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CHICAGO - Attorney General Kwame Raoul announced that a Will County man pleaded guilty and was sentenced to prison for burglarizing businesses and stealing cash from video poker machines. The plea is part of an ongoing burglary case Raoul announced in 2022 following a joint investigation with the Illinois Gaming Board, the Illinois State Police (ISP) and several local law enforcement agencies. Brian Morgan, 42, of Plainfield, Illinois, was sentenced to nine years in prison in Lee County Circuit Court Thursday after pleading guilty to one count of Class 1 felony theft. Morgan was also sentenced to nine years in prison, to be served concurrently, after pleading guilty to one count of Class 2 felony burglary. Morgan is currently in prison, serving a separate sentence in connection to unrelated charges. “Members of this burglary ring allegedly targeted bars, restaurants, social clubs and other small businesses that have video poker and video gaming machines. They broke into dozen

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PIASA - Southwestern Middle School announced its 3rd Quarter Honor Roll lists. To view them, please click the link below: Southwestern Middle School 3rd Quarter Honor Roll

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GODFREY – The Illinois Department of Transportation announced today that intermittent daytime lane closures on Godfrey Road, from Airport Road to Homer Adams Parkway, weather permitting, will begin at 7 a.m., Monday, April 24. One lane of traffic will remain open in both directions at all times. The closures are necessary for pavement resurfacing, and work is expected to be complete by the end of September. Motorists should expect delays and are encouraged to use alternate routes during the lane closures. Drivers are urged to reduce speed, be alert for changing conditions, obey all construction signage, and refrain from using mobile devices while approaching and traveling through the work zone. For IDOT District 8 updates, follow us on Twitter at @IDOTDistrict8 or view area construction details on IDOT’s traveler information map on GettingAroundIllinois.com.

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JERSEYVILLE - The Jersey Community Middle School Youth Activation Committee is honoring first responders by hosting them for free donuts and coffee on Tuesday, April 25 from 8 a.m. to 8:40a.m. The event is for all Jersey County first responders, including Jersey County EMTs, firefighters, and law enforcement personnel. Substance Use Prevention Services (SUPS) Grant Coordinator Rita Robinson said the goal of this event is to honor the “local heroes” of Jersey County. “Sometimes our kids think of heroes as the Hollywood stars or cartoon characters, and what’s true is our local heroes, our first responders are our local heroes,” Robinson said. The Youth Activation Committee is comprised of JCMS Students who are recognizing substance use prevention next week. One of the daily activity plans was to have a dress-up day where kids would dress up as first responders, but they decided to invite actual first responders to honor them this way instead, Robinson

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GODFREY – Lewis and Clark Community College Adult Education Student Services Coordinator Julie McAfoos has earned the Arthur J. Stejskal Teacher of the Year Award from the Illinois Adult Continuing Education Association (IACEA). McAfoos received the honor at the 2023 IACEA 43 rd Annual Conference held last month in Springfield. She credits the education she received at L&C, with teachers such as Lars Hoffman and Roger Zimmerman, for inspiring her love of teaching. “When I was a student here 35 years ago, teachers instilled in me a belief in an unseen future, and I hope to continue this work,” McAfoos said. According to the IACEA website, the Teacher of the Year Award is presented to the educator who best demonstrates a commitment to the adult and continuing education profession; recognizes and understands the physical, psychological, social and cognitive characteristics of adult learners; accepts each learner’s cultural and ethnic uniqueness; provide

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ALTON - Centerstone, a national leader in behavioral health and addiction services, has named Anne Tyree as Regional Chief Executive Officer for its Illinois operations, effective May 1, 2023. As Centerstone's Regional CEO, Tyree's day-to-day will entail providing leadership and management to the organization's $48 million operations in Illinois, which provides outpatient mental health counseling services, suicide prevention and crisis care, vocational training programs for special needs populations, supportive housing services, and comprehensive outpatient and residential addiction treatment programs to more than 12,000 people annually. "Anne has served Centerstone for more than 20 years and brings us the diverse set of skills needed to lead this significant portion of our organization," said Kevin Norton, Centerstone's chief operating officer. "I'm confident her unique background will serve us well and help us continue to exemplify our mission of delivering care that changes people's

