O'Fallon Police Department issued the following announcement on Feb. 12.
O’Fallon Police Chief Eric Van Hook has been named the 2019 Chief of the Year by the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police (ILACP). The award is for leadership in his community, leadership in his own police department, and service to the association.
“Eric is a true leader in the O’Fallon Police Department and the community,” said Mayor Herb Roach. “He is a great example of the high quality of professionals that serve this community.”
Van Hook will receive the award on April 26, 2019 during the association’s Annual Awards Banquet in Oak Brook, Illinois. He was selected by the association’s Board of Officers from a strong pool of nominations from different parts of Illinois.
“Chief Van Hook is highly regarded as a law enforcement leader in the Metro East and now, throughout the state,” said Ed Wojcicki, the ILACP Executive Director. “It was impressive to read letters of support from a diverse variety of O’Fallon community leaders. He is proactively addressing every major issue facing law enforcement today, including community policing, recruiting minorities, active shooter training in schools, officer wellness, and building relationships of trust. His leadership is as solid as it gets in Illinois law enforcement.”
Eric Van Hook started his career in O’Fallon in 1990. He became Police Chief and Director of Public Safety in 2013. As Director of Public Safety, Chief Van Hook manages not only the police department, but also the City Fire Department and the Department of Emergency Medical Services. The O’Fallon Police Department has 50 full-time sworn officers and 31 civilians such as telecommunicators, records clerks, and Community Resource Officers.
Original source can be found here.
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