ALTON – Alton Police have charged a local sex offender with failing to register for over six months. Nathan A. Walker, 26, listed as homeless out of Alton, was charged on March 19, 2026 with a Class 3 felony count of unlawful failure to register as a sex offender. Walker has allegedly failed to register on a weekly basis with the Alton Police Department as required under the Sex Offender Registration Act, having last registered on Sept. 15, 2025. The Illinois State Police Sex Offender
EDWARDSVILLE - The Madison County Sheriff’s Office announced this past Friday, March 20, 2026, that it has added three new employees and approved two internal transfers, bringing new faces to its patrol and jail divisions. The sheriff’s office said Jose Morales-Cuevas is transferring from jail deputy to patrol deputy, and Tanner Miles is transferring from support staff clerk III to jail deputy. The office also announced three new hires: Dylan Darity, who is joining the patrol
EAST ALTON — Firefighters from East Alton and neighboring departments responded Saturday afternoon to a fire in the 300 block of Church Street after debris being burned in a yard appeared to spread to the eaves of a garage, according to East Alton Fire Chief Jeremy Dively. Dively said the homeowner called quickly, allowing crews to stop the fire before it spread through the entire garage. “It apears someone was burning debris in the yard and the fire made it to the eaves of the garage,&rdquo
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Co-Chairs of the Senate Baltic Freedom Caucus, introduced the Baltic Security Assessment Act of 2026 , legislation that requires the Secretary of State, in coordination with the Secretary of Defense, to submit a report to the House and Senate Committees on Armed Services, Foreign Relations and Affairs, and Appropriations on emerging threats posed to the Baltic countries—Estonia,
WOOD RIVER – Midwest Members Credit Union is proud to sponsor the “Oiler of the Month” program at East Alton-Wood River High School. A senior student is selected each month by members of EAWR faculty. Each student is awarded a certificate and a Subway gift card. The seniors selected each month will have the opportunity to compete for a $1,000. “Oiler of the Year” scholarship at the end of the school year. February's winner is KayLynn Buttry. KayLynn is a Senior a
BELLEVILLE - Detectives investigating a death near a busy Belleville roadway have led to felony charges against a local man. Joe Davis, 60, of Belleville, was charged March 19, 2026, in connection with the March 18, 2026, death of Shawn Overmiller in the area of Illinois Route 161 and Sullivan Drive, according to the Belleville Police Department. The St. Clair County State’s Attorney’s Office issued the charges after detectives presented information and evidence was reviewed.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – On CNN’s The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer and Pamela Brown yesterday , combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) slammed Donald Trump for waging an illegal war against Iran that is costing troops’ lives, causing costs to skyrocket and making Americans less safe around the world. After Senate Republicans blocked a War Powers Resolution two nights ago to withdraw U.S. forces from this illegal war, Duckworth reiterated that our brave
GODFREY – Lewis and Clark Community College Sophomore Sarah Wieneke has recently been named one of the winners of the 2024-2025 Norton Speaker’s Contest. The contest recognizes exceptional, original nonfiction speeches that are given by undergraduate students in a two or four-year college or university. Wieneke’s winning speech, submitted in June 2025, was titled “Visit Chattanooga Tennessee.” It focused on family-friendly activities in Chattanooga and was inspire
GRANITE CITY – A local man accused of robbing a Facebook Marketplace buyer after arranging to sell them a gaming system faces a felony charge. Ayden R. Freeman, 21, of Roxana, was charged on March 12, 2026 with one count of aggravated robbery, a Class 1 felony. On Feb. 23, 2026, Freeman allegedly knowingly took $450 in U.S. currency from an individual victim and threatened the imminent use of force by indicating he was armed with a firearm. The Madison County State’s Attorney’s
EDWARDSVILLE – A judge on Friday granted Madison County Clerk Linda Andreas’ request for a recount of votes cast in two referenda that were on the ballot for the Primary Election. Andreas made the request for the recount after voters alerted her to apparent inaccuracies for the vote totals for two referenda questions involving Long Lake Fire Protection District. In the Unofficial Results on election night, one of the ballot questions received 383 “yes” votes and
