Retired Chicago Officer Accused of Threatening Key Officials in Fox Lake Police Shooting Case

A retired Chicago police officer faces felony disorderly conduct charges for allegations he threatened to kill those involved in an investigation into the shooting death of Fox Lake Police Lt. Charles Joseph Gliniewicz.

An arrest warrant was issued Saturday for Joseph A. Battaglia, 54, of the 5600 block of West 103rd Street in Oak Lawn, on Saturday. He was arrested at his Oak Lawn home and has been charged with two counts of disorderly conduct, class 4 felony. Battaglia is being held at the Lake County Jail on a $100,000 bail, Lake County Sheriff’s Office Detective Christopher Covelli said in a news release.

The charges stem from a call made to the Lake County Coroner’s Office at about 2 p.m. on Friday. The caller said he planned to harm all of the task force members on the team investigating Gliniewicz’s unless Gliniewicz’s death was ruled a suicide, Covelli said.

The threats included other investigators, coroner’s office employees as well as Coroner Thomas Rudd and Lake County Major Crime Task Force Commander George Filenko, according to media reports. Filenko heads the Lake County Major Crime Task Force and is leading the investigation into Lt. Charles Joseph Gliniewicz’s death.

During the call, the suspect identified himself as a “retired police officer.” The Lake County Sheriff’s Office Investigations Division traced the calls to Battaglia and learned he was a retired Chicago police officer, Covelli said.

“Battaglia has had zero involvement in the investigation of Lieutenant Gliniewicz,” Covelli said.

Battaglia also called other police agencies and several media outlets over the past couple days, he said. Covelli provided the following information regarding recent media reports surrounding the case:

As of recent, some media outlets have reported on obtaining information from an anonymous source even after being told the information is inaccurate. It is unknown at this time if Battaglia is one of the “sources” media outlets have reported on regarding this investigation. Battaglia’s phone records show he has communicated with several media outlets during a similar time period.

“We will not tolerate any behavior which disrupts our investigative efforts. Any intentional criminal acts to distract or impair our investigation will be actively investigated and turned over to the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office for prosecution,” Lake County Undersheriff Raymond Rose said.

An investigation continues into Gliniewicz’s death and officials have not determined a cause of death. Police have said they are looking for three men who Gliniewicz said he was chasing shortly before he was found shot dead in Fox Lake on Sept. 1.

Last week, police bashed Rudd for releasing “sensitive information” to the media while an investigation is still under way, calling the actions “completely irresponsible.”

Judge Veronica O’Malley also ordered Battaglia not have any contact, directly and indirectly, with Lake County officials in the coroner’s office and Filenko, according to the article. He was also ordered to surrender his firearms and FOID card.

Battaglia is next expected in court on Sept. 15.

Patch’s coverage of the Fox Lake shooting can be found below.