From Chicago to Cairo
SIUE Police have statewide jurisdiction
Kevin Eagan, Alestle News Reporter
Issue date: 3/22/07 Section: News
For some SIUE students, getting a ticket from an SIUE police officer is not a big deal.
But the consequences can be severe, because campus police operate with full state police powers.
"Some students think we are campus security, but we are fully-fledged state police officers who can issue state citations," SIUE Police Lt. Kevin Schmoll said.
SIUE Police Department operates with 32 sworn officers who are trained as state police officers.
After successfully completing academy training, the officers undergo a 12-week field training program, and are then under probation as an officer for a year before become a state police officer.
"SIUE Police are able to operate anywhere in the state boundaries," Schmoll said.
According to Schmoll, SIUE Police officers have pursued crimes as far away as Chicago.
"We sometimes go into Edwardsville or Glen Carbon, but we always alert those agencies to let them know why," Schmoll said.
While SIUE Police are able to move around the state to pursue crimes, their primary operation is within the SIUE main campus, the East St. Louis Higher Education Campus and the SIU School of Dental Medicine in Alton.
They have the power to make arrests and issue state citations.
As a result, the consequences for ignoring citations from SIUE Police officers can be severe.
If a student does not pay a fine from a citation, he or she will receive several notices. Eventually, the circuit court in Madison County will issue a warrant for the student's arrest and set a bond of about $1,000 to $1,500.
"It is a student's responsibility to take care of these tickets before they escalate," Schmoll said. "It will cost them much more money in the end if they don't."
Not all tickets issued on campus are given by SIUE Police. Some parking tickets are issued as university citations under the control of Parking Services.
"Parking Services is a separate entity, but they are housed in our department," Schmoll said.
University citations, which can be disputed through an appeals process, are usually issued for parking violations.
Schmoll said the best advice is to remember that SIUE Police are fully-functioning police officers who are here to protect students.
"Unlike some other smaller universities that have private security officers, SIUE and other Illinois state universities have state police officers in charge," Schmoll said.
But the consequences can be severe, because campus police operate with full state police powers.
"Some students think we are campus security, but we are fully-fledged state police officers who can issue state citations," SIUE Police Lt. Kevin Schmoll said.
SIUE Police Department operates with 32 sworn officers who are trained as state police officers.
After successfully completing academy training, the officers undergo a 12-week field training program, and are then under probation as an officer for a year before become a state police officer.
"SIUE Police are able to operate anywhere in the state boundaries," Schmoll said.
According to Schmoll, SIUE Police officers have pursued crimes as far away as Chicago.
"We sometimes go into Edwardsville or Glen Carbon, but we always alert those agencies to let them know why," Schmoll said.
While SIUE Police are able to move around the state to pursue crimes, their primary operation is within the SIUE main campus, the East St. Louis Higher Education Campus and the SIU School of Dental Medicine in Alton.
They have the power to make arrests and issue state citations.
As a result, the consequences for ignoring citations from SIUE Police officers can be severe.
If a student does not pay a fine from a citation, he or she will receive several notices. Eventually, the circuit court in Madison County will issue a warrant for the student's arrest and set a bond of about $1,000 to $1,500.
"It is a student's responsibility to take care of these tickets before they escalate," Schmoll said. "It will cost them much more money in the end if they don't."
Not all tickets issued on campus are given by SIUE Police. Some parking tickets are issued as university citations under the control of Parking Services.
"Parking Services is a separate entity, but they are housed in our department," Schmoll said.
University citations, which can be disputed through an appeals process, are usually issued for parking violations.
Schmoll said the best advice is to remember that SIUE Police are fully-functioning police officers who are here to protect students.
"Unlike some other smaller universities that have private security officers, SIUE and other Illinois state universities have state police officers in charge," Schmoll said.
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