Bloomington Police Department receives ILEAP Tier 2 accreditation; chief presents 2025 annual report

The Bloomington Police Department received Tier 2 accreditation from the Illinois Law Enforcement Accreditation Program (ILEAP) and presented its 2025 annual report to the City Council on April 13.

An ILEAP representative described the program as a statewide accreditation system that independently verifies departments against professional standards. The presenter noted Bloomington met or exceeded 181 critical standards across administration, training, operations and personnel. City Manager Jeremy Jurgens and Chief (identified in the transcript as) Jamal Simonson accepted the recognition and the ILEAP representative presented a plaque.

Chief Simonson then delivered the department's 2025 annual report. He said patrol responded to 70,770 calls for service (a 3.5% increase from 2024), and described performance measures including an Emergency Communications Center that answered 30,859 9-1-1 calls with 97% answered within 10 seconds (the state mandate is 90%). The criminal investigations team handled 1,403 felony cases and made 387 arrests; NIBIN connections and ballistic examinations linked recovered weapons to 53 other weapons-related incidents, and one examination led to a homicide investigation in another jurisdiction. The department reported reductions in burglaries (30%), vehicle theft (26%) and shootings (46%) year over year, and the chief highlighted community-survey scores above 90% in categories such as being treated fairly and listening.

The presentation highlighted new tools and efficiencies: a real-time information and crime center (2,797 requests handled, up 35%), Axon language-assist tools for communicating with non-English speakers, Axon redaction that saved roughly 590 hours in FOIA processing, and AI-assisted report writing estimated to save roughly 2,500',5000 hours annually depending on usage.

Council members asked clarifying questions. Member Scott asked whether increases in certain crime categories reflect more reporting or improved investigative capacity (digital forensics and task-force cooperation were cited as contributors). Member Ward asked about the post-contact survey process and whether the shootings figure includes property-only incidents; the chief said the shootings count includes any confirmed shooting (people struck, property hit, or shots fired) and explained that Axon sends text surveys for non-violent calls within 24 hours.

The council thanked the department for the work and the accreditation recognition; Lieutenant Jim Klesson was singled out for a meritorious service award as accreditation manager.

What happens next: the annual report and related materials are posted on the city's public information page, and staff said they will provide follow-up data requested by council members (for example, survey response counts for December 2025).