On November 27, 2020, at 9:56 p.m. Gibson County Central Dispatch received a report of an intoxicated driver on Giro Road near Crawford Hill in rural Gibson County. The caller advised that the driver was driving a Black 1998 Jeep Cherokee and gave Communications Officers an accurate location to find the vehicle. Deputy Bryce Jutzi went to Giro Road and found the vehicle where the caller stated it was at. Upon approaching the vehicle, he found the driver 31-year-old Alexander Anthis of Fort Branch in a state of intoxication. At that point Deputy Jutzi began a roadside investigation that resulted in Mr. Anthis being taken into custody and transported to the Gibson County Jail. Upon arriving at the jail Mr. Anthis was charged with Operating a Vehicle While Intoxicated. He remains in custody on a $650 bond.
All Criminal defendants are to be presumed innocent until, and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Study: Illinois Bottom Half Of Worst Roads In The Country
A new report puts the cost and condition of Illinois’ state-run roads near the worst in the
country.
The 25th Annual Highway Report, compiled by The Reason Foundation, looks at state
highways in 13 different categories, including pavement condition, traffic congestion,
structurally deficient bridges, traffic fatalities, and spending per mile.
The organization’s placed Illinois at 37th overall, behind all neighboring states, including
second-ranked Missouri.
“It might be beneficial for Illinois DOT folks and Illinois leaders to speak with their
counterparts in Missouri and see why they're able to, for example, maintain a roadway at
a cost as much lower as Illinois,” said Baruch Feigenbaum, lead author of the report and
senior managing director of transportation policy at Reason Foundation. “Ask how
they're able to get such smooth pavement.”
Illinois ranks 32nd in structurally deficient bridges, 32nd in urban interstate pavement
condition, and 42nd in capital and bridge costs per mile. Its worst category performance
was traffic congestion, ranking 49th.
Feigenbaum admits there’s not much room for new capacity to deal with that congestion
in the Chicago area, but advises that leaders could become creative in their thinking.
“We’ve seen a lot of states going to pricing, where they'll add new capacity and they will
take a lane, or they’ll convert their high occupancy vehicle lane, to create a toll lane,”
Feigenbaum said. “Pricing is good because it gives folks a guaranteed travel option if
they need to get somewhere on time.”
Illinois’ annual battle with ice and snow appears to be no excuse for its performance.
“In terms of weather, it does not seem to be a factor because the No. 1 state this
year is actually is North Dakota,” Feigenbaum said. “They have a very active freeze/frost
cycle with a lot of cold weather and a lot of extremes.”
One bright spot is the relative safety found on roadways across Illinois. The state ranked
15th in overall fatality rate, 16th in rural fatality rate, and 22nd in urban fatality rate.
“We tend to see a higher fatality rates in states with higher speed limits because higher
speeds can lead to accidents that have more fatalities,” Feigenbaum said. “Illinois does
have some rural areas and the fact that the road fatality rate there is 16th is still pretty
good. This is overall a positive story and something that the state should want to
continue.”
Illinois’ state-controlled highway system is the 14th largest in the county. Feigenbaum
said it wouldn’t take much effort to make a big difference for drivers.
“We found states can make improvements just by making some small changes in their
overall system,” Feigenbaum said. “For example, if Illinois was able to reduce its
spending even slightly and increase the pavement quality even slightly, we think that the
ranking for the state would really improve.”
The report places North Dakota and Missouri at the top of the list, while Alaska and New
Jersey take the bottom two spots.
Disturbance call leads to arrest of Oakland City woman
On November 27, 2020, at 7:27 P.M. Gibson County Central Dispatch was dispatched to the 1200 block of West Morton Street in Oakland City to investigate disturbance that was in progress. Deputy U.B. Smith arrived on scene and upon locating the disturbance a Gibson County Ambulance crew was called to the scene to take one of the participants to a local hospital for treatment for a head injury. The other participant 39-year-old Ashley Heck of Oakland City was taken into custody and transported to the Gibson County Jail where she was charged with Battery with Serious Bodily Injury. She remains in custody on a $750 bond.
