(Paxton-jm) – A Paxton man will spend a decade behind bars after being found guilty of the enticement of a minor. Robert Shawn Anderson, 52, was sentenced Tuesday to 121 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by five years of supervised release. It took the federal jury less than 90 minutes to reach a guilty verdict in October 2021. Evidence showed Anderson set up a meeting for sexual activity with someone he believed to be 15 years old using a dating application called MeetMe. Anderson was arrested over Valentine’s Day weekend 2020 as part of an FBI operation conducted in Kankakee County.
(Springfield-jm) – Governor J-B Pritzker says the COVID-19 hospitalization rate will help determine how long the state’s mask mandate lasts. The number of COVID patients in the hospital is significantly down, which is a promising sign, says the Governor…
Illinois Governor J-B Pritzker. Governor Pritzker says he wants the mandate to be lifted as soon as possible, while still keeping everyone safe. He says he’ll be announcing plans soon. The Illinois Department of Public Health reported 5,828 new cases and 87 additional deaths. Vermilion County reported 73 new cases. Champaign County reported 145 new cases and 1 additional death Ford and Iroquois Counties did not have a report Tuesday.
(Paxton-jm) – The Ford County Sheriff’s office is mourning the loss of one of their own. Deputy Brian Norton passed away over the weekend. Norton had been in the hospital since early October with COVID. Friday morning, Norton suffered a major stroke and succumbed. Norton served as an officer in Paxton, Onarga and Gilman before joining the Ford County Sheriff’s office in 2019. Services have not yet been announced.
(Champaign-jm) – Champaign Firefighters braced the icy waters to train for an ice rescue. On Tuesday, members from the Champaign Fire Department gathered at Kaufman Lake to train on an ice rescue. Firefighters were fitted with thermal suits and jumped into the icy waters. The specific training will prepare first responders for if they get a call of a person falling through the ice. All 6 Champaign fire stations will participate in the training.
(Paxton-jm) – The Paxton Buckley Loda F-F-A Toy Show is coming up this Saturday at PBL High School in Paxton. P-B-L F-F-A member Austin Elam explains what the toy show is about…
PBL FFA Member Austin Elam.
(Rantoul-jm) – A Rantoul home was damaged by fire early Tuesday morning. Crews were called to the fire on Sunset Drive. No word on the cause of the fire.
(Washington-jm) – It's going to cost farmers more this year to do business. Here is USDA's new forecast for production expenses. Gary Crawford reports…
(Danville-jm) – A Danville man was sentenced to eight-and-a-half years in prison for wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and money laundering. Jeffery Henson pleaded guilty in October to the charges against him. He was accused of using multiple stolen identities to gain employment at a Schaumburg consulting firm and a Danville manufacturing firm. He did this to prevent his employers from discovering a long criminal history that included prior convictions for theft and computer fraud. Henson was further accused of defrauding these firms of more than $2.4 million and laundering some of that money to buy a luxury car. In addition to the prison sentence, Henson was ordered by Judge Colin Bruce to pay restitution of nearly $2.5 million to the firms he defrauded.
(Springfield-jm) – Police reform changes approved by the General Assembly last year are having negative consequences for police in Illinois. The General Assembly approved along party lines several pillars of the Black Caucus proposal for police and criminal justice reform. Republicans spoke out against the proposal saying it would put people’s safety at risk. 53rd District State Senator Jason Barickman of Bloomington says the number of police officers leaving the force has risen significantly since the legislation was passed…
53rd District State Senator Jason Barickman of Bloomington.
