Illinois

A newly signed law will allow Illinois county clerks to unseal military discharge papers after 62 years. 

The Woodford County Sheriff's Office arrested a Bayview Gardens man in connection with an armed robbery at a Germantown Hills gas station. 

A Peoria man is dead in the city's 17th homicide of 2019.

UPDATE: 83-year-old Lloyd Tennison was found and is OK.

Governor J.B. Pritzker says Illinois will join Planned Parenthood in turning down millions of dollars in federal Title X funding for reproductive health services as long as a new “gag rule” remains in effect. 

Peoria-area community and economic development groups want to redefine their corner of Central Illinois — and they’re asking for input from residents to do so.

It’s estimated 1 in 5 Illinois households don’t use banks, mainly because they can’t meet the requirements of start-up costs and minimum deposits.   So they turn to payday loan operations, even for basic services like cashing a paycheck.  

Woodford County settled a 2017 wrongful death lawsuit stemming from the county jail with the estate of David Brown for $490,000. 

The city of East Peoria will hold a public forum Tuesday to gauge where citizens stand on recreational cannabis sales. 

State Senator Jason Barickman concedes a new law he co-sponsored to prevent further trauma to some sexual assault victims might not be enough to assuage victims' concerns.

The Illinois Labor Relations Board has upheld a summary ruling against the city of Peoria earlier this year which restricts the "brownout" of fire department engines.

A 63-year-old Peoria woman died of her injuries several days after she was struck in the back of the head.

As Democrats and Republicans gear up for next year’s election, the parties rallied in Springfield this week with events timed to the Illinois State Fair.

U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood (R-Peoria) said it’s hard to tell which way the president is leaning after he again mused about commuting the sentence of former Governor Rod Blagojevich yesterday. 

Just inside the main gate of the Illinois State Fair sits a cluster of white booths around a gazebo. At the entrances, signs read “Ethnic Village.” For nearly 40 years, fair-goers have found food from around the world as well as music and other performances. But this is the last year it will have that name.

Governor J.B. Pritzker recently approved legislation to rename it the “Village of Cultures,” and the signs will change for next year’s fair.

The city of Galesburg is bumping a police captain up into the chief's office. 

Bartonville Police Chief Brian Fengel is retiring after 29 years with the village of Bartonville.

A well-attended ribbon cutting marked the opening celebration of the Betty Jayne Brimmer Center for the Performing Arts in Peoria Heights.

Peoria firefighters rescued a man stuck in a storm drain in north Peoria on Thursday afternoon. 

Firefighters were called to 830 W. Trailcreek Drive just after 2 p.m. to find a man unable to get out of a storm drain. 

Crews used crowbars and rope to remove the drain cover, pulled the man out and administered medical care. The man was then taken to a local hospital by ambulance. 

A Peoria man was arrested Thursday for attempted murder in connection with a shooting earlier this month.

Peoria Police Lt. Michael Boland said an investigation led them to believe Breon Jones, 27, was the suspect in the August 6 shooting of a 38-year-old man in the 2900 block of N. Peoria Ave. The victim suffered life-threatening injuries. The Illinois Department of Corrections issued a parole violation warrant. 

Lance Pittman arrived at the Danville Correctional Center on Jan. 10 with multiple boxes of books, and bound printouts of articles and book chapters. Pittman coordinates a college in prison program called the Education Justice Project, which offers University of Illinois classes to a select group of men at the Danville prison. 

The Illinois Republican Party’s top brass says it’s optimistic about its chances in 2020. Officials rallied the base Thursday at the Illinois State Fair.

After a short discussion, the East Peoria City Council approved an application for a $400,000 state grant to make a splash pad at Levee Park a reality. 

We think of hospitals as places one goes to receive medical treatment. OSF HealthCare is exploring ways to prevent people from ending up there in the first place.

Former Illinois congressman Paul Findley passed away this month.  He waas 98.  Findley served 22 years in the U.S. House. We look back at his career - his successes and controversies. 

Also, this week we find out why some say a new requirement that students participate in active shooter drills could be doing more harm than good.  

And, a group of students in western Illinois are getting involved to get improvements made on a dangerous stretch of highway. 

That and more on this episode of Statewide.

Woodford County is drafting an ordinance to ban recreational cannabis cultivation and sales. 

State Treasurer Mike Frerichs is among the first Illinois officials to endorse a candidate in the 2020 Democratic presidential primary, and he's backing Elizabeth Warren.

Frerichs made the announcement seemingly out of the blue this week. Other statewide officeholders — including Governor J.B. Pritzker — have so far kept out of the crowded Democratic primary.

He said Warren “stands out” among the 20-plus candidates — and particularly likes her plan to cancel student loan debt for a large swath of Americans, paying for it with a wealth tax.

One southern Illinois community gathers forces together to prepare for the count.

U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi rallied with Illinois Democrats Wednesday in Springfield.