Illinois State Police
The Illinois State Police (ISP) is the state police force of Illinois. Officially established in 1922, the Illinois State Police have over 3,000 personnel and 21 districts. The main facilities of the Illinois State Police Academy, which were constructed in 1968, are located in Springfield. Prior to 1968, training was conducted at the Illinois State Fairgrounds. ISP also maintains the Illinois sex offender registry, administers the state's AMBER Alert program, and issues Illinois Firearm Owner Identification Cards (FOID) and Concealed Carry Licenses. The Illinois State Police is also responsible for driving and physically protecting the Governor  of Illinois. In 2005, officers and duties of the Illinois Department of Central Management Services Police were merged into the Illinois State Police. Organization. As of 2006, the Illinois State Police is organized into several divisions: Traffic enforcement. Illinois State Police currently use various methods for speed limit enforcement on Illinois highways. Hand-held and moving RADAR, LIDAR, pacing, air speed utilizing the ISP fleet of aircraft, and time-distance measurement. The IL State Police uses typical marked units (Crown Victorias, Impalas, and Chargers, Ford Police Interceptor) as well as unmarked units of vehicles ranging from Crown Victorias to Grand  Prix GTPs to LS-1 powered Z28s to Mustang GTs. The Mustangs, Camaros, and other vehicles are for a program created to combat aggressive driving and speeding. Lightbars used on marked units are Code 3 X2100 LED units, Federal Signal Legend units and Code 3 MX7000 halogen/strobe units. Prior to that, it was a mixture of the Code 3 MX7000s and Federal Signal JetSonics and Federal Signal Vistas. Since 1986, the Illinois State Police has patrolled Chicago expressways (Districts 3 and 4, which merged to become District Chicago). Since 2006, photo radar mounted in vans have been used for speed  enforcement in construction zones statewide. Though the vans are manned by State Police troopers, a private company, ACS State and Local Solutions, provides the vans for a fee and receives a bonus of $15 per ticket issued. A Motorcycle Enforcement Bureau (MEB) was created in 2006 consisting of 41 officers in six squads dispersed throughout the state. 50 Harley-Davidson FLHTPI Electra Glide's were leased for this use by the MEB. Due to cost-cutting measures in mid 2010, the Motorcycle Enforcement Bureau was disbanded, however some motorcycle officers remain in the larger Districts such as Chicago and  Metro East. Illinois State Police Merit Board. The Illinois State Police Merit Board administers the certification of the appointment and promotion of state police officers as well as their discipline, removal, demotion and suspension. The merit board consists of five civilian members who are appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the state senate. Each member serves for a term of six years and no more than three members may be affiliated with the same political party. Fallen Troopers. Since the establishment of the Illinois State Police, 67 troopers have died while on duty. Uniform. The uniform  of the Illinois State Police has certain qualities that separate it from its neighbors. Instead of a chocolate brown uniform (similar to the Iowa State Patrol), or a light blue on dark blue (similar to the Missouri State Highway Patrol), they wear light tan/khaki shirts, and dark green pants with black trim. Dress uniforms include a jacket that matches the pants. The cold weather gear incorporates a chocolate brown all weather jacket. Leather duty gear consists of black high gloss clarino holsters, belts and accessories. The hat that is worn by the state police is a dark brown campaign  hat. The badge, instead of the traditional shield surmounted by an eagle design, is a six-pointed star that reads the rank of the trooper, and the words ""Illinois State Police"" in black, along with (beginning in 2002) the officer's badge number. (The badge's sequential inventory number is found stamped on the reverse side of the badge.) The badges are silver, or chrome plated steel for all ranks below Sergeant, and for Sergeant and above, the star is gold plated. Troopers are issued a Glock 22 .40 S&W sidearm. Vehicles. The Illinois State Police vehicle fleet consists of  mixture of Ford Police Interceptor Utilities, Chevrolet Tahoe Police Pursuit Vehicles, Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptors, Dodge Chargers and Harley Davidson motorcycles for street patrols. The agency also maintains a fleet of six aircraft, one Cessna 421C and five Cessna 182. These aircraft are stationed at four airports, Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport, DuPage Airport, MidAmerica St. Louis Airport and Whiteside County Airport. ISP has used aircraft for speed enforcement, using stop watch time measurement, since 1959. In addition to fixed-wing aircraft, troopers use unmanned aircraft during specific operations. See also. Illinois State Police: General: