NOTE: Charges are merely an accusation. All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Origin of Laura fire under investigation
• LAURA – No injuries were reported in a house fire north of Laura, but the blaze’s origin appears in question.
The Office of the Illinois State Fire Marshal was investigating the incident at 22908 N. Illinois Route 78, which was reported about 6:30 p.m. June 20. The location is just south of the Peoria-Stark county border.
Brimfield Community Fire Protection District officials requested state help because they were unsure if the blaze was set on purpose, according to a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report. By about 7 p.m., when a deputy arrived, the fire was extinguished.
The front porch was charred and there was extensive damage to the house exterior near the front door and to the front entryway, according to a sheriff’s-office report. Flames burned a large hole in the door. Pools of water covered the first floor and seeped into the basement.
Nobody was home when the fire started, although two dogs were inside the house. One ran away and the other was unharmed, according to the report.
The homeowner said she left about 4:30 p.m., followed a few minutes later by a friend who helps maintain the property. Security-camera footage taken about 90 minutes after that revealed a small flame at the base of an end table directly in front of the front door, the report stated.
Firefighters from the Akron-Princeville, Elmwood, Logan-Trivoli and Williamsfield departments joined Brimfield colleagues in response. No damage estimate was available.
Police Reports
• BRIMFIELD – An Elmwood man was transported to a Peoria hospital following a single-vehicle rollover accident south of Brimfield.
The accident happened about 5:30 a.m. June 24 in the 9800 block of N. Maher Rd.
Rescuers found a 2019 Ford sedan on its top in a cornfield on the west side of the road, according to a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report. The driver was Steven A. Murphy.
An ambulance ferried Murphy to OSF Saint Francis Medical Center. A deputy who visited the hospital wasn’t able to talk with Murphy, who fell asleep after he received pain medication. Hospital staff said Murphy’s injuries weren’t life threatening, per the report.
The vehicle sustained significant damage. The deputy noted skid marks on Maher Road that led north into the ditch.
• LAURA – A two-vehicle crash east of Laura resulted in a Peoria woman arrested for driving under the influence of cannabis.
The accident happened shortly before 9 a.m. June 21 at Illinois Route 90 and Brimfield Road, Peoria County Sheriff’s Office reports stated.
Naquesha M. Isadore, 31, was driving a 2011 Dodge Journey north on Brimfield Road when it collided with a 2020 BMW X4 that was eastbound on Route 90. The other driver was Mary A. Addis, 67, of La Fayette. The collision knocked the Journey onto its passenger side.
A deputy at the accident scene noted Isadore smelled of burned cannabis. She admitted to smoking it about 6 a.m., according to the sheriff’s office.
Isadore (hip pain) and Addis (lacerated ankle) were transported to OSF Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoria. So was the passenger in each vehicle – a woman in Isadore’s and a female child in Addis’.
The adult passenger complained of left-eye and rib pain. She said she didn’t detect impairment regarding Isadore but noted a heavy perfume smell. The child, who was restrained in a safety seat, complained of belly pain.
After Isadore was released from the hospital, she was transported to the Peoria County Jail. In addition to DUI, she was accused of failure to yield right of way at an intersection and failure to wear a seat belt. Addis was cited for failure to wear a seat belt. The vehicles sustained disabling damage and were towed.
• PRINCEVILLE – A Princeville woman sustained minor injuries in a single-vehicle accident northwest of her hometown.
About 11 p.m. June 17, Alexis N. Kelton was driving a 2019 Jeep Compass north on Princeville Cemetery Road about one-half mile south of Mendell Road when she realized a bridge was closed. Kelton tried to turn around but backed up too far and ended up in a west-side ditch.
When Kelton accelerated to get back on the pavement, the vehicle jumped the ditch and rolled on its passenger side, according to a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report. Kelton sustained abrasions to her left arm as she exited the vehicle, but she declined medical treatment.
• HANNA CITY – A semi-trailer truck snagged an overhead electrical wire in Hanna City and pulled it to the ground, according to authorities.
The incident happened at 1:30 p.m. June 12 at Main and Hanna streets, a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report stated. Driver Nathan A. Lindahl of Peoria was turning north from Hanna Street onto Main Street when he heard a loud noise. He looked back and saw his truck was dragging electrical wire.
As the truck was turning, it apparently caught a wire that extended from a utility pole to the Country Relics gift shop, 120 N. Main St. The truck also ripped away the electrical box attached to the business. The wire was not live, according to the report.
• FARMINGTON – Following a traffic stop, a Farmington man was accused of illegal possession of cannabis.
Rowdy G. Eldridge, 18, was a passenger in a black 1999 Ford Ranger that Farmington police stopped about 5:15 p.m. June 16 at Poplar and Fort streets. The vehicle had an expired registration sticker, according to a police report.
After a police dog detected cannabis in the vehicle, Eldridge admitted to having a bag of pot – 9.8 grams of it, according to police. He was issued a citation. The driver, 18-year-old Peyton B. Kelsey of Farmington, was cited for operating a vehicle with expired registration.
• HANNA CITY – A building west of Hanna City was the site of a burglary, according to authorities.
The burglary in the 14200 block of W. Farmington Rd. was reported June 17. Criminal damage to property also was alleged, according to the Peoria County Sheriff’s Office.
No other information was available. The sheriff’s office cited an ongoing investigation in declining a request to release a report about the incident.
• ELMWOOD – Zachary A. Benja Kelly, 33, of Elmwood was arrested about 11:15 a.m. June 20 and accused of operating an uninsured motor vehicle/bodily harm and driving on a revoked license, according to the Peoria County Sheriff’s Office.
• ELMWOOD – Larry A. Wilson, 39, of Elmwood was arrested about 7:15 a.m. June 19 and was being held for another law-enforcement agency, according to the Peoria County Sheriff’s Office.
• GALESBURG – These were among calls to which the Knox County Sheriff’s Office responded between June 11-17: threats, Yates City; road hazard, Williamsfield.
Marriage license
• Jennifer Nicole Bostwick and Christopher Andrew Mills, both of Brimfield.
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