Almost 200 Amtrak riders were evacuated from a train near Lincoln and held-up for more than three hours Friday while authorities examined some suspicious items left behind by a passenger.… MORE
Category Archives: Police and Fire
Dog left in hot car leads to McLean County conviction
Leaving a dog in a hot car can be a death sentence for your pet and a woman was sentenced in McLean County this week for doing just that.… MORE
Prosecutors: Young woman aided victim in Facebook Live brawl
The Facebook Live broadcast showing the beating of a partially nude 17-year old girl in Normal came to an end when a 19-year old woman held the victim’s legs and covered her with a pillow.… MORE
Police in Normal arrest 2 in livestreamed beating
Police in Normal have arrested two people in connection with an alleged beating that was broadcast on Facebook Live last weekend.… MORE
Prosecutor Chambers: What’s put on the internet doesn’t go away
McLean County State’s Attorney Jason Chambers said the fight that broke out over the weekend in Normal, and was broadcast on Facebook Live, is a reminder that what’s put on the internet stays there.… MORE
Grand jury indicts man for ‘sextorting’ minors in Central Illinois
A federal grand jury in Peoria has indicted a Texas man on charges he sexually exploited four youngsters in Central Illinois by producing videos or taking pictures of them having sex.… MORE
ISU Police seek to ease safety worries after latest gun crime
Illinois State University Police have issued a crime advisory intended to calm students’ safety concerns after another report of gunshots near campus.… MORE
2 men charged after party in Normal; reported beating still under investigation
McLean County prosecutors have filed charges against two men who were reportedly at a party in which a fight broke out and was broadcast on Facebook Live, but no have arrests have been made in that incident.… MORE
McLean County to host opioid summit
Police and prosecutors will be meeting in Normal next month to look for ways to combat the growing opioid epidemic in McLean County and across the United States.… MORE
Domestic violence steadily rise; Police advocate ‘see something, say something’
October is Domestic Violence Awareness month and the Bloomington Police Department say they receive an average of about five domestic violence calls a day and have to date, logged more than 1600 domestic violence calls in the last year.… MORE
Blogs
Labor Day – Expanding voting rights for all
By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year. It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …
Is federal mobilization the answer?
By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city. Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…
In these troubled times, to my fellow white Americans
By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…
Workers’ Memorial Day – Remember those whose job took their life
Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University. We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk. Going to work every day for some people means…