By Julie Gerke
Loren Hamilton, coordinator of Morgan, Scott & Cass Counties Crime Stoppers, has been named outstanding coordinator of the year by the Illinois State Crime Stoppers Association.
Hamilton, who also was elected to his fourth term as president of the statewide group, was cited for “exemplary activity which exhibits motivation and professionalism in the promotion of the Crime Stoppers concept in Illinois.” The award and election came during the group’s annual training session held in Schaumburg.
He has won the honor seven times previously and is the longest-serving president in the state group’s 37-year history.
Hamilton, also community resource officer for the Jacksonville Police Department, joined the local Crime Stoppers group in 2006 while working as a retail manager and later graduating from the JPD Citizen’s Police Academy.
Crime Stoppers is a partnership among police, the public and the media, which share information about crimes that need to be solved. The crime prevention program offers education and training, but may be best known for its tip program, through which anonymous tipsters can be rewarded up to $1,000 for information leading to the arrest of criminal suspects, recovery of property or drug seizure.
Since its inception in 1983, Crime Stoppers in Illinois is credited with helping recover $186 million worth of property and solving almost 93,000 crimes, with $8.4 million paid in rewards. For the first quarter of 2023, more than $173,000 in property has been recovered, with 298 solved cases and almost $43,000 in paid in rewards.
