‘It just shocks the conscience’: Dixon officials feel betrayed in wake of Crundwell sentence commutation

DIXON – Local and state officials reacted with outrage Thursday after learning President Joe Biden is commuting the remainder of Rita Crundwell‘s nearly 20-year federal prison sentence.

The former Dixon city comptroller convicted of embezzling $53.7 million from the city over her 20-year tenure is among one of roughly 1,500 people granted clemency by Biden just weeks before he leaves office.

“It just shocks the conscience,” Dixon City Manager Danny Langloss said in an interview with Shaw Local. “I just completely feel betrayed by the justice system, the federal government and the president.”

For Dixon City Council member Dennis Considine, “it’s still, to me, somewhat of a slap in the face. According to the people in power, she’s served all of her time but it’s hard to swallow.”

Langloss, who was police chief at the time of Crundwell’s arrest, and Considine are questioning how the decision was made because the city received no communication or notification that her sentence is being commuted. Langloss said he found out about 11:30 a.m. Thursday. Considine found out from Langloss a short time later.

“It’s very saddened for our community that she’s been given this opportunity without any input,” Considine said.

In a news release, state Rep. Bradley Fritts, R-Dixon, wrote “to say I am outraged by the commutation of the sentence of Rita Crundwell is a great understatement, as Ms. Crundwell stole more than 50 million dollars from the good taxpaying citizens of the city of Dixon, violated the public’s trust, and used the stolen money to live a lavish lifestyle.”

“The people of Dixon were victimized by this woman, and she still owes money that she stole,” Fritts said. “This is an unacceptable commutation. This commutation comes just a short time after Crundwell was released from prison early without any notice being given to the city of Dixon of her release. This is a double slap in the face.”

Crundwell was released in August 2021 from a medium-security facility in Pekin to a federal halfway house in Downers Grove.

“It doesn’t appear that the damage of somebody’s crime was considered in this clemency determination,” Langloss said. “She created the largest municipal embezzlement in the history of the country. She’s a criminal. She pled guilty. She should have served her sentence.”

Crundwell used the stolen funds to pay for a lavish lifestyle while Dixon struggled to pay for infrastructure and other projects.

“There’s a lot of things that wouldn’t have deteriorated like they had,” Langloss said.

One project that’s only now being completed includes repairs to the city’s wastewater treatment plant, for which the council accepted a $439,905 bid at its Nov. 4 meeting.

Considine, who was first elected to the council about six months before Crundwell‘s crimes were discovered, said that the plant has been in need of repairs for a long time and when the issue was first brought to Crundwell it was predicted to cost about $35,000 to fix.

The aftershock of Crundwell’s crimes led the city to convert from a commissioner form of government to a council-manager form and to make many changes to policies and the way it does business.

“I think it’s good for us to be outraged. To be shocked, to feel betrayed, but not to hold on to that too long, because we’ve moved beyond it and what’s happening in Dixon is absolutely phenomenal,” Langloss said. “The city is so much better for the change that has come since Rita was arrested.”