| Illinois Association ofTechnical Accident Investigators |
IATAI Board Members
Krista Kellam - President
Krista Kellam, a Lieutenant with the Illinois State Police (ISP), currently serves as the Statewide Coordinator for the Traffic Crash Reconstruction Unit. With the ISP since 2009, she became a certified crash specialist in 2012 and joined the Statewide Reconstruction Unit in 2014. Krista has been qualified as an expert witness in Cook County on multiple occasions for crash reconstruction and event data recorder analysis. A member of the Illinois Association of Technical Accident Investigators (IATAI) since 2013, she was the organization's treasurer from 2019 to 2023 before being elected president.
Email Krista at president@iatai.org
Robert Ventura - Vice President
Robert Ventura, brings nearly three decades of law enforcement experience to the field of crash data retrieval and accident reconstruction. A retired Master Sergeant from the Illinois State Police, Robert has been a certified Crash Reconstruction Specialist since 2003, investigating and analyzing serious and fatal traffic collisions.
As a command officer, Robert played a key role in developing policies and procedures for the ISP’s Traffic Crash Reconstruction Unit. His leadership extended into training and instruction, serving as a Lead Instructor for Traffic Crash Investigation, Total Station Mapping, and UAS (drone) Pilot Training.
Robert’s expertise isn’t just recognized locally—it’s international. In 2023, he served as an instructor for the U.S. Department of State, training law enforcement officers in traffic crash investigation in the Republic of Georgia.
Email Robert at vicepresident@iatai.org
Mike Zachacki - Secretary
Mike Zachacki is an Officer with the Morton Grove Police Department and is currently the Operations Commander of the North Regional Major Crimes Task Force Major Crash Assistance Team. Mike is ACTAR accredited and was elected as IATAI's Secretary in 2022.
Email Mike at secretary@iatai.org
Brad Brachear - Treasurer
Brad Brachear is a Master Sergeant with Illinois State Police. Brad is currently assigned as the supervisor of the Traffic Crash Reconstruction Unit's Southern team. Brad has been with the ISP since 2012, he was assigned to patrol in District 2. Brad joined the ISP TCRU in 2015 where he became an ILETSB Certified Crash Specialist. Brad has been a member of IATAI since 2015 and was elected as IATAI's Treasurer in 2023.
Email Brad at treasurer@iatai.org
Dave Keltner - Training Coordinator
Dave Keltner is the Illinois State Police Major for Troop 3. Dave has been a reconstruction specialist since 2002 and is accredited through the Accreditation Commission for Traffic Accident Recostruction (ACTAR) #2296. Dave has instructed multiple crash related courses for the Illinois State Police and local police agencies. He has been deemed an expert witness in multiple northern Illinois counties for crash reconstruction, crash investigation, forensic mapping, and Crash Data Retrieval (CDR)/Event Data Recorded (EDR) evidence.
Dave was the President of IATAI for 18 years until he decided to step down in 2023. However, Dave decided to remain with IATAI as the training coordinator. Dave coordinates and arranges the crash testing at each conference.
Dan Keeler - ACTAR Representative
Dan Keeler is a Sergeant with the Evanston Police Department. Dan is ACTAR accredited and has been IATAI's representative on the ACTAR Governing Board of Directors since 2019. Dan was the IATAI Vice President from 2021-2026.
Email Dan at actar@iatai.org