Kane County State’s Attorney among two others named as the 2021 ILACP’s Public Officials of the Year

KANE COUNTY — The Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police (ILACP) has recently named three people as its Public Officials of the Year for 2021.

The three recipients of the title include Illinois State Senator Rachelle Crowe (D-Glen Carbon), Illinois State Representative Dan Ugaste (R-St. Charles), and Kane County State’s Attorney Jamie Mosser.

“All three of these people have been good friends of law enforcement as new laws have been proposed and discussed,” said ILACP President Mitchell R. Davis III. “Last year, we recognized Attorney General Kwame Raoul and Representative Patrick Windhorst (R-Metropolis) for their advocacy of local law enforcement, and this year we’re recognizing three public officials who stand up for us when we need it most in Springfield and throughout the state.”

For some background, Senator Crowe was one of few Democrats who voted in January 2021 against the original SAFE-T Act (HB3653), which the ILACP called “seriously flawed.”

The original bill called for the elimination of monetary bail, a requirement that all police wear body cameras by 2025, a ban on all police chokeholds, new guidelines for “decertification” of police officers, as well as an end to suspended licenses for failure to pay, to name a few of the changes HB3653 was proposing.

According to the ILACP, Crowe and others against the House Bill urged Gov. Pritzker to veto, but their attempts proved to be unsuccessful. In 2021 and early 2022, Crowe voted for two trailer bills supported by the Illinois Chiefs, due to the law needing to be “fixed.”

“Those trailer bills fixed a few problems in the original law. Senator Crowe has listened carefully to our concerns and is now helping to push legislation that we still need,” said ILACP Executive Director Ed Wojcicki. “We are grateful that she is a moderate voice of reason in the Illinois Senate.”

Representative Ugaste also voted against the original SAFE-T Act and has been instrumental in bringing concerns of law enforcement to the House floor, committee hearings, and subject matter hearings, stated the ILACP.

As an appointee to the Qualified Immunity Task Force — otherwise known as the Illinois Constitutional Rights and Remedies Task Force, Ugaste has shown his commitment to law enforcement by being a persistent opponent of efforts to diminish or remove state-level qualified immunity and tort immunity from police officers.

“He has been an equally outspoken and articulate voice this year on the ad hoc Public Safety and Violence Prevention Task Force, and has asked for and received the Illinois Chiefs’ lengthy list of suggestions to combat violence and make communities safer,” stated the ILACP.

Among those testifying to the task force, which is considering an anti-violence and anti-crime package this upcoming spring, has been ILACP President Davis (chief in Hazel Crest), Vice President Marc Maton (chief in Lemont), and ILACP Deputy Director Kenny Winslow (retired Springfield chief).

As for Mosser, the ILACP states that she stepped up to assist the organization and other law enforcement advocates during negotiations of all the major criminal justice laws in the past two years.

As an attorney, Mosser recommended specific language to improve the SAFE-T Act and to make the trailer bills even more effective for law enforcement.

“Then we provided training to hundreds of chiefs and their departments to help them understand and implement the laws, and Jamie took a leading role in preparing the materials for the training and then being one of our primary trainers,” Wojcicki said. “Our association’s leaders were so grateful that she devoted that much time and expertise on our behalf; the law is now much improved because of her insights and collaborative style.”

Ordinarily, ILACP recognizes its Public Officials of the Year at a legislative reception in Springfield. But due to COVID and the shortened legislative session this spring, all three will be recognized individually either in Springfield or in their communities.