SB2806 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB103 33737 AWJ 63551 b

103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
SB2806

Introduced 1/17/2024, by Sen. Jil Tracy

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

50 ILCS 705/2	from Ch. 85, par. 502
50 ILCS 705/6	from Ch. 85, par. 506
50 ILCS 705/7

Amends the Illinois Police Training Act. Defines a "basic training candidate" to mean a person enrolled in basic training school who is not a full-time or part-time law enforcement officer. Requires the Illinois Law Enforcement Training Standards Board to select and certify schools within the State of Illinois for the purpose of providing basic training for basic training candidates and to create curriculum and minimum basic training requirements for basic training candidates.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning government.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Illinois Police Training Act is amended by changing Sections 2, 6, and 7 as follows:

(50 ILCS 705/2) (from Ch. 85, par. 502)

Sec. 2. Definitions. As used in this Act, unless the context otherwise requires:

"Basic training candidate" means a person enrolled in basic training school who is not a full-time or part-time law enforcement officer.

"Board" means the Illinois Law Enforcement Training Standards Board.

"Full-time law enforcement officer" means a law enforcement officer who has completed the officer's probationary period and is employed on a full-time basis as a law enforcement officer by a local government agency, State government agency, or as a campus police officer by a university, college, or community college.

"Law Enforcement agency" means any entity with statutory police powers and the ability to employ individuals authorized to make arrests. It does not include the Illinois State Police as defined in the State Police Act. A law enforcement agency may include any university, college, or community college.

"Local law enforcement agency" means any law enforcement unit of government or municipal corporation in this State. It does not include the State of Illinois or any office, officer, department, division, bureau, board, commission, or agency of the State, except that it does include a State-controlled university, college or public community college.

"State law enforcement agency" means any law enforcement agency of this State. This includes any office, officer, department, division, bureau, board, commission, or agency of the State. It does not include the Illinois State Police as defined in the State Police Act.

"Panel" means the Certification Review Panel.

"Basic training school" means any school located within the State of Illinois whether privately or publicly owned which offers a course in basic law enforcement or county corrections training and has been approved by the Board.

"Probationary police officer" means a recruit law enforcement officer required to successfully complete initial minimum basic training requirements at a basic training school to be eligible for permanent full-time employment as a local law enforcement officer.

"Probationary part-time police officer" means a recruit part-time law enforcement officer required to successfully complete initial minimum part-time training requirements to be eligible for employment on a part-time basis as a local law enforcement officer.

"Permanent law enforcement officer" means a law enforcement officer who has completed the officer's probationary period and is permanently employed on a full-time basis as a local law enforcement officer, as a security officer, or campus police officer permanently employed by a law enforcement agency.

"Part-time law enforcement officer" means a law enforcement officer who has completed the officer's probationary period and is employed on a part-time basis as a law enforcement officer or as a campus police officer by a law enforcement agency.

"Law enforcement officer" means (i) any police officer of a law enforcement agency who is primarily responsible for prevention or detection of crime and the enforcement of the criminal code, traffic, or highway laws of this State or any political subdivision of this State or (ii) any member of a police force appointed and maintained as provided in Section 2 of the Railroad Police Act.

"Recruit" means any full-time or part-time law enforcement officer or full-time county corrections officer who is enrolled in an approved training course.

"Review Committee" means the committee at the Board for certification disciplinary cases in which the Panel, a law enforcement officer, or a law enforcement agency may file for reconsideration of a decertification decision made by the Board.

"Probationary county corrections officer" means a recruit county corrections officer required to successfully complete initial minimum basic training requirements at a basic training school to be eligible for permanent employment on a full-time basis as a county corrections officer.

"Permanent county corrections officer" means a county corrections officer who has completed the officer's probationary period and is permanently employed on a full-time basis as a county corrections officer by a participating law enforcement agency.

"County corrections officer" means any sworn officer of the sheriff who is primarily responsible for the control and custody of offenders, detainees or inmates.

