Today, the fallout from the bombshell announcement continues to spread.
There were several commentators who used Gliniewicz's death as fodder for statements attacking black activists. Some of them have directly addressed the incident. Jim Pasco, the executive director of the Fraternal Order of Police, who during the original manhunt indicated that activists encouraged a "criminal element" that led to Gliniewicz's death, changed his tune. According to The Washington Post: “This man didn’t just betray himself and his family,” Pasco said. “He betrayed a profession that is sworn to uphold the law.”
Another commentator who linked activism to Gliniewicz's death was Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker. In a column that bashed President Obama for failing to speak out against "anti-police rhetoric," Walker used only two police deaths—of which Gliniewicz's was one—as evidence that violence against police was rising. So far, the Star Tribune reports that Walker has not yet commented on yesterday's findings.
The incendiary rhetoric and the lionization of Gliniewicz that spawned from the original reports of his death bely one fact about policing: that 2015 is actually one of the safest years on record to be a cop. His death does underscore one important fact about police lives: that they often face mental health problems, and according to the International Association of Chiefs of Police face far higher suicide rates than the general population. Perhaps this is a key element in caring for police lives as more than a rhetorical counterpoint against black activists. It is also another reason to push for rigorous oversight of police action and accountability.
There is also Gliniewicz's family to consider. Initial reports from Fox-affiliate Fox-32 indicate that investigators believe accomplices were involved in Gliniewicz's embezzling and have launched an investigation into his wife and son. The 100 Club of Chicago, an organization that provides support for the surviving families of police who die on the line of duty, is requesting that Gliniewicz's family give back the $15,000 gift they were given in September. This is the first time that the organization has requested the return of a donation. Regardless of the findings of the investigation, Gliniewicz's family may be seriously impacted financially, legally, and socially.
We'll be keeping tabs on more developments coming out of this story as they unfold.
11:15 AM PT: So, even more news out of this story today. It turns out that investigators found that Officer Gliniewicz sent texts last year to an intermediary with the intent of setting up a "hit" on village administrator Anne Marrin. No word on the exact details of the planned "hit," but AP Reports/a> that it could have involved planting cocaine and/or hired gang members.