Schools, Community Near Latest Homicide Take Precaution
By: Eugene Daniel
Updated: February 15, 2013
PEORIA - A north Peoria
community is taking precautions after a woman was found dead in her home Friday.
Police tape no longer
surrounds the home at 700 W. Mossville Rd. But the shooting death of Denise
Leuthold, 39, and the fact that police have made no arrests is still fresh on
people's minds.
Resident James Thomas
has lived in the area for 17 years and he's never seen anything like this.
Leuthold was a mother
of three children. Police say it likely started as a burglary. Authorities
found signs of forced entry and it appeared someone rummaged through the
residence. When police arrived, her car was missing from the residence, but it
was later found in the parking lot of Robinson Park, less than a mile away.
Now, Thomas and many
other neighbors who spoke with WMBD 31 say they're doing something uncommon in
their quiet area.
"(Police) were
saying you know, make sure your doors are closed. You know," said Thomas.
Police have asked
nearby residents to lock doors to homes and cars and to look out for suspicious
activity.
Schools are also taking
precaution.
"You know that's pretty close to our
schools and we did have some parent concerns last night," said Dr. Jay Marino,
Dunlap CUSD 323 Superintendent.
Dunlap District Schools
were placed on "soft lockdown" Friday. According to Marino, all school
doors were locked and visitors were checked before coming in. The playgrounds
were empty because students were kept indoors.
"The person who
committed that crime has not been apprehended," said Marino. "So a reasonable
response was let's go into a soft lockdown where we'll still allow people
within the school but make sure we very well control that and make sure
students are safe within the walls of the school."
According to Marino the
schools just want to play it safe and he's not ready to say when the lockdown
will be lifted. School is out on Monday for President's Day.
Thomas says he's going
to be careful, but won't overdo it.
"One of the
unfortunate parts is that could happen anywhere. You know, if you worry about
everything that could happen, you wouldn't leave your house," he said.
