Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of SR0212

SR0212 LRB104 13073 JDS 25047 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate wish to congratulate Rebecca L. Hooks on becoming the first woman to reach the rank of first deputy director with the Illinois State Police (ISP) since the agency's inception in 1922; and

WHEREAS, First Deputy Director Hooks, who was promoted to the rank of first deputy director on December 1, 2023, has a 23-year tenure with ISP and presently works at the agency's headquarters in downtown Springfield, serving as second in command of the ISP; and

WHEREAS, First Deputy Director Hooks earned her Bachelor of Science degree at Eastern Illinois University, majoring in zoology and minoring in chemistry; she joined ISP as a member of ISP Cadet Class #105 on February 24, 2002; and

WHEREAS, First Deputy Director Hooks began her law enforcement career as a trooper assigned to ISP District 15 under the Division of Operations on August 23, 2002; she proceeded to serve under the Division of Forensic Services, where she was assigned to Crime Scene Services (CSS) Litchfield on March 1, 2006 and CSS Sterling on April 16, 2011; she was then promoted to sergeant of CSS Rockford on April 27, 2011; and

WHEREAS, First Deputy Director Hooks continued to serve under ISP's Division of Forensic Services, being promoted to master sergeant as a quality assurance administrator on September 16, 2015, to lieutenant assigned to CSS Northern Command on September 1, 2018, to captain as a crime scene commander on August 16, 2020, and to lieutenant colonel of the Division of Forensic Services on November 1, 2021; and

WHEREAS, First Deputy Director Hooks was assigned to Chief of Staff to the Office of the Director of the ISP on August 1, 2022, and she was subsequently promoted to her current position, first deputy director, on December 1, 2023; and

WHEREAS, First Deputy Director Hooks is a certified bloodstain pattern analyst and crime scene investigator through the International Association for Identification; she has taught bloodstain pattern analysis courses to law enforcement agencies and departments across Illinois and the United States, and through ISP's partnership with the U.S. Department of State, she has also taught police internationally in Tbilisi and Batumi in the country of Georgia; and

WHEREAS, During her career with ISP, First Deputy Director Hooks has been awarded two Department Unit Citations, a Certificate of Recognition for work associated with the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, and the Violent Crime Expressway Ribbon; and

WHEREAS, First Deputy Director Hooks, outside of work, is an avid runner and has participated in numerous marathons, including the Chicago Marathon; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Rebecca L. Hooks on becoming the first woman to reach the rank of First Deputy Director with the Illinois State Police; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we commend First Deputy Director Hooks on being a role model for women who want to pursue a career in law enforcement; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to First Deputy Director Hooks as an expression of our esteem and respect and to the Illinois State Police Academy to further inspire and encourage female cadets who are pursuing a career in law enforcement.