The wife of a deceased Fox Lake police officer pleaded guilty Friday to a charge connected to her husband’s financial crimes, in a case that was initially charged more than six years ago, according to prosecutors.
Melodie Gliniewicz made her plea Friday in Lake County court to one felony count of deceptive practices, on the eve of a trial that was scheduled to begin next week. Prosecutors and her attorneys presented the negotiated plea to Judge James Booras, who set an April 12 date for sentencing.
In return for the guilty plea, prosecutors dropped other charges she was facing. Gliniewicz could face one to three years in prison, or probation.
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She had been charged in 2016 with 10 felony counts related to financial misconduct tied to her husband, Lt. Joseph Gliniewicz. The Fox Lake officer staged his own suicide in 2015 when a village administrator became aware of financial discrepancies in a youth law enforcement program that the officer oversaw.
Authorities alleged that Joseph Gliniewicz stole money from the Explorers program and used it for personal purposes.
His wife was charged in the months after his death. Melodie Gliniewicz has been free on bond as her case has been working through the system since early 2016.
There was a lengthy appeal in the pretrial phase as her attorneys disputed whether text messages the couple exchanged could be admitted at trial. The trial court ruled that the messages could not be used, but that was reversed on appeal.
In recent weeks, Gliniewicz’s attorneys and Fox Lake’s village attorney had sparred in court over documents related to the departure of former Village Administrator Anne Marrin in 2021. She was the Fox Lake official who initially suspected Joseph Gliniewicz of stealing from the Explorers law enforcement program.
Joe Gliniewicz shot himself to death in September 2015 when it appeared his thefts were about to be uncovered. He staged his death to make it appear as if he had been killed in the line of duty.