It was Aug. 6, 1992, when a 16-year-old girl complained to authorities that Libertyville Police Sgt. James Gallina had strip-searched her after seeing her in an illegally parked car with two boys in Greentree Park.
Six years later, to the date, Gallina, a lieutenant, quit his job after another teenage girl made the same complaint against him, again involving an incident in Greentree Park.
Gallina, who was cleared by the village in the 1992 case after a lengthy hearing, resigned from the Libertyville Police Department last week after a 15-year-old girl accused him of instructing her to remove her bra during a police stop in Greentree Park, according to Gallina’s attorney, Jed Stone.
Lake County Assistant State’s Atty. George Strickland said Tuesday a grand jury investigation is under way to determine “whether Gallina was acting within the scope of his duties.”
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In both incidents, Gallina was accused of ordering the girls to remove an article of clothing after seeing them in the park in illegally parked cars with teenage boys, past the 11:30 p.m. curfew.
In both incidents, Gallina, now a 22-year veteran, offered a similar defense.
In 1992, Gallina testified in a village displinary hearing that the girl was “basically nude” when he found her in a parked car with two 17-year-old boys and that he separated her from the boys to determine whether there had been a sexual assault.
In the latest case, Gallina said that the girl was wearing only a bra when he found her in the back seat of a parked car with her boyfriend and that he visually examined her body with a flashlight to make sure she had not been sexually assaulted, according to Stone.
Moreover, Stone said, Gallina never asked the girl to remove her bra, saying she voluntarily removed it.
According to Libertyville Assistant Police Chief Bruce Lord, Gallina did not make out a police report about the most recent incident, which occurred July 27, nor did he call for backup that might have provided a witness and averted a repeat of the 1992 allegation.
Stone said that may have been his client’s only mistake.
“He made a decision, and the decision was to treat this informally in order to save both children further embarrassment, and it came back to bite him,” Stone said. “His whole point was not to put these children through anything embarrassing.”
Efforts Tuesday to reach Gallina, 51, of Grayslake were unsuccessful.
As of late Tuesday, Gallina had not been charged with any crime.
During the 1992 investigation, Gallina never faced criminal charges after he was cleared by the Libertyville Board of Police and Fire Commissioners.
The board exonerated Gallina on Oct. 9, 1992, after finding the girl’s testimony was not credible. Another 60 witnesses also testified to the “honesty and integrity” of the officer, who was confined to desk duties during the investigation.
By law, the board has exclusive jurisdiction over disciplinary matters and can suspend or fire the officer if he is found guilty.
In the latest case, Gallina was placed on administrative leave on July 28, pending the outcome of an internal investigation by the Libertyville police.
Officials said that investigation was closed after Gallina resigned. They said the criminal aspect of the case has been turned over to the state’s attorney’s office and the Illinois State Police to avert any conflict of interest.
In the past, Gallina, a former Vietnam War veteran and 1965 graduate of Libertyville High School, has garnered much support from the department’s rank and file.
For example, in 1992, one month after then-Police Chief Dan McCormick filed administrative charges against Gallina over the strip-search allegation, the local Fraternal Order of Police issued a no-confidence vote against the chief.
The administrative charges were unpopular among the department’s rank and file, who thought the girl’s story was unfounded and filled with inconsistencies.
The department is keeping quiet over Gallina’s latest troubles. Officials disclosed few details about the latest allegation and about Gallina’s performance as a police officer.