The Village of South Jacksonville’s Board of Trustees are unhappy with the service provided by Morgan County Animal Control.

The trustees discussed the annual renewal of the agreement between the village and the county last night.

The trustees accused the Morgan County Commissioners of pawning questions about the contract off on Animal Control Director Lisa Ladely, according to Village Treasurer and Office Manager Mindy Olsen. The trustees said they found the service inadequate in a number of ways including the fact that animal control officers only operated 8:30AM to 4:30PM Monday through Friday.

Trustee JW Coleman laughed at the idea saying that stray dogs and cats don’t operate on banker’s hours, calling the $11,000 annual renewal “ridiculous.” Trustee Paula Belobradjic-Stewart said that the draft of the contract, which she said didn’t look like a contract at all, appeared to be written more like a letter without any legal binding language or set regulations that a normal contract or intergovernmental agreement would usually contain. The agreement said that beyond the normal business hours, animal control would only respond on an emergency basis. Stewart said that the emergency definition was not contained in the language of the document, and appeared to be up to animal control’s discretion.

The trustees were told by Village Police Chief Eric Hansell that Animal Control only deals with domesticated animals and not wild ones. He says that his department usually has to deal with wild animals on their own as well as domesticated animals after hours, often time having to put the captured animals in his own squad car. Hansell says that, by law, the only after hours calls that animal control has to take is in situations where a bite to a person has occurred.

Village President Dick Samples says that village residents aren’t getting what they pay for: “It’s $10,000 being spent that we get nothing out of. It’s just giving [the county] $10,000 on a very limited return on an investment, so to speak. If you pay the $10,000 (and that’s what they are going to charge us), they are only going to be there 8AM-4PM Monday through Friday. So, what do you do on the weekends? You’re back to doing it yourself.”

Samples says that the village is not equipped to handle the costs of operating its own animal control: “Not at this present time. I guess we are going to get equipped to handle it.”

Village Treasurer Olsen says that another attempt to engage with the commissioners on the issue is going to be made before getting Village Attorney Rob Cross involved on what the village has the ability to do as far as amending or changing the agreement. Olsen suggested during the meeting that several of the other municipalities in the county are likely in similar situations.

Schuyler County authorities arrested a Rushville man Thursday on multiple child pornography possession charges.

44-year old Billy R. Ruple, Jr. is currently lodged at the Schuyler County Jail and has been charged with 12 counts of reproduction of child pornography by the Schuyler County State’s Attorney’s Office.

No further information on Ruple’s arrest is available. He is scheduled for a first appearance in court this morning.

UPDATE March 23, 2025: The Illinois Attorney General’s office has announced they have brought the charges against Ruple, who was identified as a security and therapy aide for the Department of Human Services Rushville Treatment and Detention Facility. The Attorney General’s office charged Ruple in Schuyler County Circuit Court with two counts of dissemination of child pornography, each Class X felonies punishable by up to 30 years in prison; and 10 counts of possession of child pornography, Class 2 felonies punishable by up to seven years in prison. Ruple is currently detained at the Schuyler County Jail, and his next court date is scheduled for Monday, March 31.

Raoul’s investigators, along with officers from the Illinois State Police (ISP), Schuyler County Sheriff’s Office and Rushville Police Department conducted a search of Ruple’s residence in the 100 block of Anderson St. in Rushville on March 20. Ruple was taken into custody after investigators discovered evidence of child sexual abuse material. At the time of his arrest, Ruple was employed at DHS’ Treatment and Detention Facility, which houses sexually violent offenders. Under the Sexually Violent Persons Commitment Act, a person must have been convicted of a sexually violent offense and suffer from a mental disorder to be held at the TDF.

Raoul’s office is prosecuting this case with Schuyler County State’s Attorney’s office.

Illinois College fell slightly short of its fundraising totals from last year during 8^th annual All In 4 IC day of giving on Wednesday.

The college received donations from 1,100 donors generating just over $608,000. Last year, over 1,200 donors raised $642,650.

The Class of 1963 brought in the most dollars, generating over $74,000 from 8 donors yesterday. The Class of 1973 had the most individual donors with 29, donating over $5,300. Outside of Illinois, the State of Florida generated the most donors for the college followed closely behind by Missouri and Indiana.

