Plane crashes into Arizona mountain; fires burning

An airplane crashed Wednesday evening into a rugged mountain east of Phoenix, creating a small wildfire that crews were unable to immediately reach, Arizona officials said.

The aircraft, possibly twin-engine, crashed around 6:30 p.m. in the Superstition Mountains near Apache Junction, said spokesman Elias Johnson of the Pinal County Sheriff's Office.

A man who said he witnessed the impact told CNN that a mushroom cloud of flames lit up the evening sky.

It's a six-hour hike to the site and crews were uncertain how many people were on the plane or its destination, Johnson told reporters. He indicated crews will be in a recovery operation.

A ranger dropped near the scene saw a tire from the plane that suggests it was not a commercial aircraft, he said.

"This is some of the toughest country you can experience," Johnson said. There were at least two debris fields. "That plane is all over the place up there."

Kevin Cunningham, 44, of Apache Junction, said he was talking on the phone from his back porch and saw the crash a few miles away.

"The flames lit up the mountain," said Cunningham, adding the plane appeared to be flying level before the crash. "I didn't see where it was in distress."

The photogenic peak is popular with hikers and horseback riders, the resident said.

"Somebody didn't know the mountain was there or they had false readings," Cunningham speculated.

CNN's Phil Gast contributed to this report.

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Marion County Police Beat for Wednesday, November 23rd, 2011

A 27-year-old Kinmundy man was taken to the Marion County Jail after being arrested for alleged domestic battery. Quinton Nix of West First Street was arrested by sheriff's deputies.

A 26-year-old New Baden woman is being held in lieu of $15,000 bond on an outstanding misdemeanor warrant for alleged domestic battery.

Kristine Randall of East Hanover was transferred from the Clinton County Jail.

27-year-old Devon Hidlebaugh of North Elm in Centralia was arrested by Centralia Police on an outstanding Coles County warrant.

35-year-old Chad Wolfe of Chicago was arrested for alleged driving under the influence of drugs after his car came to rest in a ditch after running off the Kinoka Road west of Interstate 57. Wolfe was given a notice to appear in court.  http://bit.ly/tenSb0

Mt. Vernon Projects Making Progress

Infrastructure projects on the west side of town are moving forward, with two expected to go out for bid in January.

"On the Veterans Memorial Drive and Davidson project, we expect to receive the permit Dec. 1," City Manager Ron Neibert said. "We spoke to them last week, and they said it would be to us by Dec. 1."

The city has been waiting on permits from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources for construction of the extensions of South Davidson and Veterans Memorial Drive, which will allow for traffic from the new interchange to travel behind Wal-Mart and up to South Davidson. South Davidson now ends between Wal-Mart and Kohl's Department Store.

"I'm hoping to have the request at the second (city council) meeting in December or the first one in January to authorize us to go out for bid on the project," Neibert said.

In addition, sewer and water lines for the Veterans Memorial Drive/Davidson extension are expected to be ready for construction as well, with design engineering complete.

"Again, I hope that in January or February to be able to go out for bid," Neibert said.

Construction work is also expected within the next few weeks on the Times Square Mall water tower. CB & I of Plainfield was chosen to construct the new tower in July, with a bid of $989,300 — well below the estimated $1.2 million for the project.

"They are still working on some issues with the shop drawings and foundation," Neibert explained. "We hope to have those issues rectified next week and they should begin the actual construction shortly thereafter."

Work is still underway by the city to obtain right-of-way for the widening project on South 34th Street, and Neibert said he is beginning to look to the Comprehensive Plan for the next projects to present to the council.

"We're looking, trying to decide which ones identified in the plan to implement next," Neibert said. "We want to keep projects going in cycles, and it's almost time to start the next projects going."  http://bit.ly/tmFEds

Salem High School Open, With Precautions, Following Bomb Threat

Salem Community High School is open Wednesday following a bomb threat found at the school Tuesday afternoon. Superintendent Brad Detering says the school put it's emergency response plans into effect. "We were notified of a potential bomb threat that was written ona wall at 2:50 Tuesday afternoon. We secured the area and contacted law enforcement immediately.Secretary of State was contacted and bomb sniffing dogs were dispatched. Tuesday evening all buildings were swept and found to be clean. At that point in time the buildings were cleared for occupancy by law enforcement," said Detering. Detering says entrance to the school this morning is limited through doors 1, 11 and 16. "This morning we are taking safety precautions in terms as students come in we are taking a look in backpacks and duffel bags. We understand that they have them at home andneed to bring them back and that certainly is not aproblem. Once students are check in for the morning, it's back to educating kids," explainedDetering. Detering says police were assisting with checking students into the building. The district requested that students leave backpacks or duffle bags at home if at all possible. Detering says the safety of the students is the top priority in the school district and they are satisfied that every possible step has been taken to ensure the safety of students, faculty and staff. He notes they have a plan in place to respond to hazards and threats and that plan was followed. Detering says Salem Police are currently investigating who may have been responsible for the bomb threat.  http://bit.ly/tenSb0

President Obama Pardons Former Alton Woman for Selling Cocaine

Alton, IL -- A former Alton woman who was convicted and sentenced in 2001 for selling cocaine is being released. Eugenia Jennings has been pardoned by President Barack Obama. She was sentenced to 22 years in jail ten years ago in the Southern District of Illinois, but the president signed an order allowing her to go free next month. A Washington law firm and U.S. Senator Dick Durbin appealed on her behalf. They claim Jennings was selling drugs to support her family and at one point traded drugs for clothing. Those supporting her release told a Congressional panel that she was the victim of a disparity in sentencing between those who sell crack cocaine and those who sell the powder form. Jennings was sentenced for selling 13-point nine grams of crack cocaine to a police informant. She will still have eight years of supervised release.  http://goo.gl/w6Ax9

Veterans Affairs moves Harrisburg office

SPRINGFIELD - The Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs (IDVA) has moved its Saline County Veterans Service Office to a new location in Harrisburg.

