The stunning downward spiral of Michael Madigan’s political career ended Friday with a 7 1/2-year prison sentence and a $2.5 million fine for the former Illinois House speaker and the longest-serving legislative leader in U.S. history after he was convicted of trading legislation for the enrichment of his friends and allies.… MORE
A federal lawsuit alleges Bradley University breached contracts with its faculty, failed to abide by its own faculty handbook and racially discriminated against some professors when it made deep cuts to trim a multimillion dollar deficit.… MORE
A man is dead after a two-vehicle crash Thursday morning in McLean County.… MORE
A town hall was held Thursday in Peoria at the East Bluff Community Center to educate people about the upcoming Sonya Massey trial.… MORE
The state of Illinois is investigating an automatic license plate reader system used in a northwest suburb after a Texas sheriff accessed the system to look for a woman who recently had an abortion. … MORE
Gov. JB Pritzker spent hours Thursday defending his governing record and Illinois’ immigration policies as he was peppered with questions from members of the U.S. House Oversight Committee.… MORE
A man is in custody Thursday for allegedly setting fire to a Bloomington apartment complex while people were there.… MORE
In a year when many state agencies received little or no funding increase, state lawmakers this year approved an increase of $15.7 million, or 22.4%, for general operating expenses in Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s office.… MORE
Officials have confirmed a mosquito pool collected in Tazewell County has tested positive for West Nile Virus.… MORE
A Wyoming man will pay $300,000 to the family of a Dunlap High School student, killed last year in a traffic collision, to settle a civil lawsuit.… MORE
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.” …
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…
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…
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…