All In 4 IC provides direct support to the college’s IC Fund to provide financial assistance to scholarships, academics, athletics, and campus life.

The Jacksonville Fire Department was able to contain a fire in an apartment on the city’s west side Wednesday afternoon.

The Jacksonville Fire Department was called to an apartment complex at 6 Gardendale Drive shortly before 4PM Wednesday. Upon arrival, firefighters determined that an occupant to one apartment was outside of the building and reported there was a fire in their kitchen. Firefighters also quickly worked to secure gas and power utilities to prevent any further risks to the remainder of the apartment complex. Simultaneously, teams conducted searches of adjacent apartments to ensure no occupants or pets remained inside. After the searches confirmed the other apartments were clear, firefighters deployed fire hoses and began an attack on the small blaze inside the apartment that was on fire.

Suppression efforts quickly contained the blaze. The occupant of the apartment that had caught on fire told officials that they had been cooking and when she had left the stove and sat down, she noticed smoke began to billow in the apartment and she immediately evacuated.

Firefighters discovered that an electrical coffee maker, an air fryer and another utensil were plugged into a wall outlet and suffered severe damage to the immediate left of the stove, which still had a knob set to on.

Damage to the apartment and contents was valued around $40,500. No injuries were reported. Fire units left the scene shortly after 5PM Wednesday.

The Winchester Board of Education announced on social media last night they had selected a new superintendent.

Jeff Abell, current superintendent at Griggsville-Perry School District, has been selected to be the district’s next superintendent effective July 1^st after the retirement of current superintendent Dr. Kevin Blankenship.

The selection of Abell was after a statewide search by the Winchester School Board over the last 3 months. Abell, a native of Bluffs, previously served as a teacher, athletic director and coach at both Bluffs High School and Winchester High School from 2008-2017.

At that time, he received his administrative licensure and went on to become Principal at Northwestern High School, and then at Meredosia-Chambersburg before becoming Superintendent at Griggsville-Perry in 2022. Abell also served as an assistant basketball coach at Routt Catholic High School.

Abell will now provide oversight into the current situation with the Winchester High School building’s upcoming renovations. The scope of which is to be determined by an upcoming April referendum.

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources and Capital Development Board announced today $8 million in improvements are coming to Lincoln’s New Salem site in Petersburg after several weeks of outcry from local legislators.

The funding, made possible by Governor JB Pritzker’s bipartisan Rebuild Illinois capital plan, will be used to repair up to 23 log village buildings and update the outdoor theater.

According to a press release, the funding is in addition to the nearly $3 million in improvements that have already been completed or undertaken at New Salem under the Pritzker administration, including a roof replacement and new HVAC controls at the visitor center, stairway construction between the village and the grist mill, a bridge replacement on the Mentor Graham Trail, and a planned major road and bridge improvement project which was not named.

State Representative Wayne Rosenthal, State Senator Steve McClure, and members of the Lincoln League volunteer organization toured the site earlier this month documenting the various states of disrepair the buildings had fallen into.

According to WXEF in Effingham, McClure says he is happy the Capital Development Board and IDNR have prioritized funding for the site.

McClure and Rosenthal are also working to pass legislation designed to help preserve the long-term sustainability of the site.

Jacksonville Police arrested a man early Thursday morning in connection to an incident early Wednesday morning where a woman was found injured after being shot with a BB gun.

Jacksonville police were called at 3:25AM Wednesday to a home in the 700 block of East Douglas Avenue for a woman bleeding after a physical altercation. Upon arrival and after a brief investigation, police determined that the woman had injuries to her chest and face after being shot with a BB gun by a male suspect.

At approximately 1:40AM Thursday, police were contacted by an individual who said they knew information about and the whereabouts of the alleged male suspect in the BB gun incident. At approximately 2:30AM Thursday, Jacksonville Police booked 29-year old Jordan L. Ransom of the 900 block of South Clay Avenue into the Morgan County Jail on a citation for aggravated domestic battery in connection to the incident.

As of this morning, Ransom remain held at the jail awaiting a pretrial detention hearing.

A Petersburg man who was a security guard at the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired in Jacksonville that was arrested this past fall on Child Pornography charges has been sentenced to prison time.

