Three Chester buildings added to National Register of Historic Places

RANDOLPH COUNTY, IL. (WJPF) – Three Randolph County buildings were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2018. A release from the State Department of Natural Resources states that thirty sites across Illinois in total

Rain saturated ground blamed for train derailment

SPARTA, IL. (WJPF) – Heavy rain that saturated the ground is believed to be the cause of a train derailment in Sparta Thursday morning. Two locomotives and thirteen coal hoppers slid off the tracks and laid over

Woman sentenced to prison for stealing from grandmother

EWARDSVILLE, Ill. (AP) – A southern Illinois woman who pleaded guilty to stealing money from her grandmother has been handed a four-year prison sentence. The Madison County state’s attorney’s office says 39-year-old Kara N. Gray pleaded guilty

Chicago building where 10 died in fire to be demolished

CHICAGO (AP) – A Chicago apartment building where 10 children died in a fire last summer will be demolished. The Chicago Tribune reports attorneys representing the city and the owner of the property reached an agreement on

Oil leak near St. Louis estimate: 1,800 gallons

ST. LOUIS (AP) – Missouri environmental regulators say the early estimate is that about 43 barrels, or 1,800 gallons (6,814 liters) of oil leaked from a pipeline near St. Louis. The leak, discovered Wednesday in St. Charles

Bloody handprint among evidence in Chinese scholar’s case

CHICAGO (AP) – Prosecutors are building a case based partly on a bloody handprint and the responses of a cadaver-sniffing dog that a former University of Illinois student killed a Chinese scholar in his apartment. Prosecutors revealed

Pritzker hails Senate’s OK of minimum-wage hike

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) – The Illinois Senate has approved increasing the state’s minimum wage to $15/a over six years. The Democratic-controlled Senate voted 39-18 Thursday on a largely party-line vote. The proposal would increase the $8.25-an-hour minimum