Professor
Illinois Central College
email: thiggins@icc.edu
Office Voice and Text: (309) 251-7803
Office Hours and Availability:
Calling my office line is not the best way to reach me.
An email will get the quickest response.
If you call or text me at the number provided above, leave your name, phone number, and reason for calling. I will respond within 24 hours on normal business days (Monday-Friday) during semesters.
All of my assigned courses are currently Online.
My office hours are: 7-8 a.m. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday during the Fall or Spring semesters, or during the Summer if I am teaching. During those times, you can call me at the number listed above.
Outside of those times, please email me with your question, concern, and reason for contacting me, along with your phone number and the best times to contact you.
Background: As a graduate of Illinois Central College (police science) and former Cougar (men’s basketball), I have a distinct interest in the success of our students, graduates, and programs. My academic mentor, Roy “Doc” Wright, was a police officer who went to law school. He helped found the law enforcement and legal studies programs. Doc and a host of other people, like my Coach, Carrol Herman, provided a safe and productive place for me to explore my career options, and grow and develop in all ways. The college continues to provide a safe and productive place for students to explore, grow, and develop. I am a proud alum of Illinois Central College, and I wake up every morning ready to further this mission by supporting my students at ICC. As a student, I was fortunate to find employment related to my law enforcement major. I worked as a Cadet in the Public Safety Department (n/k/a Campus Police). That department was headed by Bob Walker, one of the first African-American police officers in Peoria and one of the first minority Chiefs in our region. After graduating from ICC, I pursued my bachelor's degree at Bradley University. When I turned 21, I was hired to work as a Public Safety Officer at ICC. What was to be a part-time gig often became much more, as I was allowed to pick up many extra shifts. I once worked 2 months straight on 3rd shift, with no days off, because I was needed. The job helped reduce my Bradley debt, and Chief Walker and the command staff, like Herb Spinder, were awesome mentors with all things related to dealing with people and the mission we served. After graduating from Bradley with a degree in the Administration of Criminal Justice, I stayed on my law enforcement career path but moved to Chicago to have more opportunities to work and attend law school. After my first year in law school, I left law enforcement for employment opportunities that included work at private law firms, serving as a research assistant for the Dean of my law school, Gil Johnston, and working on cases in the Criminal Appeals Division for Illinois Attorney General Neil Hartigan. In 1990, I returned to Peoria to work for a small litigation law firm representing a variety of clients in civil matters. I became a partner in 1994 and found myself very busy, handling cases from border to border, including Chicago. I very much appreciated my partners, Max Prusak, Joe Winne, and Kate Gorman. I was back at the college, dabbling in teaching and helping with courses there and at the police training center. While it made no sense to a lot of people, financial sense especially, I couldn’t shake the pull to teach. So, in 1996, I began weighing options to teach, primarily at law schools. When Doc Wright decided to retire, and a position opened up at ICC, I applied and was hired. In August of 1996, I left my law practice to return to Illinois Central College as a member of the full-time faculty. If you ever want an indication as to how strong my calling to teach was, I took a pay cut of over 80%. Over 3 decades later, I am nowhere close to my last salary in the practice of law. Most of our current law enforcement grads will earn more than I do in the first year or the first couple of years of their policing careers. But I have zero regrets about the millions I walked away from. Not a single one. We help people move to better places in their lives. Just as ICC helped me move to a better place. Serving people, my state, and my community in law and justice has been my passion. Helping other people prepare to serve in law and justice careers has been the honor of my life. I helped develop or update, and have taught, almost every law- and justice-related course the college has offered. Including the first “online” law courses in the United States. Basketball and coaching at various levels were my only real “hobby” for much of my adult life. In the years I coached here at the college, I also became certified to teach various for-credit physical education courses. The full list of courses I have taught over the years appears at the bottom of this page. Current Employment/Service:
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Other Employment/Service: Faculty Forum President 2019 to 2022 Faculty Senate Multiple Years The Faculty Forum President presides over the Faculty Senate, the governing body for the full-time faculty, and its collective bargaining unit known as the Faculty Forum. Attorney, 1990 to 2024 Attorney, Mediator, Arbitrator, and Legal Consultant in various Civil Disputes, including service as an EEOC Mediator for a spectrum of employee/employer claims, a variety of issues involving commercial and business transactions, and assessment of liability. I retired as an attorney in the fall of 2024, though I continue to provide pro bono assistance through designated services and clinics as requested or allowed for lawyers on retired status. Administrative Hearing Officer, 1996 to 2021 I was appointed to preside over the process for resolving and adjudicating various types of municipal ordinance cases in Peoria, East Peoria, Creve Couer, Marquette Heights, and Pekin, Illinois. These cases involve taking sworn testimony from police and city personnel, citizens, property owners and lay and expert witnesses in a variety of matters regarding criminal activity and residential and commercial property. Trustee, City of Peoria Firemen’s Pension Fund, 2021 to 2026 Fire and Police Commissioner, City of Peoria, 2012 to 2019 Served as a member, Secretary, and Vice-Chair of the body responsible for hiring, disciplining, and promoting Fire and Police personnel. | ||
Education University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign - Graduated in 2000 Master of Online Teaching Certificate University of Illinois Chicago Law School - Graduated in 1990 Juris Doctor Bradley University - Graduated in 1987 Bachelor of Science, Administration of Criminal Justice Illinois Central College - Graduated in 1985 Associates in Applied Science, Law Enforcement | ||
Awards and Articles: Pro Bono Lawyer of the Year, - 2000 40 Leaders Under 40, - 2001 Driving Under the Influence in Illinois, 22 Loy. U. Chi. L.J. 551 (1991) Motions in Limine: Use and Consequences in Illinois, 26 J. Marshall L. Rev. 305 (1993) Utilization of Paralegals in Illinois: The secret to a more efficient and profitable law practice (printed and reprinted in various Illinois State Bar Association publications and local and State bar association Continuing Legal Education materials) Various Continuing Legal Education program materials for Peoria County, Illinois State Bar Association, and private CLE provider programs. |
Courses Taught at Illinois Central College through Online, Online Scheduled, Hybrid, and Traditional Modalities:
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Courses taught through the Central Illinois Police Training Center and the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board:
Basic Criminal Procedure Review for Law Enforcement