The new location is housed in the Illinois Department of Employment Security offices located at 320 East Raymond.

IDVA's new office will continue to be staffed by Veterans Service Officer (VSO) Lisa McBride, who can be reached at (618) 253-2005. The fax number is (618) 253-6106. VSO office hours will be maintained from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

The Harrisburg Veterans' Service Office is part of a statewide network that serves about 1.2 million veterans by increasing awareness of available state and federal benefits. Offices are staffed by VSOs who provide accurate, up-to-date information, answer questions, assist with paperwork and filing of claims for federal, state and local benefits completely free of charge.  http://bit.ly/rrqYsG

Jefferson County Justice Center breaks $3M

More than $3 million has been collected by the Jefferson County Justice Center for housing prisoners this budget year.

The jail has also collected $184,285 in local funds this budget year, bringing the total funds collected to more than $3.3 million, according to information from Jefferson County Sheriff Roger Mulch's monthly report.

According to information from the county's budgetary status report, the Sheriff's Department budget is at 116.3 percent for income with 11 months of the year completed, and is at 95.3 percent in expenses.

The Jail budget is at 28.7 percent of its estimated income, said Suzy Tattoo, Jefferson County executive assistant, while its expenses are at 89.5 percent.

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement budget is at 111.2 percent of its budgeted expenses, but is also at 134.8 percent of its budgeted income.

The monthly average of housing income is about $283,000, and the total monthly average is about $300,000, according to information provided by the sheriff's office.

The JCJC is waiting for more than $585,000 from various agencies, including the U.S. Marshals Service, ICE and Cook County, information states.

For housing and medical services, the JCJC has billed more than $2.9 million, and has received $3.1 million, including late payments, information states.

October saw the facility's third-highest number of detainees at 638, with 347 of those being out-of-county. The average daily population for October was 78 in-county prisoners and 144 from outside Jefferson County, the sheriff's report states.

The jail population on Oct. 16 was 88 ICE detainees, 18 U.S. Marshals detainees and 74 local prisoners for a total of 180.

The total detainees booked through the budget year is 6,522, with 4,134 of those from outside Jefferson County.

October saw 24 citations, 55 arrests and 44 traffic accidents conducted by Jefferson County Sheriff's Office deputies. Deputies have issued a total of 620 citations, made 720 arrests and responded to 406 traffic accidents.

From Sept. 17 to Oct. 15, the sheriff's office spent more than $11,000 on 14 part-time personnel, including deputies, corrections officers, nursing personnel, dispatchers and commissary workers. The total part-time personnel expenditure for the budget year is $169,093, http://bit.ly/vqSJ49

East St. Louis Records 25th Killing This Year; Topping Number Of Homicides In 2010

EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. (AP) - Illinois State Police are helping authorities in East St. Louis investigate the shooting death of a man who's become the city's 25th killing this year.
The Belleville News-Democrat reports that 31-year-old Timothy Jones of Swansea was shot multiple times Friday night as he sat inside his pickup truck. He died later at a hospital. There's no word on any arrests or charges in the killing, which brings the city's total of homicides this year past the 24 recorded last year.
The violence has caught the attention of the region's top federal prosecutor. During a recent speech in Belleville, U.S. Attorney Steven Wigginton said "it's the 10 percent of thugs in East St. Louis that make life miserable for the 90 percent of good people who are stuck there."  http://bit.ly/tenSb0

Clinton County man accused of squeezing baby, breaking bones

ST. ROSE - Justin L. Rode of St. Rose has been accused of pulling the arms and legs and squeezing the ribs of a 5-month-old infant, causing multiple bone fractures.

Rode, 24, was charged with felony reckless conduct in an indictment handed up on Nov. 10. Clinton County State's Attorney John Hudspeth said the baby was recovering and was in the care of a relative.

Kendall Marlowe, a spokesman for the Illinois Department of Children and Famly Services, said the department was investigating the allegations but had had no previous contact with Rode. Marlowe said the 5-month-old child and another child had been placed in the care of a relative.

Following the charge against Rode in Clinton County, prosecutors in Bond County moved to revoke a 24-month probation sentence he received last year after pleading guilty of aggravated domestic battery and violation of an order of protection.

Rode, of the 17000 block of St. Rose Road, was free on bail pending further court proceedings in the two counties.  http://goo.gl/VBsrO

Marion County Police Beat for Monday, November 21st, 2011

25-year-old Amanda Marcum of South Pine in Centralia was arrested for alleged domestic battery to Jason Coleman at their home on Sunday. Marcum was taken to the Marion County Jail. 40-year-old David Hopper of South Hester in Centralia was arrested by Wamac Police on an outstanding warrant and resisting arrest following a foot chase. Police say Hopper ran after police attempted to stop a car in which he was a passenger at Tenth and Locust. The original warrant was for failure to appear or pay on a criminal damage to property charge, with bond set at $7,000. The resisting arrest charge was added after Hopper allegedly fled on foot. 21-year-old Donnie Ray Hemmings of South Locust of Centralia remains in jail after being picked up by Centralia Police on an outstanding Washington County warrant. Two people were arrested for alleged driving on a revoked or suspended license. 35-year-old Robert Winkler of Nancy Lane in Salem and 26-year-old Michael Tolliver of East Canton Road in Texico both posted $150 bond and were released.

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