Mt. Carmel Halloween Plans Announced

Halloween plans in Mt. Carmel were announced this evening by Mayor Joe Judge at the City Council’s regular meeting. Judge said the weekend will begin with a community trunk or treat event at the city park and it will look different than similar events in the past. Judge said the Eagles Club is working with the city to hold the trunk or treat as visitors will park at the 4-H Center and walk over to the Shelter House where the treats will be distributed….

The city park will be closed to traffic that evening during the trunk or treat.

Traditional trick or treating will then held the following night on the 31st from 4:30 to 8:30. Judge reminded residents not wanting to participate to leave their porch lights off that evening. He also said everyone needs to be mindful of the state department of public health’s Halloween guidelines.

Illinois State Police Announces September Activity and Enforcement

Carmi, IL – Illinois State Police District 19 Commander, Captain Nathan Douglas, announced today activity and enforcement figures for the month of September. Troopers in District 19, which includes Wabash, Edwards, Wayne, White, Hamilton, Saline, and Gallatin Counties, recorded 1,939 incidents during the month.

Enforcement activity consisted of 720 citations and 1,600 written warnings, including 2 DUIs, 437 speeding citations, 47 occupant restraint citations, 15 criminal arrests, and 652 written warnings for speeding. Troopers also assisted 69 motorists, conducted 263 Motor Carrier Safety Inspections, and investigated 29 traffic crashes. There were two fatal traffic crashes investigated by District 19 during September, resulting in two fatalities.

Moreover, District 19 issued 504 citations and 740 written warnings for “Fatal Four” violations. These violations are most associated with fatal traffic crashes and include DUI, Speeding, Failure to Wear a Seatbelt, and Distracted Driving.

RMC Makes Donation To Market Street MTC

Members of the Wabash County Retail Merchants Duck Race Committee presented members of the Market Street MTC Committee with a donation to help with the cost of improvements to Merchants Park and Harris Insurance Pavilion.  The donation came from proceeds from the Duck Race held in July.    This is the third installment of a five-year commitment.  Market Street MTC is still accepting donations.  Contact Mike Harris at Harris Insurance (262-7735) for more information.   

L-R: Terry Beckerman (Market Street MTC), Mike Harris (Market Street MTC), Darrin Gottman (RMC), Susan Zimmerman (RMC), Sharon Harris (RMC).

L-R: Terry Beckerman (Market Street MTC), Mike Harris (Market Street MTC), Darrin Gottman (RMC), Susan Zimmerman (RMC), Sharon Harris (RMC).

16 Year Old Juvenile Charged In Olney Murder Investigation

Olney, IL – On September 30, 2020, the U.S Marshals Florida / Caribbean Fugitive Task Force and Walton County, FL Sheriff’s Department officials arrested Rick A. Meador, an 18-year-old male of Olney, IL on a Richland County, IL warrant for First-Degree Murder.  The arrest took place at the Bass Haven Campground in DeFuniak, FL.  Also taken into custody was a 16-year-old female of Olney, IL who was listed as missing and endangered in connection with the Olney murder investigation.  Late in the afternoon of September 30, an arrest warrant for First-Degree Murder by Accountability based on the murder charge of Kyle M. Johnson was issued through the office of Richland County State’s Attorney Charles Bradley Vaughn for the juvenile.  The 16-year-old female is currently being held in the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice Center in Crestview, FL awaiting extradition. 

On September 6, 2020, Illinois State Police (ISP) Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) Zone 8 officials were requested by the Olney Police Department to assist with a homicide investigation at the intersection of North Walnut and East Laurel Street in Olney, Illinois.  An adult male, later identified as Kyle M. Johnson, a 19-year-old from Olney, IL, was found with multiple gunshot wounds and transported to an area hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

Through information gathered during the investigation led by ISP DCI Zone 8, three arrests have resulted in connection with this homicide - Rick A. Meador, an 18-year-old male of Olney, IL for First-Degree Murder , Tara N. Haws, a 33-year-old female of Olney, IL for First-Degree Murder by Accountability, and a 16-year-old female of Olney, IL for First-Degree Murder by Accountability. 

