EDWARDSVILLE - Edwardsville Police Chief Michael Fillback will retire Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, closing a 30-year law enforcement career spent entirely with the Edwardsville Police Department, the city announced Thursday, Sept. 3, 2026. Fillback has led the department for the past five years. He began his career with Edwardsville in August 1996 and is a graduate of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, where he earned both bachelor’s and master’s degrees. "It has been an honor
EAST ST. LOUIS — A former Southern Illinois University Edwardsville adjunct instructor and lab manager is facing federal charges after prosecutors said he used a university-issued credit card to pay for more than $100,000 in personal expenses over more than two years. A federal grand jury on Aug. 18, 2026, indicted Jonathan C. Clark, an SIUE lecturer and lab manager, on one count of mail fraud and three counts of wire fraud. Prosecutors allege Clark defrauded the university between Nov.
JERSEYVILLE – A local educator recently presented plans to transform a small piece of vacant land in downtown Jerseyville into a pocket park showcasing community artwork and more. Erica Heitzig, a workforce development coordinator and family and consumer sciences teacher at Jersey Community High School, proposed a community partnership project using a vacant Jerseyville lot to City Council members on Sept. 1, 2026. Heitzig sees the vacant grass lot at the corner of West Arch and State
WOOD RIVER - The community can help local kids enjoy the holiday season at an upcoming fundraiser. From 6–10 p.m. on Nov. 14, 2026, Riverbend Rescue will host its third annual Keys for Kids program at Rustic Roots in Wood River. The event will feature a catered meal, dueling pianos, a full bar, a 50/50 drawing and raffle baskets. All proceeds go toward Riverbend Rescue’s mission to provide necessities and gifts for kids in the local school districts during the holidays. “Everybody
WOOD RIVER - Peyton Adams, a senior at East Alton-Wood River High, is being recognized for volleyball after four years of work in the sport and in the classroom. Adams, who is coached by Bethany Hoyland, said the accomplishment reflects “working hard all four years of high school in volleyball and my schoolwork.” Adams is a Midwest Members Credit Union Female Athlete Of The Month for the Oilers. Adams has played volleyball for 10 years and said the sport has been meaningful because
WOOD RIVER - Brady Barker, a senior at East Alton-Wood River High, is being recognized this year for soccer after working his way from junior varsity earlier in high school to a captain’s role on his varsity team. Barker said his path in the sport has shaped his growth. “I went from JV my freshman and sophomore year, and I didn’t get to play my junior year, and now I am a captain on my team this year,” Barker said. Barker has played soccer for five years. He said the
PIASA - Southwestern High School senior outside hitter Briann Anderson, No. 16, received praise from head girls' volleyball coach Derek Dempsey for her "versatility and leadership" in a recent interview. Coach Dempsey singled out Anderson for not only her play at the net, but across the floor and as a four-year starter. Briann is the epitome of an all-around player on the girls' volleyball court, the coach said. "Briann is not only great at the net but the rest of the floor,” Coach
PIASA — Carter Watson, a 6-foot-3 junior quarterback for the Southwestern Piasa Birds, has been recognized this season as an Altonized Community Federal Credit Union Male Athlete Of The Month after emerging as a leader on offense and contributing as a three-sport varsity athlete. Watson is a mainstay for the Piasa Birds at quarterback and is also listed as a defensive end. He also plays varsity baseball and basketball for Southwestern. Last year, he completed 19 of 52 passes for 305 yards
JERSEYVILLE – A sex offender accused of failing to notify police after moving into a motel in Jerseyville faces a felony in Jersey County. Joey M. Seidelman, 27, listed as homeless out of Lincoln, Ill., was charged on Aug. 25, 2026 with a Class 3 felony count of unlawful failure to register as a sex offender. On Aug. 21, 2026, Seidelman allegedly knowingly failed to register as a sex offender with the Jersey County Sheriff’s Office within three days after establishing a residence
ST. LOUIS - St. Louis Metropolitan Police District 4 detectives are seeking suspects wanted in connection with a shooting around 12:15 a.m. July 19, 2026, in Downtown, where police said a group of subjects shot at each other in the 900 block of South Broadway. The St. Louis Metropolitan Police made an announcement with the suspects' pictures this week. A preliminary investigation found that no injuries were reported, but nearby cars and property sustained ballistic damage during the incident.
SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Department of Transportation announced today that lanes that have been closed for construction will reopen, where possible, for the Labor Day weekend to minimize travel disruption. Non-emergency closures will be suspended from 3 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4, to 11:59 p.m. Monday, Sept. 7. The following lane closures will remain in place during the holiday weekend. The public can expect delays and should allow extra time for trips through these areas. Drivers are urged
CHICAGO – Today, Governor JB Pritzker sent a letter to President Donald Trump demanding that his administration immediately restart construction on the Brandon Road Interbasin Project. The administration ordered work stopped at the end of July, and more than a month later the State of Illinois has received no explanation for the stoppage. Governor Pritzker also directed the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) to restate its request for an emergency meeting of the project’s
CHICAGO – Attorney General Kwame Raoul co-led a coalition of 22 states in challenging the Trump administration’s attempt to prohibit states from using federal Medicaid funds for gender-affirming care for low-income minors and some young adults. “At a time when our country faces a true healthcare crisis due to spiraling costs of care, a shortage of providers, and rural hospital closures leaving communities with no providers for miles, the Trump administration is attempting t
EDWARDSVILLE — A driver will be cited for disobeying a traffic control device after a vehicle struck a pedestrian crossing Main and Vandalia streets in Edwardsville around 6:35 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2026, city officials said. City of Edwardsville spokesperson Cathy A. Hensley said Edwardsville Police officers responded to the area but did not locate anything related to the incident. Officers did see a group of runners in the area, Hensley said. Around 7:50 p.m. on Wednesday, the pedestrian
FAIRVIEW HEIGHTS – A popular recreation site serving families, seniors and athletes from across the Metro East will receive $40,000 in state funding secured by State Senator Erica Harriss (56th-Glen Carbon) for new signage and an outdoor shelter. “Our parks and recreational spaces are an important part of what makes our communities great places to live and raise a family,” said Senator Harriss. “Fairview Heights has continued to invest in this space and expand the opportunities
SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) is responding to an outbreak of measles in Douglas County, Illinois, involving at least four cases. An outbreak is defined as three or more cases that are connected by a common exposure source or epidemiological link. IDPH is working with local health departments to identify residents who were exposed to patients during their infectious period and offer vaccination to those who are high-risk, as well as others in the community.
This Day in Music History: A Festival That Put Music and Technology on the Same Stage On Sept. 3, 1982, the first U.S. Festival opened at Glen Helen Regional Park in Southern California, making an unusually ambitious case that popular music and emerging technology belonged in the same public gathering. Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak financed the Labor Day weekend event, while veteran promoter Bill Graham helped produce it. The festival combined major rock, new wave, country and pop performances
People often complain about hard work, yet they admire it almost everywhere they see it. That small contradiction says a lot about human nature. Most of us want easier paths when we are tired, stressed, or pressed for time. But we still respect the person who stays late to finish a job well, the athlete who trains when no one is watching, or the parent who works two shifts to support a family. Hard work carries meaning beyond the task itself. It signals effort, discipline, sacrifice, and purpose.
On September 3, one of the most far-reaching events in global history was the formal start of Britain and France’s war against Nazi Germany in 1939. Two days earlier, Germany had invaded Poland, breaking earlier agreements and making clear that Adolf Hitler’s government intended to expand by force. When Britain and France declared war, a regional crisis became a wider world conflict. At the time, the decision mattered because it marked the failure of diplomacy to contain aggression
EAST ST. LOUIS — An East St. Louis man with prior convictions, including second-degree murder, was sentenced yesterday to the maximum 15 years in federal prison for unlawfully possessing a firearm after a federal jury found him guilty in May 2026. Anthony D. Bradley Jr., 37, was convicted of possessing a firearm as a previously convicted felon. Before trial, Bradley stipulated that he was a convicted felon and that he knew he was a convicted felon at the time of the offense conduct. “This
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