Assisting Deputy Smith in his investigation was Deputy Bryce Jutzi, Oakland City Police Officer Jeff Hill, and an Indiana State Trooper.
All Criminal defendants are to be presumed innocent until, and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Toledo Man Injured In Thanksgiving Crash
ISP TRAFFIC CRASH ALERT
The Following Preliminary Information is Being Released by Illinois State Police
District 12
WHAT: Single Unit Personal Injury Traffic Crash
WHERE: Illinois Route 121 at Industrial Drive, Cumberland County
WHEN: Nov. 26, 2020 at approximately 12:25 p.m.
VEHICLE: Unit 1- 2007 Gray Pontiac
DRIVER: Unit 1- Timmy Utley, 54-year-old male of Toledo, IL (Transported to a local area hospital with injuries)
PRELIMINARY: A preliminary investigation indicates the following occurred: Unit 1 was traveling southbound on Illinois Route 121 at Industrial Drive. Unit 1 left Illinois Route 121 to the west and struck a ditch. Unit 1 then overturned multiple times in a field west of Illinois Route 121.
CHARGES: Unit 1 Driver was issued citations for Failure to Reduce Speed to Avoid an Accident, Improper Lane Usage and Driving While License Suspended.
All subjects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law
Disturbance leads to Haubstadt man being arrested on multiple charges
On November 26, 2020, at 7:47 p.m. Gibson County Central Dispatch received a 911 report of a disturbance in the 2000 block of East 600 South near Fort Branch, Indiana. Upon arriving Deputy Bryce Jutzi learned that a disturbance between two men had occurred. During the investigation it was discovered that one of the participants 40-year-old Joshua Fullerton of Haubstadt had an outstanding writ of attachment warrant. At that point Deputy Jutzi placed Mr. Fullerton into custody. Due to the level of intoxication of Mr. Fullerton Deputy Jutzi took him to Deaconess Gibson for medical clearance. During the investigation Mr. Fullerton communicated multiple threats towards Deputy Jutzi. Finally, upon being transported to the Gibson County Jail Mr. Fullerton was charged with the outstanding writ of attachment warrant as well as new charges of Intimidation, Disorderly Conduct, and Resisting Law Enforcement. Mr. Fullerton remains in custody.
Assisting Deputy Jutzi in his investigation was Deputy U.B. Smith, Indiana State Trooper Tanner Hurley, and Haubstadt Officer Riley Farmer.
All Criminal defendants are to be presumed innocent until, and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Princeton man arrested for driving while suspended
On November 25, 2020, at 12:56 p.m. Gibson County Deputy Jennifer Robb conducted a traffic stop on a Black 2007 Dodge Dakota near the intersection of Fifth Avenue and Broadway in Princeton. Upon approaching the vehicle she identified the driver as 19-year-old Dustin Winchell of Princeton. During a roadside investigation Deputy Robb discovered that Mr. Winchell’s Operators license was suspended on a prior driving while suspended conviction. At that point Deputy Rob placed Mr. Winchell into custody. While preparing the vehicle to be towed Deputy Robb discovered alcohol inside the vehicle. At the conclusion of her investigation Deputy Robb placed Mr. Winchell into custody and transported him to the Gibson County Jail where he was charged with Driving While Suspended Prior and Minor Possession. He has since posted a $650 bond.