ISP DCI Zone 8 was assisted by the Olney Police Department, Richland County Sheriff’s Department, Mount Vernon Police Department, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department, ISP District 12 Patrol, ISP District 13 Patrol, and the United States Marshals in this investigation.  No additional information will be released by the ISP.  Any further inquiries should be addressed to the Richland County State’s Attorney’s Office.

Rural Wabash County Water District Plans Water Line Repair Next Week

From RWCWD: Weather permitting, we will be doing a water line repair on Monday 10/5/20 near the intersection of Hwy 15 and 850 Rd. Depending on the severity of the leak it is possible that water will be shut off temporarily after 8AM for customers South of Hwy 15 on 1250Blvd (east of the railroad tracks), 870 Rd, 1220 Blvd (east of 700 Rd) and 840 Rd. We apologize for this inconvenience. Please call 618-299-6101 or 618-262-6438 with any questions.

Committee Gathers Information On Remote Learning

Remote learning and school districts' responses to the COVID-19 pandemic were in the spotlight Wednesday at a Senate Education Committee and Higher Education Committee joint hearing.

The hearing was the latest in the Black Caucus’ agenda-building series of hearings focusing on education, criminal justice and health care.

Robin Stearns, president of the education policy and advocacy organization Advance Illinois, said it is challenging to determine whether or not a teacher is reaching a student when they are not in the classroom.

“Just showing up and logging in is very different,” Stearns said. “It is so much more challenging for a teacher to be able to understand whether a kid is really engaging in the material when you are trying to do things like hybrid fashion, remote, etc.”

Stearns said being out of the classroom is causing kids to fall behind. She cited research that showed schools affected by Hurricane Katrina and long-running teacher strikes in Argentina had lasting effects on students, including lower incomes when they became adults.

“What you see in those events is that kids were, in fact, affected over time,” Stearns said. “When things got back to normal, they didn’t necessarily get back on track.”

Dr. Barry Clark, executive director of Illinois Association of School Administrators, said it is a goal to get all Illinois students back into the classroom as soon as possible. To achieve that, he said schools will need access to a state-sponsored rapid response testing program. They will also have to prepare for the future.

“We need to think about what it is going to look like when there is a vaccine for COVID-19,” he said. “Is that going to be a requirement? If so, is it going to be a requirement to be in person and think through how that is going to play out logistically and politically.”

Dr. Amy Dixon, a principal in the Carmi-White County school district, said almost all parents wanted in-class instruction and it is paying off academically.

“We’re at week 6 of being open, and we are still gathering data that I can tell you that so far this year we are showing more than average gains,” she said.

Lawmaker Says Governor Has Too Much Power In COVID-19 Restrictions

A state Senator from a region set to see increased COVID-19 restrictions from the Pritzker administration says the governor has too much power flipping the COVID-19 restriction switch. The governor says taxpayer funds will cover lost business.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s office Tuesday announced come Saturday, Region 1, which includes counties in the northwestern-most part of the state, will have tighter COVID-19 mitigations like limits on restaurants and bars. Schools are not impacted by the new mitigations. That’s similar to measures still in place for Region 4 and what was put in place but repealed weeks later in Region 7.

The move comes because the administration says the region has exceeded a threshold of 8 percent COVID-19 positivity rate. That’s the rate of positive tests per total samples taken.
Pritzker said the mitigations are temporary, but the region’s positivity rate must decline.

State Sen. Dave Syverson, R-Rockford, said the state should be looking at hospitalizations, not the positivity rate he said was flawed.

“Just not too long ago they were telling people ‘if you’re healthy, don’t bog down the system by going and getting tested,’ now they’re saying because there aren’t enough healthy people getting tested, we’re going to shut you down,” Syverson said. “I’ve never heard of anything so ridiculous.”

In a different region, Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike Wednesday said because mass testing is keeping the positivity rate at two percent in Champaign County, the administration is separating that out.

“We want to ensure that the large volume of tests at Urbana-Champaign does not overshadow the trends that we’re seeing in the broader region,” Ezike said.

But she said if Region 6 without Champaign County goes above the 8 percent threshold, the entire region including the university gets restrictions.

Syverson said it’s obvious to him the positivity rate shouldn’t be the trigger.

