Carbondale police chief elected to ILEAS Governing Board | News

CARBONDALE, IL (KFVS) - At the ILEAS 10th Annual Conference in Springfield on March 3 through 5, member agencies voted for a new Governing Board.

The 21-member Board consists of elected and appointed positions. The elections are held every two years.  Carbondale Police Chief O’Guinn was elected to represent Region 11 on the ILEAS Governing Board. 

ILEAS is an alliance of over 900 local and state law enforcement agencies consisting of police, sheriffs, and other Illinois agencies. It was created to meet the needs of law enforcement throughout the State in matters of mutual aid, emergency response and the combining of resources for public safety. ILEAS is a member of the Illinois Terrorism Task Force and operates the largest law enforcement mutual aid network in the United States.

In addition to weekly requests for law enforcement mutual aid in Illinois, ILEAS has been responsible for assisting and supporting local law enforcement agencies during deployments of hundreds of officers and deputies to Louisiana for the Hurricane Katrina disaster, New Jersey for Hurricane Sandy and to Chicago for the recent NATO Summit. 

The Governing Board consists of chiefs of police and sheriffs elected by their peers from eight regions of the State. Member agencies in each region elect one chief of police and one sheriff as regional co-chair representatives to the Governing Board. These 16 chiefs and sheriffs are joined by a representative of the Director of the Illinois State Police, two senior commanders representing the Chicago Police Superintendent and one representative each from the Illinois Sheriff’s Association and the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police. From these 21 officials, Board Officers are elected. 

At the recent Annual Conference, Chief O’Guinn was elected to a two-year term to the ILEAS Governing Board by his peers from Region 11 – an area covering 16 counties in Southern Illinois ranging from Benton to Cairo. He will represent Region 11 alongside Saline County Sheriff Keith Brown. As a member of the Governing Board, O’Guinn will assist the ILEAS leadership team by providing guidance and experience as well as representing the interests of law enforcement in Southern Illinois. 

“Chief O’Guinn has been an active member of ILEAS for some time. His experience and knowledge of law enforcement, particularly with regard to regional special teams is invaluable to ILEAS. We look forward to his continued support and input,” stated ILEAS Executive Director James Page.

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