to no cost. And it was the discovery of the stockpile by new Village Ad-
ministrator Anne Marrin, and her eagerness to get a full accounting of it, that could have led Gliniewicz to kill himself. The size of the stash still amazes Marrin and Lake County Sheriff’s Detective Chris Covelli, who was part of the task force that investigated what at first appeared to be a heroic officer killed in the line of duty. “We were overwhelmed with
See GLINIEWICZ, page A6
A former assistant state’s attorney who ran a heated campaign against State’s Attorney Lou Bianchi eight years ago is taking another shot at the office. Attorney Dan Regna, who worked in the office from 1995 until 2004, announced Friday he will run against Bianchi in the March 15 Republican primary. Dan Regna He called Bianchi’s 12-year tenure in his announcement one of “never-ending controversies, political feuds and failed prosecutions.” “I’m running because I’m committed to public service, and Lou Bianchi I believe I’m the best person to serve McHenry County as state’s attorney,” said Regna, of Woodstock. Regna, after his 2008 defeat in the GOP primary, was a figure in the investigation that led to the indictment alleging Bianchi conducted political activities on taxpayer time. Regna filed one of the requests that a special prosecutor be appointed. Bianchi was found innocent and cleared of all charges. He ran unopposed in 2012. Bianchi, who has held the office since 2004, is seeking a fourth fouryear term. He declined comment on Regna’s candidacy. Regna pledged, if elected, to make the office smaller, less costly and more efficient, and to more wisely employ its resources. He also pledged to help the county GOP recommit itself to lowering the property tax burden at all
See ELECTION, page A2
Crystal Lake nonprofit Families ETC to close at year’s end By KATIE DAHLSTROM kdahlstrom@shawmedia.com CRYSTAL LAKE – Crystal Lakebased Families ETC will close by the end of the year after concerns over the agency’s operations caused a dramatic drop in funding. McHenry County Mental Health Board Executive Director Scott Block said he received a letter Thursday notifying him that the Families ETC board had voted to close Jan. 1.
The closure will affect about 41 families in its two major programs and five staff members, Block said. The closure notice came about a month after the Mental Health Board decided to award only half of the $478,000 the agency had requested for the coming fiscal year, which starts Dec. 1. Block said the board awarded only six months of funding, so Families ETC leaders would find other funding sources or be able to transition services to other agencies.
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“The Mental Health Board lost confidence in the Families ETC organization to be able to continue sustainable services in the community,” Block said Friday. Families ETC has existed as a stand-alone nonprofit since 2010 in an effort by mental health leaders to provide education, intervention, support and advocacy to area families. Since its inception, the Mental Health Board has provided about 90 percent of the agency’s annual fund-
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ing, Block said. Families ETC has received an average of $363,000 a year for the past three years, according to Mental Health Board data. Last year, the Mental Health Board put pressure on the agency to become more self-sufficient as concerns started to mount about its efficacy, Block said. In addition to funding troubles, the agency had lost its executive director and Mental Health Board officials had doubts
about the number of clients the agency was serving, he added. Families ETC staff and board President Renee Shopp did not return a request for comment. According to its website, Families ETC. offers support and resources to families who have children with serious emotional needs. Both boards held a joint meeting Nov. 4 to discuss Families ETC’s
See NONPROFIT, page A2
To Italy and back McHenry County students visit landmarks through Google’s virtual reality program / A3
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