Law enforcement agencies throughout the state reported that a
total of 473,834 indexed crimes occurred last year, compared with
486,469 in 2004. Crime was down in three categories:
-
Murder decreased for
the fourth consecutive year, by 3.2 percent.
-
Theft decreased by
5.2 percent, resulting in its largest decline since 1999.
-
Motor vehicle theft
decreased for the second consecutive year, by 3.0 percent.
After significant decreases last year, the state experienced
slight increases in the following areas:
-
Robbery increased by
2.2 percent.
-
Burglary increased
1.3 percent.
-
Arson rose by 1.0
percent.
-
Criminal sexual
assault increased by 1.7 percent.
-
Aggravated assault
and battery rose slightly by 0.4 percent.
The following is a breakdown of crime rates for various areas of
the state:
Offenses (all crimes)
-
Chicago, down 6.5
percent
-
Downstate, down 0.9
percent
-
Cook County, down 6.0
percent
-
Suburban Cook County,
down 4.2 percent
-
Collar counties, down
1.4 percent
-
Urban counties, up
0.2 percent
-
Rural counties, up
0.7 percent
"The Illinois State Police is committed to working with local law
enforcement to ensure the safety of our citizens and to meet the
problems which affect today's society," said Trent. "Improvements in
communication technology have helped to provide better coordination
between state and local agencies, thereby improving response to
critical situations. In addition, enhancements to DNA technology and
analysis have helped law enforcement solve crimes committed in their
communities."
The agency pointed to ongoing efforts to combat methamphetamine,
one of the fastest-growing and most dangerous illegal drug trades in
Illinois, as a key factor in successfully reducing crime in
Illinois. In 2005, Gov. Blagojevich created six dedicated meth
response teams, which marked their one-year anniversary in June of
this year. During the first year of operation, the teams handled a
total of 559 meth-related incidents, made 513 arrests and seized
nearly 34,000 grams of drugs and materials related to the production
of meth. A recent report issued by the Illinois Criminal Justice
Information Authority said the teams had an immediate and
significant effect on the growing problem of meth use and production
and were responsible for easing the burden on localized drug task
forces.
"The Illinois State Police will continue to dedicate all the
resources necessary to combat the proliferation of this dangerous
and devastating drug," said Trent. "The governor has given law
enforcement the tools it needs to combat meth by signing laws
necessary to achieve the mission of removing this destructive drug
from our communities."
Several pieces of aggressive legislation have been enacted to
reduce meth manufacturing in Illinois, including the Methamphetamine
Precursor Control Act, one of the most significant
anti-methamphetamine statutes enacted to address meth. The act makes
it harder for meth producers to obtain ingredients necessary for its
production, designates pseudoephedrine as a Schedule V substance,
restricts the retail sale of pseudoephedrine-containing products to
pharmacists or pharmacist technicians only, and requires purchasers
of pseudoephedrine-containing products to show identification and
sign a log.
[to top of second column]
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 The governor also signed several other pieces of meth-related
legislation:
-
Establishment of a
statewide methamphetamine offender registry in Illinois for
people convicted under the "participation in methamphetamine
manufacturing" statute.
-
Designation of the
new offense of meth trafficking for individuals who knowingly
bring methamphetamine or its precursors into Illinois with the
intent to make, deliver or sell meth. The new law prevents meth
manufacturers from trying to get around Illinois' tough
restrictions on access to pseudoephedrine by going to other
states for meth ingredients.
-
Establishment of
an anhydrous ammonia security grant program
to help Illinois agricultural
fertilizer dealers protect their product from thieves involved
in the illicit production of methamphetamine. The $1.6 million
initiative will provide grants to facilities to install locks on
anhydrous ammonia tanks, purchase video surveillance cameras or
blend approved additives into their anhydrous ammonia to render
it useless for the production of methamphetamine.
-
Creation of the
Methamphetamine Law Enforcement Fund, which assesses an
additional $100 fine for anyone found guilty of a drug-related
offense involving possession or delivery of meth. The additional
money will be deposited into a fund used to reimburse local law
enforcement agencies for the costs associated with the cleanup
of sites and facilities used for the illegal manufacture of meth,
defray the costs of employing full-time or part-time peace
officers, and defray county costs associated with medical or
dental expenses resulting from the incarceration of meth addicts
in county jails or corrections facilities.
In addition to combating meth, the governor signed several gun
laws in an effort to keep Illinois communities safe from gun
violence by creating stiff penalties for habitual criminals who are
caught with guns, closing the gun-show loophole that allowed gun
buyers to avoid comprehensive background checks, and imposing
harsher prison sentences for individuals convicted of a crime using
a firearm. The governor also provided $3.9 million for Operation
CeaseFire programs in Illinois in fiscal 2006, including seven
$250,000 grants for communities that received funding for the first
time.
In March 2005, the Illinois State Police launched a gubernatorial
initiative targeting the influx of crime guns into Illinois, based
on studies that showed more crime guns flow into Illinois from
Indiana and Mississippi than from any of the other states. Illinois
State Police officers are working with federal authorities and law
enforcement agencies, both in-state and out-of-state, to detect and
apprehend gunrunners and illegal gun dealers. Since the inception of
the initiative, Illinois State Police officers have seized more than
2,000 firearms and arrested more than 300 violators on gun-related
charges.
In Illinois, federal, state and local agencies work together to
combat terrorism on every front. As the threat level of our nation
changes, local law enforcement agencies share intelligence
information to ensure a level of heightened awareness. This past
May, Blagojevich ordered that a large-scale exercise be conducted in
Chicago to test the State Weapons of Mass Destruction Team's
preparedness to effectively react and respond to a major health
crisis and incidents of terrorism. The exercise was in response to
major problems encountered with preparedness and emergency response
in the Gulf Coast region as a result of Hurricane Katrina. During
the exercise, the experience and knowledge gained provided the team
with the expertise needed to be among the best-trained and most
prepared units in the nation.
This August, "Prairie Thunder," the second disaster preparedness
exercise to be conducted within the past three months, took place in
the Metro East area. More than 1,000 federal, state and local
responders participated in the five-day emergency response exercise,
which was staged to test the state's ability to respond to mass
evacuation and sheltering capabilities.
The 2005 Illinois crime report is available at
http://www.isp.state.il.us/crime/cii2005.cfm.
[Illinois State Police
news release] |
