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   A Waterloo man is critically injured after falling about 50 feet as he reportedly fled from a crash.  

   The single-car accident happened around 8:30 Monday evening along Interstate 255 just west of Illinois Route 3.  

   Illinois State Police have identified the driver as 21 year old Thomas Falk.  

   Witnesses told police that Falk appeared to have a head injury when he got out of his car.  Police say Falk argued with someone who had reported the crash to police, then jumped over a guardrail and fell to the railroad tracks below.  

   Falk was taken to St. Louis University Hospital by Arch helicopter.  His condition is reported to be very critical. 

The agency announced Monday it will be assessed by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies. It's the state police's seventh time being assessment by the group. The force will be rated on policy and procedures, management, operations and support services. It has to comply with 364 standards to maintain accreditation.

The assessment runs from April 14 to 17. Illinois State Police was the first state police agency that the commission accredited. That happened in 1986. The commission's accreditation is valid for three years.

State Police Director Hiram Grau says accreditation "sets the tone for excellence and ensures that police service is administered efficiently and professionally."

The residents in one metro-east neighborhood are back in their homes after a standoff in Troy, Illinois forced their evacuations. That standoff ended around 2 o'clock this morning when a SWAT-type police unit using teargas entered the home.

It had begun around 10:30 Monday morning. Police say an armed man in his 40s had barricaded himself inside a home in the 500 block of Woodthrust Street. Police say the man had threatened to take his own life, and possible attack police as well.

Police had tried to talk the man out, but moved in after negotiations broke down.

The man was taken to a hospital for observation.

The Illinois State Police are ramping up enforcement patrols in St. Clair and Madison Counties in March.

District 11 Commander, Captain Brad Parsons said Sunday that the Nighttime Enforcement Patrols are aimed at getting unsafe drivers off the road. Parsons says alcohol and drug impairment is a significant factor in over 40 percent of all fatal motor vehicle crashes in Illinois, so patrols will especially watch for impaired drivers.

The month-long traffic safety project is funded by the Illinois Department of Transportation.

GRANITE CITY, Ill. (AP) - Illinois State Police believe investigators have broken up an auto-theft operation by raiding a southwestern Illinois storage lot where they say they found suspected stolen vehicles and $300,000 worth of fine china.

No charges have been filed in connection with last week's search of a Granite City business where investigators say they found three stolen vehicles and a tractor-trailer.

Illinois State Police said Monday that officers stopped a tractor-trailer leaving the business and found two stolen vehicles inside the trailer. A subsequent search of the lot uncovered a possibly stolen 1997 Cadillac, a 2000 Lexus and a tractor-trailer in addition to the dishware.

The investigation involves officials from Illinois State Police and regional law-enforcement agencies.