Crime Control - Illinois Introduces System To Track Crime Patterns, Gangs, Terrorists

Sep 29, 2026

Crime Control Digest issue highlights how Illinois introduces I-CLEAR, a statewide database intended to help law enforcement track criminal patterns, gang activity, and terrorist threats. The plan describes information sharing across police agencies, investigative alerts triggered by emerging suspicious activity, and funding to start and expand the system. It outlines goals for faster response, enhanced crime prevention, and stronger anti-terrorism enforcement through expanded investigatory powers.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages9

Reading Time23 min

AccessFree to download

IN THIS ISSUE

IN THE COURTS

ACROSS THE STATES

FUNDING

Crime Control

Crime Control Digest

NEW YORK STATE CITES PLAN FOR CRIME,TERROR

January 9,2004 Vol.38,No.1 ## IN THIS ISSUE New York State Unveils PlanTo Combat Gangs,Terrorist..………2Weapons Assaults Claim 1/3 OfPolice Fatalities In 2003……………3Maine Sets Priorities As Demand ForWeb Crime Investigations Grows.3South Dakota Completes AssigningOf Cameras For Patrol Cars………3Battle Looms For Continuing BanOn U.S.Aid For Drug Offenders..4Juvenile Justice Office RevisesWebsite To Ease Acces……………4 ## IN THE COURTS D.C.Circuit Says Search,SeizureBefore Arrest Is Justifiable………42nd Circuit Upholds Police QuestionsTo Offset Safety Threa.…………5 ACROSS THE STATES Alaska……………………………………5Arizona.…………………………………….5California………………………………5Iowa………………………………………6llinois……………………………6Maryland………………………………6Michigan………………………6New Jersey……… ……………6Ohio………………………………………6Vermont………………………………6 FUNDING 5 Drug Court Grant.…………7State Court Grants …………………7Child Abuse,Youth Violence……7 # Crime Control Illinois Introduces System To TrackCrime Patterns,Gangs,Terrorists Illinois claims to be the first state about criminals and their methods ofto adopt a sophisticated database thatoperation,as well as firearms,arrestallows every law enforcement agencywarrants and unsolved crimes.to track crime patterns,gang activitiesThe Illinois State Police and theand terrorist threats.Chicago Police Department “will be“Development of this cutting-sharing information in ways that wereedge technology has been comparedonly dreamed of in the past,"Blago-by law enforcement experts to the de-jevich said.velopment of police radios and fin-gerprint analysis,"said Illinois Gov.Rod Blagojevich. "I-CLEAR will have the potentialto create an unprecedented reductionin crime,provide for a safer and moresecure Illinois while increasing publicaccountability and allowing for theeffective use of diminished re-sources,”Blagojevich said. Chicago has used its CLEAR sys-tem to search for suspects based onnicknames,tattoos,country of origin,vehicle make and model and othercharacteristics logged in a "datawarehouse”available on 3,000 land-based police computers. When a pattern of suspicious ac-tivity emerges,the computer systemwill generate “investigative alerts”toevery police agency in Illinois. The Illinois State Police will pro-vide $2.5 million to get the programstarted and will continue funding infuture years. Under the new system,withinthree years more than 1,200 law en-forcement agencies statewide willfeed information into the databank toexpand its capabilities exponentially.Over time,officials hope to includeother Midwest states as well. The governor said Illinois has ex-panded and amplified the Citizensand Law Enforcement Analysis andReporting(CLEAR)system the Chi-cago Police Department developedmore than three years ago. The new Illinois system(“I-CLEAR”)will add all state arrest andoutstanding warrant information intoa database that will contain investiga-tive reports and specialized dataabout gangs,their members and theirmodus operandi,emerging crime pat-terns and terrorist threats. State Police Director Larry Trendcalled it "the single most importantdevelopment in Illinois law enforce- The I-CLEAR system will con- ( tain millions of pieces of information ment since the mid-1980s.” CRIME CONTROL DIGEST "I'm not enough of an expert... It has also 150 Weapons of Massbut,I do know this:When law en- Destruction response units across the forcement can focus on rapid re- state with at least one in everysponse,crime prevention goes up, (county.These units include every-crime rates go down and apprehend-tthing from individual protectiveing criminals occurs more frequentlyequipment to state-of-the-art chemi-and more quickly,"the governor said.cal,biological and radiological detec-tion equipment. The governor said the legislatureshould strengthen anti-terrorism lawsby giving prosecutors and police thetools they need to detect,prevent andpunish terrorists. His proposal would empower 75,000 state and local law enforce-ment offici

FAQs

What is I-CLEAR in Illinois' crime control plan?

I-CLEAR is a statewide system that expands the Chicago-developed CLEAR concept into a database for arrest and warrant information plus specialized data on gangs, suspects, crime patterns, and terrorist threats.

How does the system help police agencies respond to suspicious activity?

When patterns of suspicious activity emerge, the computer system generates investigative alerts to every police agency in Illinois to support faster investigation and apprehension.

What funding and expansion approach does the Illinois plan describe?

Illinois State Police funding is set to start the program at $2.5 million, with continued future funding and growth expectations that enable more than 1,200 agencies to feed information into the databank within three years.

Sep 29, 2026

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