GHNS Illinois Budget (3/11/08)
Here are the top Illinois stories coming today from GateHouse News Service. Stories are available at www.gatehousenewsservice.com. Please check www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/news in the evening for changes to story lineup, including breaking news.
If your paper has a story, digest item, opinion piece or standalone photo to share, please e-mail it to Illinois@gatehousemedia.com.
Contacts:
- Casey Laughman: 217-816-3343, claughman@gatehousemedia.com
- Jean Hodges: 630-348-3350, 630-956-8834, jhodges@gatehousemedia.com
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FAMILY TAB: Coming Wednesday: The first issue of Family, a 24-page tab from GateHouse Media. Will be available for download as a Quark, InDesign or PDF file. More information is available at http://www.ghnewsroom.com/news.php?newsid=1205151460
SUNSHINE WEEK: GateHouse News Service will be moving a package of stories for Sunshine Week. If you have stories planned that would be of interest in Illinois, please contact Illinois Regional Editor Casey Laughman at claughman@gatehousemedia.com. A Sunshine Week digest for Illinois will be sent out Friday.
TODAY'S SPOTLIGHT:
Purchases of FEMA trailers raise questions
Since last spring, at least 180 surplus trailers have been sold at rock-bottom prices to government and non-profit agencies throughout Illinois. Originally intended to house Hurricane Katrina victims, the trailers are new or nearly so. Agencies typically paid $1,900 apiece for units worth nearly ten times that much. And some of the purchases are raising eyebrows, suspicions and complaints. With sidebar on five trailers purchased by Mechanicsburg Fire Department, sidebar on the trailers' intended use and a chart of the top buyers in Illinois. By Bruce Rushton of the State Journal-Register.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x1438204779
ILLINOIS NEWS
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/news
STATE BRIEFS: News from around the state. Will be posted this evening.
CONCEALED CARRY: Rep. Aaron Schock's concealed-carry bill is scheduled for a committee vote this afternoon. By Meagan Sexton of the State Capitol bureau. Will be posted this evening.
STDs: Sen. David Koehler is calling for a committee vote on legislation that would let partners of people diagnosed with sexually transmitted diseases to get immediate medication without the need for a diagnosis. By Adriana Colindres of the State Capitol bureau. Will be posted this evening.
'In God We Trust' plates stir up debate
SPRINGFIELD - Atheist Rob Sherman believes that if Illinoisans are able to buy license plates saying "In God We Trust," they also should have the right to purchase "God is Make-Believe" plates. By Meagan Sexton of the State Capitol bureau.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x1870702835
Man charged with reckless conduct in friend's death
PEORIA - As family and friends grieved for Robert M. Hurt, who died Sunday after being hit by car, they also lent their support to his childhood friend, Brandon Gish, who is facing a charge of reckless conduct for allegedly pushing Hurt into oncoming traffic. By Erinn Deshinsky and Andy Kravetz of the Peoria Journal Star.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x513685884
Working, living on commission
ROCKFORD - Sales is a tough gig. Even for the person born to sell, working on commission can be hit-and-miss. Here's how four salespeople do it week after week. By Alex Gary of the Rockford Register Star.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x691146667
No charges against parents in baby's accidental drowning
PEORIA HEIGHTS - The parents of a 14-month-old boy who accidentally drowned in a bathtub last week will not be charged in his death. By Leslie Fark of the Peoria Journal Star.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x513685892
Poll respondents favor medical marijuana
PEORIA - Sixty-eight percent of registered Illinois voters favor legalizing marijuana for medical use by seriously and terminally ill patients, according to a recent survey funded by a group that promotes the drug's legalization. By Frank Radosevich II of the Peoria Journal Star.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x1379334142
May 16 set as fairgrounds' repair completion date
SPRINGFIELD - Illinois construction officials want electrical work at the Illinois State Fairgrounds sufficiently completed by mid-May that the grounds can reopen to the public. By Doug Finke of the State Capitol bureau.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x691146293
ILLINOIS OPINIONS
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/opinions
BRITT: Toon on the Obama-Hillary race. Will be posted this afternoon.
CHUCK SWEENY: Democrat's win in 14th a bad sign for GOP
A Democrat winning the special election for Dennis Hastert's old seat has to be troubling to Republicans hoping to make inroads in Congressional elections this year.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/opinions/x688584541
EDITORIAL: A tragic, all-too-memorable year at BU
With two months to go, Bradley University's 2007-08 academic year already is memorable, and not for the reasons anyone would prefer. An editorial from the Peoria Journal Star.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/opinions/x1379334479
EDITORIAL: Bush wrongly leaves door open for torture
President George W. Bush likes to keep his options open. On Saturday, Bush vetoed a bill that would have banned the CIA from using "waterboarding" and other coercive interrogation methods to extract information from suspected terrorists. An editorial from the Galesburg Register-Mail.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x1126215972
ILLINOIS SPORTS
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/sports
MIKE NADEL: Contenders? Choose another word for Cardinals
JUPITER, Fla. - For most of the last decade, if you said "St. Louis Cardinals," an appropriate word-association response would have been "contenders." Given last season's collapse and the shortcomings that linger into this year, "also-rans" is more fitting. Will be posted this afternoon.
ILLINI: After a disheartening regular season, Illinois faces a tough task in getting ready for the Big Ten tournament. By John Supinie. Will be posted this evening.
RICE COMEBACK: Former Illinois and NFL star Simeon Rice is preparing for a comeback to the NFL. And a camera crew is following him every step of the way. By John Supinie. Will be posted this evening.
BIG TEN TOURNAMENT: Capsules on all 11 Big Ten teams heading into the Big Ten tournament. By John Supinie.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/sports/x513686159
JEFF LAMPE: Was it a wolf? Nobody knows yet
A wolf-like canine was shot Feb. 19 by a coyote hunter in northwest Illinois near Lena. The animal looks "very much like a wolf" according to Glen Kruse, natural heritage division chief for the Department of Natural Resources.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/sports/x513685840