SPRINGFIELD - On Thursday, March 19, 2025, the Illinois Mass for Life in Springfield, Ill., unfolded in a way no one expected — not in a cathedral, church, or event center, but on ice at the Nelson Center Ice Hockey Rink. In a space usually filled with the crack of sticks and the roar of competition, nearly 2,000 people packed the arena to capacity — transforming it into a place of reverence, prayer, and witness for life. The visual contrast was striking. Where hockey players usuall
O'FALON - The O’Fallon Police Department is seeking the public’s help to identify a person after officers responded to a robbery reported on Friday, March 20, 2026, at an FCB Bank in O’Fallon, Illinois. The bank robbery suspect is a man shown in the two photos, one above and below. O'Fallon Police provided an update late Friday: "As of 5:15 p.m. Friday, a suspect in the bank robbery is in custody. "Thank you for the numerous calls and tips," the O'Fallon Police
Author's note: This is part one of a multi-part series on the parent-teenagers relationship. “Teenagers are working toward independence. That’s the good part. The hard part is that means they lean more toward their peer relationships,” says Sara Bennett, a psychotherapist at OSF HealthCare. “It can leave parents feeling like they’re drifting apart. It can make parents feel like they’re not very important. And it can make the teenagers a little moodier.
EAST ALTON – A local woman accused of stealing more than $14,000 from the East Alton Ice Arena as an employee faces felony charges after a “lengthy investigation.” Kathryn R. McKeon, 39, of Alton, was charged on March 18, 2026 with two Class 2 felony counts of theft of property over $10,000. From Aug. 29, 2022 to April 2, 2025, McKeon allegedly committed a series of acts to knowingly obtain $14,213.36 by deception from East Alton Civic Rink Management Inc. A press release
ALTON - As Alton Community Unit School District #11 prepares to say goodbye to long-time educator Mike Bellm, he is looking forward to retirement. But Bellm noted it will be a bittersweet departure, as he has spent his 33-year career in the Alton School District and has loved every minute. From English teacher to high school principal to his current role as Director of Student Services, Bellm has always prioritized student success, and he is thankful for the school district’s continued
O'FALLON, IL. - O’Fallon Township High School District 203 lifted a soft lockdown at 10:15 a.m. Thursday, March 19, 2026, after a threatening phone call to its Milburn campus was traced by police and determined to be a swatting incident, the district said. The call was received “shortly after the start of the school day on Thursday” at the OTHS Milburn campus in O’Fallon, Illinois, according to a district statement. The O’Fallon Police Department was notified immediately
COLLINSVILLE — A truck struck a utility pole just outside an Ameren Illinois substation in Collinsville on Thursday afternoon, March 19, 2026, knocking out power to about 700 customers, according to Ameren Illinois. The Collinsville Police Department said the crash happened around 3:45 p.m. on Thursday. Ameren Illinois dispatched crews to assess the damage and secure the area, an Ameren spokesman said. The Ameren Illinois spokesman said two power poles were broken and needed to be replaced.
O'FALLON, IL. - For the third year in a row, a goose has returned to O’Fallon Public Safety Department property to lay her eggs, prompting officers to give the bird space and keep her safe while the department again asks the public for help naming her. The department shared the update in a post titled “O’Fallon Public Safety Goose Update – Year 3,” saying the goose has come back “to the same spot on department property to lay her eggs.” “At this
Twice a year, the Sun seems to “hit the reset button” on Earth’s daylight. For a brief moment, the line between day and night looks almost perfectly balanced—yet the details are stranger than the slogan “equal day and night” makes it sound. The spring equinox matters because it’s one of the cleanest, most reliable markers we have for how Earth moves in space. It shapes calendars, traditions, and even the way we notice light in our daily routines. It
The most significant global event linked to March 20 is the 2003 start of the Iraq War, when a U.S.-led coalition launched a military invasion of Iraq. The immediate goal was to remove Saddam Hussein’s government and address claims about weapons programs and regional security. At the time, the invasion reshaped alliances, triggered major debates about international law and the use of force, and set off rapid changes inside Iraq. Its effects still matter today because it influenced the balanc
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