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ALTON - Organizers have scheduled the Annual James Killion Day for 1 to 4 p.m. on Saturday, May 27, 2023, at James Killion Park at Salu in Alton. The James Killion Park Beautification and Enhancement Committee are organizing the event. The annual day is to celebrate the birthday, life, and contributions of James Killion Jr. and also to pay tribute to the local veterans of the past, present, and future. Alton Mayor David Goins, Killion family members, local veterans, and other dignitaries will be in attendance. Entertainment will be provided by DJ MattDeeCat and the Riverbend Community Gospel Choir. James Killion Jr. was an Alton High graduate and a World War II veteran, serving in the 25th Infantry. He was part of the Normandy Invasion. He also was in the Army Reserves for 12 years. He was also a Shurtleff College graduate and attended the University of Illinois and the University of Missouri Steelworkers Institute of Laborers and Industrial Relations. He was a furnace operator at

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EDWARDSVILLE - Edwardsville boys track sophomore Clayton Lakatos has had a good start to the 2023 track season. The future looks so bright for the young track and field star. Clayton is an iCAN Clinic Male Athlete of the Month for the Tigers. Some of Clayton's track highlights in 2023 have been in the Illinois Top Times indoor meet on March 25 in Bloomington, having run the 60-meter hurdles in 8.81 seconds and was part of the 4x200 meter relay team with Kellen Brnfre, Zach Lane, and Darren Wilson, winning their heat at 1:30.56 and finishing second in their heat of the 4x400 meter relay with Lane, Wilson and Xavier Valdez at 3:29.63. In his season's outdoor debut in the Norm Armstrong Invitational at Belleville West High on April 7, Lakatos had a very good day, running the 110 meters hurdles at 16.30 seconds, then was second in the 300-meter hurdles, coming home at 40.52 seconds. Clayton is the son of the Tigers' legendary boy track and field coach Chad Lakatos, who has an outstanding

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ST. LOUIS – As warmer weather moves in and people begin tackling yard projects, Ameren is reminding customers of a crucial first step: dialing 811 before digging and staking on their property. Marking utility lines is a free service – and it's the law. Follow these important steps to stay in compliance and avoid serious injury, loss of service and expensive repairs: Call 811 at least two business days before starting a digging project. Requests can be made at no cost, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. 811, the national call-before-you-dig phone number, automatically connects callers to either Missouri 811 or Illinois J.U.L.I.E (Joint Utility Locating Information for Excavators) organization. Wait two days until a professional locator comes out to mark natural gas, electric, water, sewer, telephone and cable lines. The approximate location of buried utilities will be marked with paint or flags so that you can avoid them. Each utility type corresponds to a specific colo

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EDWARDSVILLE - Edwardsville Cheerleading tryouts are being held this week for the 2023-24 team – a team that will look to follow up on the success of the 2022-23 team, which is coming off a record-breaking season. While EHS cheer has always been a source of pride for the school and the community, their success was a testament to their talent and hard work. We are still so excited about the success that the 2022-23 team had,” said head coach Anna Schuetzenhofer. “We had amazing leaders in our senior class, and we are so happy that they could graduate with a record-breaking season. It makes us excited for future years of Edwardsville Cheerleading and the success to come.” The 2022-23 team recorded the school’s highest ranking at the state championships with a sixth-place overall finish. They also claimed the program’s first sectional championship, while also taking first at the ICCA Championships and winning the Southwestern Conference Championship.

