Illinois Law Enforcement Accreditation Program (ILEAP)

 ILEAP and Federal Use of Force Certification Director: Lt. Jeff Hamer
[email protected]
309.333.0684

For general information about ILEAP or to learn how to get started, please contact Lt. Jeff Hamer. 

NOTE ABOUT STANDARDS: ILEAP standards were revised in 2022 and are SAFE-T Act compliant. See the link below to download the THIRD EDITION of the ILEAP Manual.

ILEAP DOCUMENTS

• ILEAP SUMMARY
• ILEAP APPLICATION (download)
• LIST OF ACCREDITED AGENCIES
• LIST OF CERTIFIED ASSESSORS
• GUIDELINES FOR ACCREDITATION MANAGER, CEO
• Proof documents for Tier 1
• Proof documents for Tier 2
• ASSESSOR GUIDELINES
• NEW! ILEAP MANUAL THIRD EDITION (revised 2022)
• Power DMS - announcement
• ILEAP in the News

• Power DMS - How to sign up
• LIST OF TIME SENSITIVE ACTIVITIES
• ILEAP ANNUAL REPORT
• NEW! ILEAP Committee Report to Executive Board 2021 (August 18, 2021)

ILEAP RESOURCES

• View the September 2021 ILEAP Webinar here to learn about ILEAP and PowerDMS. 
• View the May 2022 ILEAP 3rd Edition Webinar here to learn how and when to update to the 3rd Edition, how to save and copy over attachments, and do a side by side comparison of the 2nd and 3rd Editions.
• Visit the Power DMS web site for more information. 
• View the March 2018 ILEAP Webinar here to learn about ILEAP and PowerDMS.
  • Visit the Power DMS web site for more information.
• The Illinois Police Accreditation Coalition (IPAC) is an organization dedicated to the concept of accreditation. In support of this mission, it provides a network for member agencies that encourages communication, cooperation, support, and the sharing of valuable resources, which may include sample policies, law updates, and mock assessments.
  
  

• For the best vinyl ILEAP stickers for squads, windows, and entry doors, reach out to Natalie Divan at [email protected].  She is the Graphics Design Manager at Western Illinois University’s Visual Productions Center.  They produce high quality ILEAP stickers at a very affordable rate.  

• Click here for the COMMAND article "An Inside Look at an ILEAP Assessment; at a 'First in the Nation' Agency in Illinois" by Lt. Jeff Hamer.

ILEAP ACCREDITATION VIDEO TUTORIALS:

Maintaining Accreditation 

SUMMARY of ILEAP

The Standards

Standards were updated in 2022 and are SAFE-T Act compliant. The standards are divided into four general subject areas: Administration, Operations, Personnel, and Training.  All are mandatory except for those that are “not applicable” by function. The two tiers are not based on size, but on how comprehensive the accreditation.

• Tier One has 69 standards;
• Tier Two has 181 standards.

Direct Costs

Annual fee: Effective January 1, 2019, departments first applying for ILEAP accreditation or applying for reaccreditation after January 1, 2019, will be assessed an annual fee of $400 for Tier 1 accreditation or $800 annually for Tier 2 accreditation. The first annual payment is due at the time of application, and that would satisfy the current year’s fee. The date of payment of the application fee is considered the first year of the annual cycle. Then the annual fee in subsequent years would be due any time during the calendar year, but the department will be invoiced in January each year.

Agencies that applied for or received accreditation or reaccreditation before January 1, 2019, will not begin paying the annual fee until the year their next reaccreditation occurs.

On-Site Assessment

The on-site consists of two days of file review, interviews, and ride-alongs. The assessors arrive the night before to meet and plan, and then they proceed to the PD around 8:00 a.m. the next day. There is a two-hour phone-in session, but no public hearing.  The exit interview is between noon and 4:00 p.m. on day two.  The on-site can be accomplished in two days because most of the files will be reviewed off-site prior to the assessors’ arrival and travel time is limited.

Council Review

The lead assessor submits an Assessment Report to the ILEAP Accreditation Council Chair, who reviews and distributes the report to the Council for its review and action. If granted, accreditation is valid for four (4) years.  

Award Ceremony

A member of the ILACP Board of Officers will present the plaque honoring a department for achieving accreditation, and this will take place at a local ceremony (City Council meeting, Village Board meeting, Department meeting, etc.)

ILEAP COUNCIL Chair:

Dave Bradford, Retired Executive Director, Center for Public Safety, Northwestern University, Evanston.