Tennessee Couple Charged in Illinois in Alleged Abduction

LINCOLN, Ill. (AP) - A Tennessee couple is jailed in Illinois after the abduction of a 14-year-old girl police say they met through Facebook. Logan County State's Attorney Michael McIntosh said Wednesday that 30-year-old Jarrod S. Sanford and 21-year-old Jessica M. Lidy are initially charged with human trafficking, child abduction, involuntary servitude of a child after their arrests Friday in Lincoln. The town is 35 miles northeast of Springfield. McIntosh said the couple have not appeared in court and do not have attorneys. Police say they are from Friendship, Tennessee. Investigators say the girl is safe after being returned to her family in Tennessee. Police say they arrested the couple after getting a call from a restaurant about a girl being held against her will. Police said the girl met Lidy through Facebook. NlAfj

Cruise Night winners announced

MT. VERNON — Winners of the Downtown Mt. Vernon Development Corporation Cruise Night have been announced.

The event, which took place on Saturday in downtown Mt. Vernon, brought in crowds of spectators as well as a record number of entries.

In the truck category, sponsored by St. Mary's Good Samaritan Hospital, Richard Briesacher took top honors with a F-100.

The Mopar award, sponsored by Walgreens, was presented to Rex Briesacher for his Dodge Super Bee.

Best Import, sponsored by Dish on the Square, went to Bill Schulte and his 1971 Morgan 4/4.

The Best Motorcycle award, sponsored by Cusumano and Sons went to Daniel Ricklefs.

Best Chevy Award, sponsored by 9th Street Grill, was the Chevy Classic Sports Sedan 1957, owned by Herman Rawles.

Best Ford Award honors, sponsored by Hughey Funeral Home went to Jerry Jones for his 1940 Ford.

The Best GM, sponsored by Community First Bank, went to Jim Jackson for his 1959 Corvette. - http://goo.gl/06FwK

Marion County Police Beat for Wednesday, October 12th, 2011

Three people remain in the Marion County Jail following Tuesday arrests. 24-year-old Jeremy Shered of East Kell Street in Centralia is being held for alleged criminal damage to property. Shered was arrested after allegedly kicking two dents into a car owned by Marilyn Scott of East Rasback. The incident reportedly happened during a domestic problem on North Lincoln Street in Centralia. 23-year-old Megan Neff of North Morrison in Central City is being held on a drug court sanction. 18-year-old Brandon Marcum of Dawley Street in Salem remains in jail after being arrested by Salem Police for failure to appear in court on a curfew violation. The Marion County Sheriff's Department is investigating burglaries to three vehicles parked at a home in the 12-hundred block of North Gary Street in Centralia. Scott Kendall, Amy Kendall and Kermit Stinde reported lose change, a few dollar bills and old CD's taken from their vehicles. The burglaries were reported at 7:45 Tuesday morning. Gary Martin of the 1100 block of North Beech in Centralia told the sheriff's department a person burglarizing his car was apparently startled and left without closing the door or taking several items that had been moved inside the car. The only items reported missing were a couple CDs. The sheriff's department is also investigating a tractor stolen from Harold Herman of Susan Street in Salem. Rebecca White of the 2100 block of State Route 161 in Centralia reported several Halloween decorations were stolen from her property. - http://goo.gl/wwTmF

