The Illinois Attorney General is asking to have multiple lawsuits over Illinois’s school mask mandate consolidated into a single case to be heard in either Cook or Sangamon Counties.

Attorney General Kwame Raoul petitioned the Illinois Supreme Court late Friday to combine pending suits in six different counties into one. Those cases include a massive lawsuit filed in Macoupin County by Attorney Thomas DeVore against 145 different school districts, which includes Jacksonville School District 117.

Raoul argues the cases are all similar and seek virtually the same relief, and says it would be a better use of resources to put all the cases together as one. You can read a portion of the filing here on Capitol Fax.

The Jacksonville Symphony will present a spooky evening of fun tonight on the old MacMurray College campus.

Conductor Garrett Allman says the symphony will be playing host at a venue that’s not been utilized by the local symphony in a number of years: “We moved this concert to McClelland. When you think about it, well, it was a dining hall when MacMurray College was in operation, but it is a very nice room. We did a few pops concerts there years ago when I first came to town 35 years ago or so. We are placing the orchestra in the center more or less, and we will have people sitting at tables surrounding the orchestra on either side. It’ll be very intimate in that regard. It should be a fun time in a more relaxed environment.”

The evening’s music will feature a number of familiar favorites from film, television, and well-known composers. Attendees are welcome to dress up and compete in a costume contest. Children get in free. Adult tickets are $18 at the door. The concert begins at 7:30 this evening at McClelland Dining Hall on West College Avenue. You can find out more by visiting jaxsym-il.org.

The Central Illinois Foodbank along with several Jacksonville service organizations partnered together yesterday in a massive food giveaway event.

Healthy Jacksonville’s Lori Hartz says that volunteers braved the cold and rain to pass out food yesterday: “This is the first time we have ever had rain for one of our food distribution days, but you know what? We had a crew of volunteers that wasn’t worried about getting wet, and there was a lot of people who came through and got a lot of food today. We were just worried about getting all of the food given away so people could go home and get dry.” Temperatures at mid-day yesterday were in the upper forties and lower 50s in the drizzling rain.

Hartz says several families will have ingredients for some upcoming holiday meals: “We had enough food for 240 families. I think that was about 15 pallets of food. There was ground turkey, lots of produce, peanut butter, cheese, and lots of things that people will be able to use to make soups and holiday meals.”

The drive through and walk up event was held at the Walnut Court Jacksonville Police Department substation starting at noon yesterday. For a schedule of upcoming food giveaways, visit centralilfoodbank.org.

One Congressman has announced they won’t run for re-election next year, while another has announced they intend to keep their seat in Congress.

16^th District Congressman Adam Kinzinger announced Friday that he would not seek re-election next year but is looking toward another future.

Kinzinger had been drawn together with 18^th District Congressman Darin LaHood in the new Congressional maps that passed the Illinois General Assembly in the 11^th Thursday night

LaHood announced approximately one hour after Kinzinger said he was leaving the House that he would be seeking re-election in the new district. LaHood’s district will be drawn out of the current listening area and be handed over to current 13^th District Congressman Rodney Davis. Davis says his district almost triples in land mass: “If you take one look at the Congressional map, you can see how much it’s gerrymandered. I’m sitting here looking around at the possibility of a lot of different territory, but it’s territory I know pretty well.”

Davis has not announced whether or not he will seek re-election.

The maps passed the House Thursday night 71-43-1, and the Senate strictly along party lines 41-18. One Democrat joined House Republicans, State Representative Angelica Guerrero-Cuellar, the person who replaced former House Speaker Michael Madigan in the 22^nd District last year. According to reports, she was angry that the map dilutes and excludes Latino voters.

The maps have been sent to Governor J.B. Pritzker for his signature.

Jacksonville Police made one arrest early this morning after a one-vehicle crash.

Police were called to the scene of a crash by a resident in the 1300 block of Goltra Avenue at 2:03AM. The caller said a vehicle had crashed in his driveway.

Upon arrival and after an investigation, officers determined that a vehicle driven by 26 year old Levi W. Adcock of the 200 block of North Prairie was traveling northbound on Goltra when the vehicle left the roadway to the right and began driving through multiple yards until the vehicle struck a fence and a utility pole causing disabling damage. The utility pole also fell on top of Adcock’s vehicle and two other cars in the driveway of a home at 1339 Goltra Avenue causing damage.

Adcock was arrested at the scene for improper lane usage, aggravated driving under the influence, driving on a suspended or revoked license, illegal possession and/or transportation of liquor, operating an uninsured motor vehicle, and a probation violation warrant for driving on a suspended or revoked license.

Adcock is currently being held at the Morgan County Jail on bond.

A White Hall woman plead down to a lesser charge in Greene County court Wednesday related to a July stabbing incident in White Hall.

40 year old Tiffany A. Syrcle of White Hall plead guilty to misdemeanor reckless conduct. Syrcle was originally charged with aggravated battery in a public place and battery in order to do bodily harm. The state filed lesser charge during a pre-trial conference after a negotiated open plea in Greene County Court.

