NOTE: Charges are merely an accusation. All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Incidents & AccidentsStark County 1-9 – Israel Retamoza, 19, Wyoming, was cited for not having a valid driver’s license, driving with no insurance and having a non-valid vehicle registration. 1-13 – Rachel W. Newton, 46, LaFayette, was arrested on a Henry County warrant for failure to appear on the original charges of driving without insurance and for depositing material on a roadway. Unable to post $100 cash bond she was extradited to the Henry County Jail. 1-14 – Gregory G. Whittaker,…

NOTE: Charges are merely an accusation. All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Police reports • EDELSTEIN – Ice was a factor in two two-vehicle accidents that took place within about 45 minutes of each other at the same location south of Edelstein. No injuries were reported in either accident. Both took place Jan. 5 on Illinois Route 40, about one-quarter mile north of Hallock Hollow Road. About 8 a.m., Angela M. Janey of Bradford was driving a 2005 Pontiac Vibe south on Route 40 when the vehicle began to slide, according to a…

Rambling through central Illinois, gauging how much per hour it would take for me to drive a school bus. • • • The cartoon page will be changing again, and this time not by our choice. Mike Marland, the artist who draws R.F.D., will retire on Jan. 30. So his final cartoon should be in our Feb. 2 issue. Marland told The Daily Cartoonist website that, due to arthritis, he has been creating R.F.D. using Photoshop since August of 2020 and misses drawing the strips with pen and paper. Marland’s strip has been syndicated by King Features Weekly Service since…

By NICK VLAHOSFor The Weekly Post PRINCEVILLE – There’s a new sheriff in town. Well, a new sheriff’s deputy in town, to be precise.Vince Cogdal took over last week as the Peoria County Sheriff’s Office regular representative on Princeville byways. He succeeded Gabe Martinez, who moved to another assignment. Cogdal introduced himself to the Princeville Village Board during its meeting Jan. 3. He’ll be the usual officer on duty five days a week, under a renewed contract the board approved last month. That deal reduced regular coverage from seven days a week. “He’s just learning the village and said he’s very…

By JOHN A. BALLENTINEFor The Prairie News TOULON – The end of the sewer saga is in sight. At the Jan. 9 Toulon monthly council meeting, City Engineer Zach Knight said, “Our lift station is finally going to be here on Wednesday [Jan. 11] and I confirmed that with Stark [Excavating]. They intend once it’s delivered to basically complete the installation. Piping and electrical hookups will be done and the next huge step after that will be the startup.” Water will be sent into the lift station to test the pumps and controls. This step is still being scheduled, Knight…

NOTE: Charges are merely an accusation. All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Traffic citations &Ordinance violations12-30 – Jubilee A. Sundell – Driving 21-25 mph above limit.12-30 – Jeremy L. Schmuhl – Driving on a suspended license, registration expiration, and operating an unisured vehicle.12-31 – Mercedez M. Smith – Speeding 26-34 mph above limit.1-7 – Haden T. Lucas – Driving 21-25 mph above limit.1-7 – Joseph J. Kaufmann – Driving 15-20 mph above limit.1-7 – Mercedez M. Smith – Driving 21-25 mph above limit.1-3 – Justin J. Hash – Driving 21-25 mph above limit.1-7…

NOTE: Charges are merely an accusation. All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. High-speed chase leads to multiple charges• FARMINGTON – A driver from Rock Island was accused of multiple crimes after he led Farmington police officers and others on a nocturnal chase that exceeded 70 mph. Within about a half hour after Daniel T. Morgan, 32, posted bond on those charges, he was taken into police custody again – this time on an Iowa warrant for attempted murder. The chase began about 1:15 a.m. Jan. 6 in Farmington. A Farmington officer spotted a…

By JEFF LAMPEFor The Weekly Post As the cold, post-holiday reality of winter arrives, land auction season is ready to get hot. And while interest rates doubled in 2022, land prices have still increased. In fact, on Dec. 20, Murray Wise Associates auctioned a farm that is believed to have generated the highest sales price ever in Henry County. A 38-acre parcel of high-quality soils located just southwest of Kewanee sold for $21,100 per acre and a 9-acre tract sold for $18,100 per acre. While that pales in comparison to the $30,000-per-acre price tag from a Nov. 11 auction in Iowa…

NOTE: Charges are merely an accusation. All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Minor chlorine leak at Princeville water plant • PRINCEVILLE – The Princeville village water-treatment plant was the site of a minor chlorine-gas leak last week, according to authorities. The leak was reported shortly before 11:30 a.m. Dec. 29 in a structure between the main plant and the Village Hall, according to Jeff Troutman, first assistant chief of the Akron-Princeville Fire Protection District. Troutman also is the Princeville village president. An employee at the water-treatment plant walked past the structure and heard…

By JEFF LAMPEFor The Weekly Post  “What are the big white birds I’ve been seeing?” That question, asked increasingly over the past few years, has a simple and encouraging answer: Trumpeter swans. Thanks to protections from hunting and active breeding programs in several states, trumpeter swans are recolonizing areas of the Midwest – including Illinois – where they were eliminated from by 1900. In addition to numerous reports of breeding swans in Illinois, the large birds are increasingly over-wintering in central Illinois. In the past few years, flocks have spent time resting in fields throughout The Weekly Post circulation area. For the…