Illinois Associated Fire Fighters State Case to Centralia City Council

There was a large crowd at the Centralia City Council meeting Tuesday evening. Firefighters and paramedics came to the meeting protesting comments that were made during a finance committee meeting last month. Councilman David Sauer made a broad recommendation about closing one of the fire stations as a way for the city to reduce the budget deficit. District Three Vice President Adam Ruderman addressed the council over the situation. He says the comments made have been a great concern for firefighters and community members. "When it comes to persuading the community with the premise that if the firefighters don't make concessions during negotiations that the community will suffer the loss of a fire station is ludicrous. This type of progressive thinking is what will make a progressive community lose any prospect of new growth through a decline of services and business development", said Ruderman. Rudermansays he understands the economic situation across the state, but says there are other ways to maintain services without having cuts and closures. He says there is a long road ahead, and at the end of the day, it's the cost of doing business. Centralia Mayor Tom Ashby also addressed the audience as well, saying that there has been rumors that the budget deficit has been made up. He says the finance committee was made for a reason, and it wasn't made for the reason of laying off employees or eliminating positions, but for the reason of economics. "This is not about attacking one type of person or individual; this is about trying to make a city operate on January 1st. It's not that we don't think the expertise of any individual, whether they work on the street or in the police or fire department, they are all paid professionals, and they do an excellent job. It's just whether we can afford the level", said Ashby. Ashby says he welcomes any recommendations from any of the departments, but he states he will not support raising taxes and rates, saying it has killed the growth of the town. Councilman Sauer says there have been public meetings over the budget crisis, but no one has shown up to them. He states something has to be done. "It's my guarantee that if things don't change, we will not meet payroll in January or February of 2012. These are not things that we have been making up; these are things that we have been talking about in public meetings in the last ten public meetings where no one shows up", said Sauer. Mayor Ashby says he plans to have a work session opened to the public over the budget deficit within the next two weeks. The finance committee only gives broad recommendations to the council. The City Council has final approval on all financial recommendations  - http://goo.gl/85Xyv

Illinois' Debt Rises, Credit Rating Declines, Citizens Paying More in Interest

CHICAGO-A new report shows Illinois citizens how much the state owes in debts and the dangers from it. U.S. Republican Senator Mark Kirk today released the Report on Illinois Debt. The report shows that the state owes over $30 billion on top of unpaid bills. The state's unpaid bills have totaled $8.3 billion. Health and pension obligations have totaled over $140 billion. Illinois has payed almost $3 billion in interest on the money already borrowed annually. Prospects for repayment are difficult. Illinois lost over 190,000 jobs since January 2001. The City of Chicago lost over 200,000 people during the same period. Illinois citizens face higher taxes and larger debts because so many of their fellow citizens have moved to other, more fiscally responsible states. The State lost over 85,000 net taxpayers between 1995 and 2007 to neighboring states. Taxpayer flight between 1995 and 2007 cost Illinois an estimated $2.4 billion in tax revenue. Most people have went to Wisconsin and Indiana. The people of Illinois owes twice as much to the state as people in Indiana, Iowa, and Missouri, and three times more than people in Wisconsin and Michigan. While Illinois is an American state with substantially stronger institutions than Europe, its debt load per person is higher than for citizens in Spain, Portugal, Ireland, or Greece. According to the report, the state of Illinois has the lowest credit rating in the nation, classified as a A1 rating. Bordering states such as Indiana and Iowa have the highest credit ratings in the nation, classified as a triple-a rating. Because Illinois has such a poor credit rating, local governments must pay higher interest rates than similar communities in better-run states. The report was prepared in consultation with Senator Kirk's Sovereign Debt Advisory Board, chaired by financial expert Henry Feinberg. - http://goo.gl/WOUk1

Country Bob's New Facility To Expand Operations

Country Bob's in Centralia is preparing to expands operations by moving to a new facility. Spokesperson Reed Malkovic says the new facility will be located about three miles south of Centralia on U.S. Highway 51 in the new Principle Meridian Business Park. Malkovic says it was time to grow. "We've just had steady growth over the last five to six years, and we're just running out of room in our current building", said Malkovic. Country Bob's is currently located at Second and Lincoln Street. The current facility has 20,000 square feet. The new facility on U.S. 51 will have 35,000 square feet, and will create an additional two-to-five jobs along with retaining 14 current jobs. Malkovic says they will break ground next spring and expect to have the building completed next fall. Country Bob's makes all purpose sauce, seasoned salts, and barbecue sauce. - http://goo.gl/C6KqQ

