The Weekly Post public record for 11-30-23

NOTE: Charges are merely an accusation. All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Police reports
• WILLIAMSFIELD – Authorities are investigating a possible burglary attempt in Williamsfield that prompted a lockdown of the school.
About 7:45 a.m. Nov. 15, the Knox County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call regarding an issue at a building in the 100 block of N. Oak St. There they found a broken front window. Nobody was inside the building, which was being used for storage, according to Sgt. Brad Davis of the sheriff’s office.

Deputies gathered evidence and are pursuing suspects, Davis said. A K9 officer cut one of its paws on the broken glass but wasn’t injured seriously.

The sheriff’s office put the Williamsfield-school campus on soft lockdown for a couple of hours as a precaution, according to Tim Farquer, the district superintendent.

• FARMINGTON – Someone apparently drove a pickup truck into a street sign at a Farmington intersection, according to authorities.
The sign at Wall and Court streets was bent at almost a 45-degree angle when a Farmington police officer responded to a complaint about 12:45 a.m. Nov. 12. The officer found in the roadway multiple plastic pieces from a vehicle bumper, according to a city police report. Damage was estimated at $85.

Earlier, an anonymous caller reported a black Chevrolet pickup truck drove through several yards on Court Street. At Oak and Fulton streets, the officer found more plastic-bumper parts, as well as two half-full bottles of Smirnoff vodka and a tumbler.

• DAHINDA – A Laura man was cited for improper passing following a two-vehicle crash west of Dahinda.

Timothy R. Gazza, 40, was driving an eastbound 2023 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited about 3 p.m. Nov. 10 in the 1500 block of U.S. Route 150 when it struck an eastbound 1994 Kenworth truck turning left into a field. The other driver was 40-year-old Nicholas D. Still of Monmouth.
Still said he slowed and activated his turn signal, a Knox County Sheriff’s Office report stated. Gazza said he attempted to pass the truck and neither he nor his passenger saw brake lights nor turn signals.
The passenger, a 39-year-old Laura woman, said she was sore from airbag deployment. She and both drivers declined medical attention.

• LONDON MILLS – A Farmington man appeared to avoid significant injury after his vehicle overturned as he tried to avoid hitting a deer west of London Mills. About 7:30 p.m. Nov. 8, Cody A. VanMiddlesworth, 18, was driving a westbound 2005 Honda Civic on Illinois Route 116 at Knox Highway 8 when he veered right to avoid the deer in the roadway. The vehicle skidded across both lanes, struck an embankment, continued west along a ditch and overturned.

VanMiddlesworth was not transported to a hospital, according to a Knox County Sheriff’s Office report, which did not mention his condition. The vehicle sustained more than $1,500 in damage and was towed.

• ELMWOOD – A woman reported a semi-trailer truck sideswiped hers at the north edge of Elmwood and broke off its driver’s-side mirror.
Kiera Smith of Fishers, Ind., was driving a semi south on Illinois Route 78 near Southgate Drive about 6 p.m. Nov. 7 when the northbound semi struck the mirror and kept going, according to a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report.

Smith couldn’t provide additional identification regarding the other truck.

• FARMINGTON – A Farmington man wanted for drunken driving was taken into custody after he hung up on a 9-1-1 call he made regarding a domestic disturbance.

About 4:45 p.m. Nov. 9, a Farmington police officer contacted Michael A. Rife, 55, in the 300 block of E. Fort St. Rife said he was having a dispute with his son. The officer discovered Rife had an active Fulton County warrant for failure to appear in court. A new court date was set.

• OAK RUN – A blown fuse resulted in smoke but no apparent fire at an Oak Run residence. First responders were summoned about 11:30 p.m. Nov. 7 to the 300 block of Charter Oak Place, where they found the smoke source in the basement.

According to a Knox County Sheriff’s Office report, the electrical box was charred where the fuse blew.

The homeowner reported smelling smoke emanating from the basement. A representative of the Williamsfield Fire Protection District said nothing was suspicious about the incident.

• MAQUON – A Brimfield man required a trip to a Peoria hospital following a two-vehicle crash south of Maquon. Nicholas J. Greenway, 23, was driving an eastbound 2021 Nissan Versa shortly before 7 p.m. Nov. 2 in the 1600 block of Illinois Route 8 when his vehicle rear-ended a grain wagon driven by Aaron J. Taylor, 54, of Maquon, according to a Knox County Sheriff’s Office report.

Taylor said he was stopped to turn left into a field entrance. Greenway said he was talking on his cellphone and when he looked up, he saw the grain wagon and couldn’t avoid it. An ambulance transported Greenway to OSF Saint Francis Medical Center.

Greenway’s vehicle was towed. The frame, rear axle and running gear of the grain wagon were damaged. Greenway was cited for driving too fast for conditions, improper seat-belt use and operating a vehicle while using an electronic-communication device.

• MAQUON – At about 6 p.m. Nov. 8, Douglas S. Passmore, 50, of Yates City was driving an eastbound 2020 Nissan Kicks sport-utility vehicle on Illinois Route 8 east of Illinois Route 97 when the SUV struck a deer and slid off the roadway. The SUV struck an embankment, per a Knox County Sheriff’s Office report. Passmore said he struck his head, but he was not transported to a hospital. The vehicle was towed.

• HANNA CITY – Shortly before 6 a.m. Nov. 5, Stephanie T. Evans of Farmington was driving an eastbound 2020 Ford Edge in the 14000 block of Illinois Route 116 west of Hanna City when the vehicle struck a deer. Evans was uninjured, according to a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report. The vehicle was towed.

• EDWARDS – At 6:15 p.m. Nov. 6, Jared W. Harkness of Brimfield was driving a 2020 Ford van west in the 6900 block of Illinois Route 8 east of Edwards when the vehicle struck a deer. Harkness didn’t require medical attention or a tow, a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report stated.

• DAHINDA – At 9 p.m. Oct. 30, Krista K. Burns, 42, of Alexis was driving a 2015 Ford F-150 pickup truck west on U.S. Route 150 near Knox Highway 11 south of Dahinda when the vehicle struck a deer. A Knox County Sheriff’s Office report listed no injuries for Burns or her passenger, a 42-year-old Alexis man. The vehicle was drivable.

• GALESBURG – These were among calls to which the Knox County Sheriff’s Office responded between Nov. 12-18: two domestic disturbances, Yates City; burglary, Galva; disturbance, Yates City; suspicious incident, La Fayette.