52-year old Shane E. Guernsey was given a 9-year prison sentence to the Illinois Department of Corrections in Menard County Circuit Court after pleading guilty to Class X felony child pornography dissemination.

Guernsey was arrested on September 26, 2024 by the Illinois State Police and members of the Petersburg Police Department after a warrant was executed at Guernsey’s residence. On June 18, 2024, ISP agents initiated an investigation after learning a subject was possessing and disseminating child sexual abuse material. During the investigation, ISP agents assigned to the Office of the Illinois Attorney General Internet Crimes against Children Task Force gathered digital evidence indicating that Guernsey possessed child sexual abuse material at his residence in Petersburg.

Guernsey was placed on suspended leave without pay during the course of the criminal investigation from the Illinois Department of Human Service, who oversees employment at ISVI.

Guernsey is currently held at the Menard County Jail awaiting placement for his time in IDOC. In addition to his prison term, Guernsey was sentenced to 3 year to life of mandatory supervised release, and ordered to pay more than $7,600 in fines, fees, and court assessments. He was given credit for 176 days – 33 days in jail and 143 days spent on GPS pretrial monitoring.

Area residents will have the ability to help young families by eating at the Corner Deli in Jacksonville today.

Ten percent of sales today at the deli, located at 700 South Diamond Street, is going towards District 117’s Early Years Program’s diaper bank.

Early Years Program Coordinator Kelly Ballard says this benefits new families who are unable to afford or have an immediate need for diapers: “Our 0-3 Home Visiting Team runs a community diaper bank. This is for both community members as well as our home-visited families to utilize. We started it in 2021. When we first started the diaper bank, we knew that 1 in 3 families in the nation had a need for diapers. It’s actually changed in the last year to 1 in 2 families that need those. We are very well used. We can’t use a lot of grant funding for our diaper bank, so we rely on the community and getting the word out to anyone that is able to donate. It’s really helpful us to make sure that we can maintain it.”

Any family living in District 117’s boundaries can be referred to the diaper program and to Early Years. Per month, the program is able to provide 25 diapers per child to families. The diapers are available during operation hours at the Early Years offices and through the Home Visitors. So far this school year, over 5,100 diapers have been provided to families, with nearly 11,000 diapers provided last school year.

The 2020 Robert “Joey” Schofield murder case received a part of a conclusion on Monday in Morgan County Circuit Court.

Defendant, 39-year old Kenneth Acree of Murrayville, and his attorneys tendered a plea bargain over the weekend to the Morgan County State’s Attorney’s Office after several failed negotiations since Schofield’s body was discovered in October 2020.

Schofield was reported missing after he did not return home from work on October 4^th, 2020. Four days later his body was discovered buried in a field off of Gobbler Road in rural Murrayville. Acree was arrested one day later on October 9^th and then in January of 2021, the wife of the decedent, 33-year-old Sara M. Schofield, and the accused’s wife 40-year-old Laura C. Acree, were arrested and each charged with concealment of a homicidal death and obstructing justice.

RECAP of WLDS News Coverage of the Kenneth Acree Case:
* Murrayville Man Missing Since Sunday
* Search Continues For Missing Murrayville Man
* Missing Murrayville Man Found Dead, Foul Play Suspected
* Missing Murrayville Man Died From Gunshot Wounds
* Acree Pleads Not Guilty In Rural Murrayville Murder
* Wives of Murrayville Murder Victim and Accused Murderer Arrested
* Bond Set for Wives Connected to Schofield Murder
* Acree’s Motion to Reduce Bond Denied, Defense To Hire Expert Witnesses, PI
* Laura Acree Waives Trial By Jury In Homicide Concealment Case
* Acree Murder Case Inches Closer to Trial
* Acree Murder Trial Likely To Begin this Spring
* Acree Murder Trial Could See Trial Date Set at May Hearing
* Acree Trial Date Set for September, Defense Anticipates a Request for Bench Trial
* Additional Pretrial Date Added as Acree Murder Trial Remains On Track for September Start
* Acree Defense Says Self-Defense in 2020 Schofield Murder, Attempting to Proffer Character Testimony in Case
* Acree Trial Motions Continued, Trial Date Set for May
* Schofield Murder Case Set For Jury Trial in December
* Acree Defense Attorney Withdraws Likely Pushing Murder Trial to 2025
* Kenneth Acree Murder Trial Now Set for March

On Monday, Kenneth Acree agreed to plea guilty to amended charges of Class 1 felony second-degree murder and Class 3 felony concealment of a homicidal death. Three counts of first-degree murder and an enhanced Class 3 felony of concealment were dropped per the plea.

