CHICAGO — A lawsuit against the Illinois village of Fox Lake and the estate of a police officer who killed himself says police initially investigating the death as a homicide targeted a man as a suspect because of his race.
Vernon Randolph says in the lawsuit filed Friday that Lt. Charles Joseph Gliniewicz had repeatedly harassed him. Randolph, who’s black, says federal agents investigating Gliniewicz’s Sept. 1 death surrounded him and his child and pointed guns at them.
Randolph says authorities questioned him, searched his home and took a DNA swab “based solely on his race.”
The lawsuit contends village leaders knew about Gliniewicz’s misconduct for years, but kept employing him.
The village says it’s reviewing the lawsuit and will defend itself against the claims.