"Probationary court security officer" means a recruit court security officer required to successfully complete initial minimum basic training requirements at a designated training school to be eligible for employment as a court security officer.

"Permanent court security officer" means a court security officer who has completed the officer's probationary period and is employed as a court security officer by a participating law enforcement agency.

"Court security officer" has the meaning ascribed to it in Section 3-6012.1 of the Counties Code.

(Source: P.A. 101-652, eff. 1-1-22; 102-694, eff. 1-7-22.)

(50 ILCS 705/6) (from Ch. 85, par. 506)

Sec. 6. Powers and duties of the Board; selection and certification of schools. The Board shall select and certify schools within the State of Illinois for the purpose of providing basic training for basic training candidates, probationary law enforcement officers, probationary county corrections officers, and court security officers and of providing advanced or in-service training for permanent law enforcement officers or permanent county corrections officers, which schools may be either publicly or privately owned and operated. In addition, the Board has the following power and duties:

a. To require law enforcement agencies to furnish such reports and information as the Board deems necessary to fully implement this Act.

b. To establish appropriate mandatory minimum standards relating to the training of probationary local law enforcement officers or probationary county corrections officers, and in-service training of permanent law enforcement officers.

c. To provide appropriate certification to those probationary officers who successfully complete the prescribed minimum standard basic training course.

d. To review and approve annual training curriculum for county sheriffs.

e. To review and approve applicants to ensure that no applicant is admitted to a certified academy unless the applicant is a person of good character and has not been convicted of, found guilty of, entered a plea of guilty to, or entered a plea of nolo contendere to a felony offense, any of the misdemeanors in Sections 11-1.50, 11-6, 11-6.5, 11-6.6, 11-9.1, 11-9.1B, 11-14, 11-14.1, 11-30, 12-2, 12-3.2, 12-3.4, 12-3.5, 16-1, 17-1, 17-2, 26.5-1, 26.5-2, 26.5-3, 28-3, 29-1, any misdemeanor in violation of any Section of Part E of Title III of the Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012, or subsection (a) of Section 17-32 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012, or Section 5 or 5.2 of the Cannabis Control Act, or a crime involving moral turpitude under the laws of this State or any other state which if committed in this State would be punishable as a felony or a crime of moral turpitude, or any felony or misdemeanor in violation of federal law or the law of any state that is the equivalent of any of the offenses specified therein. The Board may appoint investigators who shall enforce the duties conferred upon the Board by this Act.

For purposes of this paragraph e, a person is considered to have been convicted of, found guilty of, or entered a plea of guilty to, plea of nolo contendere to regardless of whether the adjudication of guilt or sentence is withheld or not entered thereon. This includes sentences of supervision, conditional discharge, or first offender probation, or any similar disposition provided for by law.

f. To establish statewide standards for minimum standards regarding regular mental health screenings for probationary and permanent police officers, ensuring that counseling sessions and screenings remain confidential.

g. To review and ensure all law enforcement officers remain in compliance with this Act, and any administrative rules adopted under this Act.

h. To suspend any certificate for a definite period, limit or restrict any certificate, or revoke any certificate.

i. The Board and the Panel shall have power to secure by its subpoena and bring before it any person or entity in this State and to take testimony either orally or by deposition or both with the same fees and mileage and in the same manner as prescribed by law in judicial proceedings in civil cases in circuit courts of this State. The Board and the Panel shall also have the power to subpoena the production of documents, papers, files, books, documents, and records, whether in physical or electronic form, in support of the charges and for defense, and in connection with a hearing or investigation.

j. The Executive Director, the administrative law judge designated by the Executive Director, and each member of the Board and the Panel shall have the power to administer oaths to witnesses at any hearing that the Board is authorized to conduct under this Act and any other oaths required or authorized to be administered by the Board under this Act.

k. In case of the neglect or refusal of any person to obey a subpoena issued by the Board and the Panel, any circuit court, upon application of the Board and the Panel, through the Illinois Attorney General, may order such person to appear before the Board and the Panel give testimony or produce evidence, and any failure to obey such order is punishable by the court as a contempt thereof. This order may be served by personal delivery, by email, or by mail to the address of record or email address of record.

l. The Board shall have the power to administer state certification examinations. Any and all records related to these examinations, including, but not limited to, test questions, test formats, digital files, answer responses, answer keys, and scoring information shall be exempt from disclosure.

m. To make grants, subject to appropriation, to units of local government and public institutions of higher education for the purposes of hiring and retaining law enforcement officers.

n. To make grants, subject to appropriation, to local law enforcement agencies for costs associated with the expansion and support of National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN) and other ballistic technology equipment for ballistic testing.