“The state with this new power, they can shut any community down anytime they want just by adjusting the positivity rate,” Syverson said. “It makes no sense. These are bureaucrats making bureaucratic decisions.”

Syverson said limiting bars and restaurants will bring thousands of layoffs and businesses have a right to sue the state.

Pritzker said there are taxpayer funded Business Interruption Grants being awarded.
“Many of those resources by the way do come from the federal government and we’ve made sure to allocate them properly,” Pritzker said.

Others around the state have been critical that the grants aren’t distributed fairly across the state when the shutdowns have had broad negative impact.

The Democratic-controlled state legislature has largely let the governor manage COVID-19 unilaterally.

There are a bevy of lawsuits in the courts challenging the governor’s orders on businesses, schools and sports.

WGH Well Positioned For Future PPE Shortage

Are health care organizations on the verge of dealing with another PPE shortage? Alliant Management CFO Tom Ramsey told the Wabash General Hospital board of directors Monday that surgical masks are becoming hard to find with suppliers unable to fill all orders. Despite that word of caution, Ramsey said Wabash General had done a good job in stockpiling PPE’s throughout the pandemic and should be well positioned should supplies tighten up even further. 

FORMER MADISON COUNTY POSTAL EMPLOYEE CHARGED WITH STEALING MAIL

A federal grand jury for the Southern District of Illinois has returned an indictment charging Tia M. Taylor, 27, of Alton, Illinois, with one count of theft of mail by a postal service employee. The indictment charges that in July 2020, Taylor stole four packages addressed to Godfrey residents from the Godfrey post office, where she worked as a clerk.

The arraignment for Taylor will be held on Oct. 8, 2020 at 10:30 a.m. at the federal courthouse in East St. Louis, Illinois.

Taylor is the second postal employee charged recently with stealing mail in the Southern District of Illinois. Athens A. Shorey, 33, of Cobden, Illinois, was indicted earlier last month with taking mail from the Carbondale post office back in May.

An indictment is a formal charge against a defendant. Under the law, a defendant is presumed to be innocent of a charge until proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt to the satisfaction of a jury.

The charge against Taylor resulted from a referral and investigation by the United States Postal Service, Office of the Inspector General. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter T. Reed.

Indiana State Police Post Safety Tips for Avoiding Deer on the Roadway

It’s that time of year again for drivers to be aware of deer darting into and crossing the roadways.  Last year in the state of Indiana there were over 16,000 accidents involving deer.  Out of those accidents there were 347 with injuries and five fatalities. The Putnamville State Police Post would like to pass along a few safety tips to help you avoid a possible collision with a deer this year.  

• Be cautious while driving during dusk or dawn hours 

Deer are most active at dawn and dusk, but can appear at any time, especially during the mating season, which is in full swing from October through December. Please remember though that deer can appear at any time.  Ensure that you and your passengers are wearing seat belts at all times, in case you need to make a sudden stop. 

• Pay attention to deer crossing signs

Be alert and observe your surroundings for any signs of deer while on the road. Deer are abundant in forested areas, so it’s important to drive cautiously even if you’re no longer in a deer-crossing zone.

• Stay alert if you spot a deer

Deer tend to travel in packs so if you see one deer, slow down and proceed with caution, be prepared for more to follow.  If you see a deer, slow down, tap your brakes to warn others, or flash your lights and sound your horn to warn other motorists. It will give everyone an opportunity to slow down. 

• Take precautions when driving at night

If there is no oncoming traffic, turn on your bright lights. You’ll not only be able to see clearer, but you’ll have a greater chance of spotting a deer from a distance and allow you to react accordingly.

• Don’t swerve to avoid hitting a deer

Do not swerve to avoid a deer collision. By swerving you put yourself at risk for a worse collision with another motorist or running off the roadway.  Brake firmly and stay in your lane. 

• Report the deer-vehicle collision

If you happen to get involved in an accident, contact local authorities to report it so you can get an accident report for your insurance company.   

Remember deer are unpredictable and could dart into traffic at any time, so be alert at all times!  

Indiana State Police Putnamville wants everyone to buckle up and hopes that everyone travels safely during this time of year.