Fall Harvest Moves Into Full Swing; Yields Down From Last Year

The fall harvest has moved into full swing across South Central Illinois. It appears the harvest across northern Marion County is better than in the Centralia area which received less rainfall during the latter part of the growing season. Russell Vandeveer of Natures Acres north of Salem says all the corn is ready to come out of the field and many bean fields are ready for harvest as well. "So far itlooks likeeveryone is working ontrying to getthe corn crop harvested and they have done it with a pretty rapid pace with the nice weather we've hadthe last week. I think people are now getting into the soybean harvest also and it's going to slow up the corn pace a little bit because people are going to switch and try and get their soybeans out," Vandeveer said. "If it does happen to rain, it would probably be a little bit of a blessing because itis gettingpretty dry and I've noticethere have been several combine fires." Vandeveer is averaging 35 to 45 bushels an acre for soybeans and 125 to 135 bushels per acre for corn. That's down 10 to 15 bushels per acre for soybeans and 25 to 50 bushels per acre for corn from last year's near perfect weather and record crop. Considering the dry weather the second half of summer, Vandeveer is happy with the results. The harvest numbers aren't as good in the Centralia area, where Larry Juenger at the Maco Elevator shares some early yield results. "Beans are averaging 33 to 35 bushelsan acre, which most of my growers are happy withthat considering the conditions. The corn, we've gotten in 110 to 120 bushels per acre. We knew going in the corn was going to be a disappointment, so that is pretty well what we expected," Juenger said. Both Juenger and Vandeveer say there is still plenty of time to complete the harvest. - http://goo.gl/ggNRn

Three-Year-Old Chicago Girl Killed In Effingham County Wreck

A three-year-old Chicago girl has died in a single vehicle wreck on Interstate 57 in Effingham County that sent eight other Chicago area residents to the hospital for treatment. State Police say Kendall McDonald was pronounced dead on the scene. The driver of the SUV, 42-year-old Muriel Davis-McDonald, was traveling northbound on I-57 just south of the Effingham-Shelby County line when she left the roadway, overcorrected, lost control, rolled over, and came to rest in the roadway ditch. Davis-McDonald was taken to St. John's Hospital in Springfield, while seven others were transported to Carle Hospital in Champaign. State Police report only the driver and one seven-year-old passenger were wearing seatbelts. The wreck occurred at 7:32 Monday morning. - http://goo.gl/0xcFF

Marion County Police Beat for Tuesday, October 11th, 2011

Two people remain in the Marion County Jail following drug related arrests by Centralia Police. 27-year-old Melia Welch of West North Avenue in Bluford is being held for possession of a controlled substance. 21-year-old Odell Wright of Jackson Street in Centraliais being held for possession of less than ten grams of cannabis. 56-year-old Paul Lewis of North Kell in Centralia was arrested by Sandoval Police for alleged disorderly conduct. 35-year-old Jennifer Harpool of Ash Street in Edgewood posted $600 bond after being arrested on an Effingham County small claims warrant. The Marion County Sheriff's Department has two burglaries under investigation. James LeBeau of Centralia reported a barn on his mother's property on the Possum Trot Road in rural Alma was broken into. A new tractor and brush hog are reported missing. Ubia Benjamin of Jeff Road in Walnut Hill reported her home was burglarized over the weekend. - http://goo.gl/gb3cj

Marion County Police Beat for Monday, October 10th, 2011

A 29-year-old Centralia man is being held in the Clinton County Jail for alleged robbery and domestic battery. Cesar Munoz is accused of going to the Clarissa Glass home on Dover Street and knocking Glass down and physically taking her cell phone. Centralia Police say Munoz claimed Glass owed him money, leading to the altercation. A 25-year-old Centralia man has been arrested and taken to the Marion County Jail by Centralia Police for alleged aggravated domestic battery and felony criminal damage to property. Centralia Police say Eddie Armstrong of East 5th went to the Kimberly Burton home on Saddler Street. When she didn't answer the door, Armstrong allegedly broke out the windows in her car. Once Burton came out of her home, Armstrong allegedly began choking her. Salem Police arrested a 21-year-old Salem man on multiple charges following a traffic stop on his motorcycle early Monday morning. Christopher Keech of Hillcrest Drive was arrested for alleged driving under the influence of drugs, possession of a controlled substance and cannabis and driving on a suspended license. - http://goo.gl/uVhW0