All Criminal defendants are to be presumed innocent until, and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Mt. Carmel City Council Agenda
AGENDA
CITY OF MOUNT CARMEL
REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING
Monday November 30, 2020 at 5:00 pm
· Call to Order
o Pledge of Allegiance
o Roll Call
· Approve Minutes
o Minutes of meeting held 11/16/2020
· Visitors (topic discussed by visitor(s) is limited to 5 minutes)
· Reports and Communications
o Mayor Judge
o Commissioner Meeks
o Commissioner Ikemire
o Commissioner Dulgar
o Commissioner Madden
· Staff Reports
o Rudy Witsman Dave Easter Art Kimmel
o Kelli Storckman Ryan Turner
o Mike Gidcumb Francis Speth
· New Business
o First Reading of the Tax Levy
o Consent Agenda
o Removal of items from the Consent Agenda
o Consideration of Consent Agenda
§ Approve Resolution 678 – Amending liquor license fees
§ Pay all bills bearing proper signature
o Consideration of items removed from the Consent Agenda
· Executive Session
· Motion to Adjourn
Search On For Two Subjects After Armed Robbery At Jumpin' Jimmy's
On 11/27/2020, at approximately 5:10am, Mt. Carmel Police responded to the Mt. Carmel Jumpin Jimmys Convenience Store in reference to an armed robbery that had just taken place. Two subjects entered the store, armed with a handgun, and removed an undetermined amount of cash out of the register. The subjects left in a white Ford F250 4x4 four-door truck with Indiana truck plates that was driven by a third person. The robbers were described as one white male and one white female. It is believed they were also involved in another robbery in Grayville, IL shortly after this robbery. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Mt. Carmel Police Department at 618-262-4114.
Hunters Harvested 47,147 Deer During Opening Weekend of Illinois Firearm Season
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Hunters in Illinois harvested a preliminary total of 47,147 deer during the first weekend of the Illinois Firearm Deer Season Nov. 20-22 compared with 50,173 deer taken during the first firearm weekend in 2019. Illinois’ seven-day Firearm Deer Season will conclude Dec. 3-6.
Other deer hunting opportunities in the weeks ahead include:
• Muzzleloader-Only Deer Season, Dec. 11-13;
• Late-Winter Antlerless-Only Dec. 31, 2020 – Jan. 3, 2021 and Jan. 15-17, 2021;
• CWD Deer Season (in select counties only), Dec. 31, 2020 – Jan. 3, 2021 and Jan. 15-17, 2021; and
• Archery Deer Season continues through Jan. 17. 2021 (archery deer hunting is closed Dec. 3-6 in counties open for Firearm Deer Season).
For more details on deer hunting, open counties, and other information, check the Illinois Department of Natural Resources website at https://www.dnr.illinois.gov/hunting/Pages/DeerHunting.aspx
2019 2020
Wabash County 105 101
Edwards County 219 227
Lawrence County 348 334
White County 456 465
Richland County 431 397
Wayne County 943 861
State Officials Plead With Illinoisans Not To Gather For Thanksgiving
Gov. J.B. Pritzker again pleaded with Illinoisans on Tuesday to stay home and not gather for Thanksgiving.
During his daily COVID-19 briefing Tuesday, Pritzker said Illinois hospitals are already taxed and we can’t afford to make things worse.
“The doctors are asking all of us to skip the big group dinner this year,” Pritzker said. “The vaccines that seem to be on the horizon can’t help you if you get sick now.”
As of Monday night, over 61-hundred patients were in the hospital with COVID-19, with about 12-hundred of those in the intensive care unit.
"Our hospitals are still under siege by this latest upswing of COVID cases, and with the latest mitigations not expected to show up in the numbers for at least another week or ten days, Thanksgiving needs to be different this year,” Pritzker said.
The Illinois Department of Public Health Tuesday reported 9,469 new confirmed coronavirus cases, including 125 additional deaths. Only nine deaths were people aged under 60.
The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity rate for cases as a percent of the total tests from Nov. 17 to Nov. 23 was 10.4%, down from 10.9%.
Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said it is not too late for people to change their Thanksgiving plans.
"We have to accept what we are dealing with, a global pandemic the likes of which no one has seen before,” Ezike said. “That does deserve a change from the norm.”