(Source: P.A. 102-687, eff. 12-17-21; 102-694, eff. 1-7-22; 102-1115, eff. 1-9-23; 103-8, eff. 6-7-23.)

(50 ILCS 705/7)

Sec. 7. Rules and standards for schools. The Board shall adopt rules and minimum standards for such schools which shall include, but not be limited to, the following:

a. The curriculum for basic training candidates and probationary law enforcement officers which shall be offered by all certified schools shall include, but not be limited to, courses of procedural justice, arrest and use and control tactics, search and seizure, including temporary questioning, civil rights, human rights, human relations, cultural competency, including implicit bias and racial and ethnic sensitivity, criminal law, law of criminal procedure, constitutional and proper use of law enforcement authority, crisis intervention training, vehicle and traffic law including uniform and non-discriminatory enforcement of the Illinois Vehicle Code, traffic control and crash investigation, techniques of obtaining physical evidence, court testimonies, statements, reports, firearms training, training in the use of electronic control devices, including the psychological and physiological effects of the use of those devices on humans, first-aid (including cardiopulmonary resuscitation), training in the administration of opioid antagonists as defined in paragraph (1) of subsection (e) of Section 5-23 of the Substance Use Disorder Act, handling of juvenile offenders, recognition of mental conditions and crises, including, but not limited to, the disease of addiction, which require immediate assistance and response and methods to safeguard and provide assistance to a person in need of mental treatment, recognition of abuse, neglect, financial exploitation, and self-neglect of adults with disabilities and older adults, as defined in Section 2 of the Adult Protective Services Act, crimes against the elderly, law of evidence, the hazards of high-speed police vehicle chases with an emphasis on alternatives to the high-speed chase, and physical training. The curriculum shall include specific training in techniques for immediate response to and investigation of cases of domestic violence and of sexual assault of adults and children, including cultural perceptions and common myths of sexual assault and sexual abuse as well as interview techniques that are age sensitive and are trauma informed, victim centered, and victim sensitive. The curriculum shall include training in techniques designed to promote effective communication at the initial contact with crime victims and ways to comprehensively explain to victims and witnesses their rights under the Rights of Crime Victims and Witnesses Act and the Crime Victims Compensation Act. The curriculum shall also include training in effective recognition of and responses to stress, trauma, and post-traumatic stress experienced by law enforcement officers that is consistent with Section 25 of the Illinois Mental Health First Aid Training Act in a peer setting, including recognizing signs and symptoms of work-related cumulative stress, issues that may lead to suicide, and solutions for intervention with peer support resources. The curriculum shall include a block of instruction addressing the mandatory reporting requirements under the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act. The curriculum shall also include a block of instruction aimed at identifying and interacting with persons with autism and other developmental or physical disabilities, reducing barriers to reporting crimes against persons with autism, and addressing the unique challenges presented by cases involving victims or witnesses with autism and other developmental disabilities. The curriculum shall include training in the detection and investigation of all forms of human trafficking. The curriculum shall also include instruction in trauma-informed responses designed to ensure the physical safety and well-being of a child of an arrested parent or immediate family member; this instruction must include, but is not limited to: (1) understanding the trauma experienced by the child while maintaining the integrity of the arrest and safety of officers, suspects, and other involved individuals; (2) de-escalation tactics that would include the use of force when reasonably necessary; and (3) inquiring whether a child will require supervision and care. The curriculum for basic training candidates and probationary law enforcement officers shall include: (1) at least 12 hours of hands-on, scenario-based role-playing; (2) at least 6 hours of instruction on use of force techniques, including the use of de-escalation techniques to prevent or reduce the need for force whenever safe and feasible; (3) specific training on officer safety techniques, including cover, concealment, and time; and (4) at least 6 hours of training focused on high-risk traffic stops. The curriculum for permanent law enforcement officers shall include, but not be limited to: (1) refresher and in-service training in any of the courses listed above in this subparagraph, (2) advanced courses in any of the subjects listed above in this subparagraph, (3) training for supervisory personnel, and (4) specialized training in subjects and fields to be selected by the board. The training in the use of electronic control devices shall be conducted for basic training candidates and probationary law enforcement officers, including University police officers. The curriculum shall also include training on the use of a firearms restraining order by providing instruction on the process used to file a firearms restraining order and how to identify situations in which a firearms restraining order is appropriate.

