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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of Jim
4Drozdz of Hamilton, who passed away on December 29, 2013; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Jim Drozdz was born on January 23, 1960 in Chicago
6to James A. Drozdz and Joan M. (nee Moore) Brown; he graduated
7from Alan B. Shepard High School in Palos Heights and received
8his bachelor's degree in Law Enforcement in 1981 from Western
9Illinois University; he married Barbara Goodin on June 2, 1984
10at St. Paul Church in Macomb; he received his master's degree
11from Western Illinois University in 1990, where he was a member
12of the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society, and his Juris Doctor in
131992 from the Southern Illinois University School of Law and
14was admitted to practice before the Illinois courts; in 1999,
15he was admitted to practice before the United States Supreme
16Court, and in 2004 he received his Ph.D. in Higher Education
17Administration from the University of Iowa, where he was a
18member of the Pi Lambda Theta Honor Society; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Jim Drozdz served with the Illinois State Police
20from 1984 until 2004, when he was elected the State's Attorney
21for Hancock County; he was re-elected in 2008 and 2012; during
22his time with the Illinois State Police he served in many
23capacities, including as Executive Officer of the Division of

 

 

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1Internal Investigation in Springfield, as the Henderson County
2Assistant State's Attorney, as an Adjunct Professor in the Law
3Enforcement and Justice Administration Department at Western
4Illinois University, as a Patrol Sergeant for District 14 in
5Macomb, and as a Research Fellow with the International
6Association of Chiefs of Police in Alexandria, Virginia; he
7also served as Special Assistant to the Illinois Attorney
8General and was a Legal Advisor to the Illinois State Police in
9the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit; he was a member of the
10National District Attorneys' Association and the Hancock
11County Bar Association; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Jim Drozdz was an active community member, serving
13as a paramedic for the Hancock County Ambulance Service and as
14a firefighter for the Hamilton Fire Department; he was a member
15and past President of the Carthage Kiwanis Club and former
16member of the Carthage Lions Club; he was on the Hancock County
17Republican Precinct Committee and was an active member of the
18Knights of Columbus and the Immaculate Conception Catholic
19Church in Carthage, where he served on the Parish Council; and
 
20    WHEREAS, Jim Drozdz enjoyed playing the bagpipes for area
21events and funerals; he liked body building, fitness training,
22traveling, semi-truck driving, and teaching Criminal Law,
23Criminal Procedure, Emergency Medical Services, and Emergency
24Medical Technician classes; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Jim Drozdz is survived by his wife, Barbara; his
2father, James Drozdz; his mother and step-father, Joan and
3Gordon Brown; and his sister, Debra Reule; therefore, be it
 
4    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
5NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
6we mourn the passing of Jim Drozdz, and extend our sincere
7condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved
8him; and be it further
 
9    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
10presented to the family of Jim Drozdz as an expression of our
11deepest sympathy.