WEST FRANKFORT — President and founder Dr. Tim Morthland made the formal announcement Friday afternoon that Morthland College, a Christian college located in West Frankfort, will implement an intercollegiate athletic program effective immediately for the 2012-13 academic year.
Eric J. Dirnbeck, public defender appointed to represent Mary R. Jophlin, said he would be filing a motion to withdraw as her attorney during his client's Wednesday afternoon court appearance.
Jophlin is accused in the death of her 8-year-old daughter Alexus Smothers, whose body was found July 19 in the basement of a West Frankfort home.
Dirnbeck said after reviewing the witness list he discovered a conflict of interest with one of the witnesses and said he would file a motion to withdraw from the case within 14 days.
BENTON -- Franklin County Board members were placed in a unique situation during this week's committee meetings when they were asked to help a county employee.
David Willmore said his wife Suzanne is with her son Chaz Ligon in a Texas hospital as he continues to recover from wounds suffered while on a tour of military duty.
Introduced by board member and fellow West Frankfort resident Jim McPhail, Willmore said his stepson was stationed in Afghanistan when an IED exploded near his vehicle.
MOUNT VERNON — A longtime Southern Illinois legislator has decided not to seek re-election this year.
State Sen. John Jones, R-Mt. Vernon, has announced he has withdrawn as a candidate for the Republican nomination for the Illinois Senate from the 54th District.
WEST FRANKFORT — An alarm call, missing vehicle and a crash into a Benton home Wednesday morning were connected, West Frankfort Chief of Police Jeff Tharp says.
A 14-year-old was apparently driving a vehicle missing from a West Frankfort lot when it crashed into a home in the 200 block of South Du Quoin Street in Benton.
Tharp said at about 12:45 a.m. Wednesday, the West Frankfort Police Department received an alarm call from Casey's General Store, located at 1305 E. Main St., West Frankfort.
Upon arrival, officers noticed that the front window had been broken with a brick, but access to the interior of the business had not been gained.
HAMLETSBURG — Authorities continue to investigate the New Year's Day fire that claimed three lives in Hamletsburg in far southern Pope County.
The fire was reported at 3 a.m. at 618 A Dog Island Road and firefighters found three adults had died inside the mobile home.
WEST FRANKFORT -- When a memorial service gets under way at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sharon Ossig, organizer of the Coal Miners Memorial Park in West Frankfort, is hopeful it will not be a somber occasion but rather, a celebration of the lives of the men who went down into Orient No. 2 mine to work, never to see topside again.
The memorial service commemorating the 60th anniversary of West Frankfort’s Orient No. 2 mine disaster will be held at The First Christian Church, 1001 South Cherry, West Frankfort.
GRAYVILLE -- A Lawrence County man faces numerous preliminary charges after he fled Edwards County law enforcement Friday night and went into Grayville, where he rammed a Grayville Police Department squad car, according to police.
BENTON -- West Frankfort and Benton Rotarians on Tuesday are meeting together to remember those lost in the Dec. 21, 1951 Orient No. 2 mining disaster.
Benton Rotary Club President William Dill obtained a copy of the report submitted by then U. S. Bureau of Mines chief mine inspector M. J. Ankeny and the accident prevention and health division.
SPRINGFIELD — A bi-partisan panel of lawmakers Thursday voted against closing the Jacksonville Developmental Center and the Logan Correctional Center. However, the vote by the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability is advisory only.
WEST FRANKFORT -- Level playing field. Keeping up with the Joneses. Those guys are doing it. All are frequently given phrases a business owner or entity will spew forth when making changes or additions to the previous norm. But, when all the clutter clears, most decisions represent opportunity. And those opportunities most times come down to financial opportunities.
Tuesday's decision by the West Frankfort City Council to extend the hours taverns are allowed to remain open will do just that — provide financial opportunity. The council, in its meeting voted 4-1 to allow taverns to remain in business until 2 a.m. on two business days — Friday and Saturday — for a 30-day trial period with a possibility of becoming a permanent measure.
HANOVER, N.H. — A new reality is taking hold in the race for the Republican presidential nomination.
BELLEVILLE — A former Roman Catholic priest whose molestation of a former altar boy led to a $6.3 million payout in a lawsuit is being sued again, this time by a former caretaker who alleges the one-time clergyman sexually abused him as a boy.
SPRINGFIELD — State and local health officials are investigating an outbreak of a serious infection caused by eating a kind of cantaloupe grown in Colorado that was shipped to Illinois and 16 other states.
The 119th Annual Meeting of the Illinois Mining Institute took place Tuesday and Wednesday at the Marion Pavilion.
Founded in 1892, the Institute’s mission statement is to promote the mining industries through technical support, education and information transfer.
Hundreds of miners took part in the programs, which included the 34th Annual Land of Lincoln Mine Rescue Contest, exhibits of mining equipment by manufacturers and technical classes.
MARION -- Springfield came to Marion Tuesday in the form of a regional hearing of the Joint Committee of the House and Senate Revenue Committees.
BELLEVILLE — The Catholic Diocese of Belleville is considering closing up to 20 of its 121 parishes because of the loss of population in some areas and the advanced age of some priests.
FARFIELD -- Five fire departments in Wayne County were the recipients of GSI RES-Q-Tubes, courtesy of the Wayne County Farm Bureau Foundation and Zurliene Enterprises Inc.
Volunteers from CASA of Franklin County joined television star Donna Douglas, who played Elly May Clampett on “The Beverly Hillbillies” television show.
Douglas was at the Exhibition Hall at the Du Quoin State Fair to judge CASA’s “Critter Contest,” held as a promotional event and fundraiser on Saturday.
Top finishers included Tari Terry, winner; Jeanie Null, second place; and Kerrie Smith, third place.
BENTON -- One banana, two bananas, three bananas, four. A tropical paradise has been created in the back yard of Donna and Kevin Montgomery of Benton.
Donna Montgomery said they acquired a banana tree four years ago that produces fruit annually.
“We picked a banana before fall last year but it never got ripe,” she said. “This year, the tree has produced more fruit than ever before probably because it was hotter than in years past.”
Another trip to the tropical paradise revealed even more bananas flourishing under the summer sun.