On July 11^th, White Hall Police were called to a residence in the 500 block of Bridgeport Street near Bruce Drive for an active physical disturbance. Upon arrival, a White Hall officer found 31 year old Brandon Brown unresponsive with two stab wounds to the back sitting in a car. According to the report, the wounds were received during a fight with another male and female subject known to the victim. The suspects fled the scene at a high rate of speed in a White SUV, and according to the report, had a 5 year old child of the female suspect in the vehicle.

Greene County Sheriff’s Deputies later located a vehicle matching the description just north of Carrollton on Route 67 still traveling at a high rate of speed. The deputy was able to stop and detain the suspects without further incident, arresting 26 year old Tyler D. Lockhart of Granite City along with Syrcle.

Syrcle was not charge for doing harm to Brown, but instead was charged for allegedly punching Brown’s girlfriend who was also present during the altercation on Bridgeport Street in White Hall. According to a July article by the Journal Courier, Syrcle is Brown’s ex-girlfriend. The altercation allegedly arose over a custody dispute between the two parties.

Brown has since recovered from his wounds. Lockhart is next due in court for his case on December 13^th.

Syrcle was sentenced to 24 months of reporting supervision, a $250 county fine, plus fees and court costs. Other charges were dismissed per the plea.

A St. Louis Man plead guilty to a charge in Greene County Court Wednesday, stemming from a high speed chase with White Hall Police back in December 2020 that resulted in a local woman being injured.

35 year old Vincent E. Smith, Jr. plead guilty to one count of aggravated fleeing of police over 21 miles per hour above the posted statutory limit. A charge of possession of a firearm by a felon was dropped per the plea.

The charges stem from a December 12, 2020 high speed chase through White Hall after a black 1995 black Ford Mustang driven by driven by Smith was reported to be driving recklessly on U.S. Route 67 between White Hall and Carrollton. White Hall Police attempted a traffic stop after viewing the car driving on the wrong side of the roadway in the middle of town. The vehicle reached speeds of 65 miles per hour that circled through the east end of town. The pursuit ended when the Mustang attempted to cross over U.S. 67 at Carlinville Street and struck a black 2012 Jeep Patriot, being driven by 39 year old Rosalind Bishop of White Hall, causing the Jeep to flip over on its top.

Both vehicles came to rest in a yard in the 200 block of South Main Street. Smith, and his passenger, 29 year old Earnest E. Rutherford of St. Louis, fled the area on foot and was later taken into custody a short time later.

Smith was sentenced to 180 days in county jail, 30 days of conditional discharge, plus fees and court costs.

Rutherford has failed to appear in Greene County Court and is currently wanted on an arrest warrant for resisting a peace officer, and illegal possession of a firearm.

Morgan County Covid-19 numbers are ticking back up after a decline in the middle of this month.

Nine new cases were reported today by the Morgan County Health Department, including 7 new cases attributed to the outbreak at Jacksonville Correctional Facility. These are the first new cases the facility has reported since October 14^th. Currently, 5 of the current active cases in the county are hospitalized.

The Cass County Health Department reported just 14 new cases of Covid-19 over the week. There are currently 11 active cases in Cass, with just 1 individual hospitalized. Cass County Health Officials say that since May, 83% of new reported positives in the county were in unvaccinated individuals.

The Illinois Department of Public Health today reported 14,616 new confirmed and probable cases of Covid-19 cases over the last week, including 183 additional deaths. The preliminary seven-day statewide test positivity rate is 2.2%.

Carrollton will soon be home to a new local grocery store.

The Journal Courier reports that Market on Main is slated to open on November 1^st at 521 South Main Street. The site is the former home of P Lous Bakery and formerly the Pedigo Tax Service Office just down from the Brass Door Restaurant.

The announcement is good news on the heels of County Market pulling their remote ordering trailer out of town last month and Kroger closing its location in town early this summer.

The stores hours will be Monday through Friday 10AM to 6PM and Saturdays 8AM-2PM.

The Illinois State Police have arrested a Beardstown man on Child Pornography charges.

21 year old Cooper A. Smith of Beardstown was booked into the Morgan County Jail just after 10AM today on the charges after a nearly 14 month long investigation.

According to a press release from ISP investigations, on June 4^th of last year, ISP DCI Zone 4 Investigators initiated an investigation after receiving information about child pornography being distributed on a social media application. A thorough investigation ensued, and ISP Investigators assigned to the Office of the Illinois Attorney General Internet Crimes against Children Task Force gathered evidence and identified Smith as the suspect.

On October 28, 2020, a search warrant was applied for and granted through the Macoupin County Circuit Court for a residence in Mount Olive, Illinois where Cooper Smith had been residing. The search warrant was executed the following day and additional evidence was collected.

Yesterday, the Macoupin County State’s Attorney’s Office filed a 10 count information, charging Smith with 10 counts of Possession of Child Pornography. An arrest warrant was issued for Smith and bond was set at $75,000, 10 percent to apply. Smith was arrested at his home in Beardstown this morning by ISP investigators and transported to the Morgan County Jail.