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ALTON - Caleb Lewis with Alton Odyssey Tours discussed the company’s growth and all-new tour lineup for 2023 on an episode of Our Daily Show! on Riverbender.com . This year’s lineup will include the brand-new Prohibition Tour, “Behind the Bricks” Walking Tour, Historical Craft Beer Walk, and more. Lewis explained that when he and his fiancé bought the business from his mother, Marlene, he had a vision to expand the company beyond just doing haunted tours as they had before. “Even during our purchase agreement, I kind of mentioned that I was expecting the haunted business to be one section of our total portfolio moving forward,” Lewis said. “Traditionally, it’s only been a haunted tour business and I wanted to diversify it, so we really brought some new ideas to life.” This year’s tour lineup reflects that diversification as it dives less into the haunted side of Alton and more into the historical side. After doin

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EDWARDSVILLE - Southern Illinois University Edwardsville lit up red with Cougar pride Thursday, April 20 in celebration of its second annual One Day, One SIUE Day of Giving. Raising more than $1.23 million exceeding the fundraising goal of $1 million dollars, SIUE set a new standard for alumni engagement and community partnership as the University defines its future. “On behalf of the entire University, I want to thank you for your generosity and continued partnership,” said SIUE Chancellor James T. Minor, PhD during his remarks. “Each one of you plays an important role as we develop a bold vision for this university and chart our path forward together. My ambition is that SIUE be first and best at providing high quality, affordable degree opportunities for all students. The time is now to advance the university's mission powerfully, and I look forward to meeting and working with you as we define this institution's future." One Day, One SIUE concluded with a culminating

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ELSAH - Three Rivers Community Farm in Elsah is hosting their eighth annual Plant Sale this weekend and next from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on April 22, 23, 29, and 30. A wide selection of plants will be available, including vegetable starts, herbs, native perennials, and more. Owner Amy Cloud appeared on an episode of Our Daily Show! on Riverbender.com and said the farm, which has been around for 17 seasons, undergoes some transformation for the event. “We pretty much transform our barn into a greenhouse,” Cloud said. “We kind of take the whole lower level of the barn, pile all our plants in there, and just open it up to the public.” Cloud said Three Farms offers a better variety of plants at lower prices than big box stores. “Just seeing the selection of plants at local big box stores, I knew that we could do much better,” she said. “We’re competitive with price, the plants are so much healthier, and then we’re able to grow

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EDWARDSVILLE - The Edwardsville Rotary Club has chosen to honor Edwardsville High School student Caidyn Crouch with the Student of the Month Award for the month of April. Caidyn was nominated by Orchestra Director Victoria Voumard of Edwardsville High School. Caidyn is the daughter of Brian and Stephanie Crouch. She is very active in the theater program, achieving Thespian status, along with serving as Vice President of the Thespian Troupe 1534 and being an Illinois All-State Theater company member. Additionally, she participates in the EHS Concert Orchestra, EHS Drama Club, and Victory Star Twirlers. In the future, Caidyn plans to attend Lewis and Clark Community College to earn an Associate of Arts degree to then pursue a career in Fashion Design, one day owning her own company. In her free time, Caidyn enjoys sewing, lighting design, and hair styling. The Edwardsville Rotary Club recognizes a student each month September through April. Each May, Edwardsville High School staff

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EDWARDSVILLE - Edwardsville baseball senior Riley Iffrig is one of the of the most important players on the club and is also one of its leaders. currently hitting .340 and it tied for the team lead in home runs with Cole Funkhouser with four each and also is the team leader in RBIs with 24. In a game on Apr. 18 against Collinsville at Tom Pile Field, Iffrig set the tone for the game with a two-run homer of the right center field fence in the Tigers' 9-3 win, then the next day at Fletcher Field, he drew a walk and scored in Edwardsville's 12-0 win over the Kahoks. For his efforts both on and off the field, Iffrig has been named an iCAN Clinic Male Athlete of the Month. Iffrig, who plays for head coach Tim Funkhouser, felt strong after the first win over Collinsville, especially coming off a 5-1 loss to Jackson, Mo. on Apr. 16 in the Tigers' annual game at Busch Stadium. "I'm feeling good," Iffrig said in his postgame interview. "It was good to get out here and get a win, especially

