The process of lateral appointment of police officers by the Village President is established as a method of recruiting experienced police officers from other Illinois jurisdictions who have obtained and maintained Illinois peace officer training and certification.
(A) The Director of Police or Police Chief shall advertise for applications from police officer candidates and shall establish a list of eligible lateral appointment candidates based on the criteria set forth in this Section. At a minimum, a police officer candidate for lateral appointment must:
(1) Possess a full-time Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board ("ILETSB") police officer certification;
(2) Have previously been a full-time sworn officer of a regular police department in any municipal, county, or State law enforcement agency;
(3) Have been with his or her respective law enforcement agency within the State for at least two (2) years;
(4) Be at least 23 years old and a U.S. citizen at the time of appointment;
(5) Possess a valid Class "D" Illinois driver's license in good standing or a valid out-of-state driver's license of similar classification in good standing;
(6) Have no felony convictions or misdemeanor convictions involving moral turpitude, be of excellent moral character, and not be under investigation by current department; and
(7) Have completed 60 college credit hours from an accredited college or university at the time of application, or must have served 24 months of active duty or 180 days of combat duty in the United States Armed Forces as designated by the Department of Defense, and have not been discharged under circumstances other than honorable.
(B) In addition, as with candidates for appointment under the rules of the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners, candidates being considered for lateral appointment shall be evaluated based on the following criteria;
(1) The results of a thorough background investigation;
(2) The results of an oral interview and examination;
(3) The results of a physical examination;
(4) The results of a medical evaluation, including a psychological evaluation and drug screening;
(5) The results of a polygraph examination; and
(6) Evidence that the candidates for appointment under this procedure meet the minimum qualifications for appointment to the position of police officer as may, from time to time, be enforced for candidates who participate in the competitive Board of Fire and Police Commissioners hiring process, including the requirement that candidates must be under the age of 36 years old at the time of placement on the eligibility list for lateral appointment. The age limit in this Section does not apply if the candidate (a) was previously employed as a police officer in a municipality and is under age 40 at the time of application; (b) served as an auxiliary police officer for at least five (5) years and is under age 40 at the time of application; (c) served as a sheriffs deputy and meets the applicable training requirements and is under age 40 at time of application; or (d) served as a sworn officer of the Illinois State Police and is under age 40 at the time of application.
(C) All candidates shall undergo the same evaluation/testing process based on the criteria set forth above and as recommended by the Director of Police or Police Chief and the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners. Once the evaluations are completed, the Director of Police or Police Chief, in collaboration with the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners, shall rank all eligible candidates for lateral appointment, based on the results of the candidate-evaluation criteria and any applicable preference points under State law, on a list which shall be valid for two (2) years from the date of establishment. The Director of Police or Police Chief shall transmit a copy of the original lateral-appointment eligibility list to the Village President and the Chairman of the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners, and make copies of the eligibility list available to others upon request. Any candidate on the original lateral appointment eligibility list who fails to maintain his or her full-time ILETSB police-officer certification shall be automatically stricken from the list.
(D) When a vacancy for the position of police officer exists, the Director of Police or Police Chief shall consult with the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners on eligible candidates, after which the Director of Police or Police Chief may recommend the appointment of a candidate to the Village President. The Village President, at his or her sole discretion, may draw from the lateral appointment eligibility list as needed for any vacancy. In the event that the selection process identifies lateral applicants who have certain knowledge, skills, and abilities that make those applicants more desirable for the position sought to be filled, the Village President may choose to recommend appointment of those applicants.
(E) Seniority for police officers appointed under this Section for all matters other than salary shall be determined based on the date of hire as a full-time sworn police officer for the Village.
(F) Police officers appointed under this Section shall receive compensation at a rate in accordance with the applicable collective-bargaining agreement in effect on the date of hire.
(G) Police officers appointed under this Section shall be required to successfully complete a field-training program and 18-month probation period, in accordance with the applicable collective-bargaining agreement in effect on the date of hire.
(Ord. 21-4294, passed 9-16-21)