NOTE: Charges are merely an accusation. All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Police reports
• FARMINGTON – A traffic stop near Farmington resulted in three people being taken into police custody.
Shortly after 11:30 p.m. Aug. 23, Eric T. Planert, 38, of London Mills was driving a 2002 Chevrolet truck in the 500 block of N. Main St. that was pulling what appeared to be a homemade trailer, according to a Farmington police report. The trailer did not have required lights.
Planert’s passengers were Christopher P. Butler, 58, of Peoria and Tracy L. Brasfield, 46, of London Mills. Both had outstanding warrants for failure to appear in court on driver’s-license charges – Butler in Mason County (revoked), Brasfield in Knox County (suspended).
Butler was transported to the Fulton County Jail in Lewistown. Brasfield received a new court date. Planert’s license was revoked in 2009, according to the report. He was cited for that, as well as for operating an uninsured vehicle and driving without lights when required.
• DOUGLAS – Items were reported missing from a garage in Douglas.
A Knox County Sheriff’s Office deputy and a Farmington police officer were summoned at 9:15 p.m. Aug. 26 to the 1800 block of Cemetery St. The resident was out of town but said cameras indicated someone walked into the garage and turned on the lights, according to a sheriff’s-office report.
The resident said a nail gun, a stapler and various tools appeared to be missing. There was no forced entry. No suspect information was available.
• BELLEVUE – A Trivoli man and his father were arrested at a Bellevue bar and grill following an apparent fight.
Keith A. Joos Jr., 46, and Keith A. Joos, 64, of Bellevue were accused of domestic battery in connection with the incident, which happened about 10:15 p.m. Aug. 24 at Bellevue Pub-N-Grub, 5715 W. Plank Rd. A Peoria County Sheriff’s Office deputy was dispatched there regarding an unconscious male.
Both men were transported to the Peoria County Jail, according to a heavily redacted sheriff’s-office report. The younger Joos was arrested at his residence.
• YATES CITY – An Elmwood woman was accused of disorderly conduct following a disturbance in front of a Yates City residence.
Allyssa R.S. Cole, 25, had driven past the residence in the 200 block of N. Kellogg St. several times the morning of Aug. 24 while yelling out the vehicle window, according to a Knox County Sheriff’s Office report. Neighbors complained. About 1 p.m., Cole returned and yelled again.
Later, the deputy and Elmwood police located Cole at her residence. She said she was looking for her boyfriend and didn’t cause a disturbance on either visit to Yates City.
In addition to the disorderly conduct charge, Cole was cited for driving with a revoked license. She is to appear Sept. 29 in Knox County Circuit Court in Galesburg.
• PEORIA – A Hanna City woman was accused of stabbing a man’s hand with a pen during a child-custody exchange at a Peoria park.
Melinda Raymond, 36, was one of two people arrested in connection with the incident, which happened shortly before 3:15 p.m. Aug. 23 at Morton Square Park, 901 NE Monroe St., according to a Peoria police report.
A dispute arose during the exchange, which was between a 30-year-old man from Bonne Terre, Mo., and Mieka S. Raymond, 34, of Quincy. She was accused of domestic battery. Melinda Raymond was accused of battery. She also was wanted in Adams County for failure to appear in court regarding a traffic case.
• ELMWOOD – Someone or something damaged a pickup truck parked in an Elmwood lot, according to authorities.
The incident in the 100 block of W. Hawthorne St. was reported Aug. 22, according to an Elmwood Police Department Report.
Jennee E. Stear, 35, of Elmwood said she parked the 2022 Chevrolet Colorado in the lot. When Stear returned, she noticed damage to the driver’s-side rear bumper and taillight, as well as body damage in that area. More than $1,500 in damage was reported. No suspect information was available.
• BELLEVUE – A Hanna City man and a Trivoli woman were the drivers in a two-vehicle crash west of Bellevue that resulted in no injuries.
Ronald J. Halm was behind the wheel of an eastbound 2025 Ford Transit van shortly after 6:45 a.m. Aug. 21 on Illinois Route 116 at Cameron Lane when he realized he forgot something at home, according to a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report.
As Halm attempted a U-turn, the vehicle collided with an eastbound 2017 Ford Escape driven by Linda L. Dillon. She said the van entered the turn lane, then swerved back into the traffic lane as it was turning. A witness confirmed Dillon’s account.
The Escape came to rest on the north side of Plank Road, sustained disabling damage and was towed. Also towed was the van. Halm was cited for improper lane use.
• HANNA CITY – No injuries were reported following a three-vehicle chain-reaction crash in Hanna City.
Kaydence M. Bennett of Williamsfield was driving an eastbound 2016 Chrysler Town & Country minivan shortly after 3:30 p.m. Aug. 20 on Farmington Road when at Luellen Place it rear-ended a stopped 2017 Jeep Compass driven by Christina L. McMaster of Farmington, per a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report.
The Compass then rear-ended a stopped 2024 Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck. Its driver, Eric B. Edington of Hanna City, said he was stopped for a school bus that was dropping off children. Bennett said she saw the stopped vehicles but was unable to stop hers in time.
The minivan and the Compass, which had a female passenger, sustained disabling damage and were towed. The pickup truck was drivable. Bennett was cited for failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident.
• PRINCEVILLE – A vehicle left a road north of Princeville and crashed into a vehicle parked in a driveway, according to authorities. The driver could not be found immediately.
The accident happened shortly before 1 a.m. Aug. 19 in the 22800 block of Illinois Route 91, a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report stated. The northbound 2016 Jeep Cherokee ran over a fence on the west side of the road, then continued northwest and struck a 2020 Ford Expedition sport-utility vehicle.
After it struck a tree, the Cherokee stopped. The entire front end was damaged, and pieces of the vehicle were spread across its path. The SUV was facing east but faced northwest after it was struck. It sustained significant passenger-side damage.
The Cherokee was towed. The suspect is from Wyoming, according to another sheriff’s-office report, which was heavily redacted.
• BRIMFIELD – A garbage truck snagged and brought down overhead powerlines in Brimfield.
The incident happened shortly after 11:15 a.m. Aug. 18 in the 100 block of E. Clinton Ave., a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report stated. Brandyn L. Cagle of Peoria was driving the GFL Environmental truck, a 2020 Mack.
When Cagle raised the dump bin while picking up trash, the truck arms caught the powerlines and pulled them onto the truck. Cagle was uninjured. Ameren Illinois disconnected the powerlines and partially disconnected electricity temporarily to two nearby residences.
• WILLIAMSFIELD – Shortly before 11:30 p.m. Aug. 15, Maria T. Lopez-Santos of Des Moines, Iowa, was driving an eastbound 2023 Chrysler Pacifica on Interstate 74 near mile marker 63 south of Williamsfield when the vehicle struck a fox. Lopez-Santos and her passengers were unharmed, according to a Knox County Sheriff’s Office report. The vehicle sustained disabling damage and was towed.
• GALESBURG – These were among calls to which the Knox County Sheriff’s Office responded between Aug. 24-30: ATV complaint, Dahinda; harassment, Yates City; abandoned vehicle, Dahinda; damage, Dahinda; suspicious incident, Williamsfield; road hazard, Williamsfield; dispute, Yates City.