Visiting Sangamon County Associate Judge John M. Madonia accepted the pleading on behalf of Chief Judge of the 8^th Circuit Ryan Cadigan who could not be in attendance due to scheduling conflicts. The plea agreement tendered by the defense included a 30-year prison sentence on the second-degree murder charge and a 10-year sentence on the concealment charge. With the Class 3 felony being a triggering offense, according to state law, both sentences must be served back to back for a total of 40 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections. Acree was given credit for 1,621 days served in the Morgan County Jail. Acree must also serve 18 months of mandatory supervised release upon release. Acree will receive day-for-day credit for the remainder of his sentence.

Morgan County State’s Attorney Gray Noll says that the negotiations on a plea agreement were contentious for several months: “Throughout the course of the last 5 years, the defense has made us a variety of offers to resolve the case short of trial. None of which, up until recently, were obviously worth considering. Recently, the defendant made an offer of what ultimately happened, which was a plea of guilty for 40 years on second-degree murder and concealment of a homicidal death. Obviously, the state met with the family and in conjunction with those meetings and in analysis of the case, we decided to accept that [plea]. Hopefully this resolution gives some sort of closure to a family that has certainly been suffering since October of 2020, and I’m sure will continue to suffer – but hopefully this gives at least a little closure.”

Noll says now the court faces the task of Acree’s two co-defendants in the case – Schofield’s wife 33-year old Sara M. Schofield and Acree’s wife 40-year old Laura C. Acree. Both women have been charged with Class 3 felony concealment of a homicidal death and obstruction of justice by destroying evidence. Both women are currently free on pretrial release under provisions of the SAFE-T Act.

Noll says there is not much he can delve into as far as the two women’s cases because they remain pending. He says that he doesn’t expect a trial for either of their cases: “I doubt either one of those cases will go to trial, but it’s possible that there would be a trial. Obviously, we were in court on Monday sentencing the individual that pulled the trigger that killed Joey Schofield. We will deal with the other two at a later date. I can’t really tell you what the final resolution of those cases will be at this point.”

During victim impact statements, Joey’s father, Robert Schofield placed the blame of his son’s shooting death ultimately in Sara Schofield’s hands saying that her lies about his son drove Ken to pull the trigger. Robert Schofield also lamented the 5 children in the center of the case and the fact that none of those involved with his son’s murder had shown remorse over the course of the last 5 years. Schofield hinted at his disagreement with the arranged plea bargain in the case. Noll says that the case had his office of weighing the pros and cons of going to trial: “I think that’s a fair assessment that some were unhappy with the arrangement. It is a very difficult situation. A plea to 40 years may bring them closure but certain members of the victim’s family absolutely wanted more time. I certainly cannot begrudge them of that in the least bit. In the end, that is what my office is here for. My office is here to make decisions, calculate the decisions based on the strength and weaknesses of any case – let alone this first-degree murder case – and decide what is the right thing to do in any given case. Ultimately, we accepted the counter offer for 40 years in prison, whether that is the right thing to do or the wrong thing to do, I don’t know. I certainly made the decision based on an analysis of the case itself and I’ve certainly got these things wrong in the past.”

With day-for-day credit, Noll was uncertain on the possibility of what length of time Acree will serve in prison, saying it will ultimately lie in the hands of the Illinois Department of Corrections.

Noll commended local law enforcement for their quick work and investigation five years ago to bring the case forward: “I would like to commend the Morgan County Sheriff’s Department on this investigation under the leadership of both Sheriff Mike Carmody and Chief Deputy Jamie Jackson. They had a missing person reported to them on October 5, 2020 and five days later, they had this murder case solved. There was some very good investigation done by these officers. It is what ultimately led to the 40-year sentence on Monday.”

Judge Madonia said before adjourning court on Monday that there was a lot of tragedy and work in the case over the last five years and that despite it not being the outcome that many wanted, it was closure and it should stay that way.