b. Minimum courses of study, attendance requirements and equipment requirements.

c. Minimum requirements for instructors.

d. Minimum basic training requirements, which a basic training candidate and probationary law enforcement officer must satisfactorily complete before being eligible for permanent employment as a local law enforcement officer for a participating local governmental or State governmental agency. Those requirements shall include training in first aid (including cardiopulmonary resuscitation).

e. Minimum basic training requirements, which a probationary county corrections officer must satisfactorily complete before being eligible for permanent employment as a county corrections officer for a participating local governmental agency.

f. Minimum basic training requirements which a probationary court security officer must satisfactorily complete before being eligible for permanent employment as a court security officer for a participating local governmental agency. The Board shall establish those training requirements which it considers appropriate for court security officers and shall certify schools to conduct that training.

A person hired to serve as a court security officer must obtain from the Board a certificate (i) attesting to the officer's successful completion of the training course; (ii) attesting to the officer's satisfactory completion of a training program of similar content and number of hours that has been found acceptable by the Board under the provisions of this Act; or (iii) attesting to the Board's determination that the training course is unnecessary because of the person's extensive prior law enforcement experience.

Individuals who currently serve as court security officers shall be deemed qualified to continue to serve in that capacity so long as they are certified as provided by this Act within 24 months of June 1, 1997 (the effective date of Public Act 89-685). Failure to be so certified, absent a waiver from the Board, shall cause the officer to forfeit his or her position.

All individuals hired as court security officers on or after June 1, 1997 (the effective date of Public Act 89-685) shall be certified within 12 months of the date of their hire, unless a waiver has been obtained by the Board, or they shall forfeit their positions.

The Sheriff's Merit Commission, if one exists, or the Sheriff's Office if there is no Sheriff's Merit Commission, shall maintain a list of all individuals who have filed applications to become court security officers and who meet the eligibility requirements established under this Act. Either the Sheriff's Merit Commission, or the Sheriff's Office if no Sheriff's Merit Commission exists, shall establish a schedule of reasonable intervals for verification of the applicants' qualifications under this Act and as established by the Board.

g. Minimum in-service training requirements, which a law enforcement officer must satisfactorily complete every 3 years. Those requirements shall include constitutional and proper use of law enforcement authority, procedural justice, civil rights, human rights, reporting child abuse and neglect, and cultural competency, including implicit bias and racial and ethnic sensitivity. These trainings shall consist of at least 30 hours of training every 3 years.

h. Minimum in-service training requirements, which a law enforcement officer must satisfactorily complete at least annually. Those requirements shall include law updates, emergency medical response training and certification, crisis intervention training, and officer wellness and mental health.

i. Minimum in-service training requirements as set forth in Section 10.6.

Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the changes made to this Section by Public Act 101-652, Public Act 102-28, and Public Act 102-694 take effect July 1, 2022.

(Source: P.A. 102-28, eff. 6-25-21; 102-345, eff. 6-1-22; 102-558, eff. 8-20-21; 102-694, eff. 1-7-22; 102-982, eff. 7-1-23; 103-154, eff. 6-30-23.)