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BENTON – A U.S. District judge sentenced a St. Louis woman to 12 months and one day in prison after she admitted to visiting Metro East credit unions and using fake identification documents to take out loans. Toneka D. Prince, 20, pled guilty to one count of falsely obtaining property owned by a financial institution and one count of aggravated identity theft. Prince was ordered to pay $9,800 in restitution, and after completing her prison sentence, she will serve two years of supervised release. U.S. Secret Service led the investigation with contributions from the Glen Carbon and O’Fallon police departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter T. Reed prosecuted the case. On June 24, 2022, Prince visited the First Community Credit in Glen Carbon to collect the cash from the approved loan. She presented a fake Illinois driver’s license with a victim’s real identifiable information and successfully obtained a cash loan of $9,800. She was not authorized to use the individual’s

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GRANITE CITY - In honor of former Granite City High School and Grigsby Intermediate School Social Worker Christy Dawson , Grigsby will be celebrating its Second Annual Christy Dawson Kindness Week on April 24-28, 2023. Dawson passed away on March 31, 2021 after a battle with cancer. To ensure Dawson's legacy of kindness lives on, Grigsby has a week planned with fun events for students and staff: Monday - Be Kind to the Environment Wear brown, green or Earth Day shirt Pick up trash, plant flowers, make a birdhouse Walk more, drive less Make a craft with recycled materials Tuesday - Be Kind to animals Wear a shirt with an animal on it or animal print Make toys to donate to a pet shelter Help care for your pet Learn and educate others how our trash affects animals Wednesday - Be Kind to Self Exercise for 15 minutes Avoid complaining List 5 things you are thankful for Learn how to meditate or do yoga today Thursday - Be Kind to Family Help with dishes

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Rep. Mike Bost voted today to preserve opportunities for women and girls in school sports. The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act clarifies that schools receiving federal education funding would be in violation of sex discrimination laws if they allow biological males to compete in athletics designated for females. “Many parents are fed up with the far left pushing a gender identity agenda that’s out of touch with our values,” said Bost. "It is wrong to force women and girls to compete against biological males in school sports that were specifically designed for females. I have seven granddaughters, and I want to do everything I can to value them, empower them, and encourage them to achieve their dreams. For that reason, I voted to ensure that women and girls have a fair playing field in school sports.” The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, which Bost cosponsored, passed the House 219-203.

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SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) announced today that the unemployment rate fell -0.1 percentage point to 4.4 percent, while nonfarm payrolls increased by +7,900 in March, based on preliminary data provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and released by IDES. The February monthly change in payrolls was revised from the preliminary report, from +10,700 to +8,100 jobs. The February revised unemployment rate was 4.5 percent, unchanged from the preliminary February unemployment rate. The March payroll jobs estimate and unemployment rate reflect activity for the week including the 12th. In March, the industry sectors with the largest over-the-month gains in employment included: Professional and Business Services (+3,000), Leisure and Hospitality (+3,000), and Government (+1,600). The industry sectors with the largest monthly payroll declines included: Manufacturing (-1,400), Trade, Transportation and Utilities (-500), and Information

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CHICAGO - Attorney General Kwame Raoul, as part of a coalition of 18 states, today called for a federal recall of Hyundai and Kia vehicles following the companies’ continued failure to take adequate steps to address the alarming rate of vehicle thefts. The letter , sent to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), encourages the NHTSA to recall unsafe Hyundai and Kia vehicles manufactured between 2011 and 2022 that have easily-bypassed ignition switches and lack engine immobilizers that make the vehicles vulnerable to theft. In a letter issued in March 2023 , Raoul and a coalition of attorneys general urged the companies to take stronger steps to address the safety concerns caused by vehicles’ vulnerability to theft. Because the companies have failed to address safety issues, Raoul and the coalition are now calling on the NHTSA to step in. The attorneys general argue that the vehicles’ systems remain out of compliance with federal standards an

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