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Durbin, Duckworth, Rep. Kelly Introduce "Wear Orange" Resolution In Observance Of National Gun Violence Awareness Month, Honor Hadiya Pendleton

3 months 2 weeks ago
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), and U.S. Representative Robin Kelly (D-IL-02) today introduced the bicameral “Wear Orange” Resolution, which designates June 6, 2025, as National Gun Violence Awareness Day and the entire month of June as National Gun Violence Awareness Month. Each year, nearly 43,000 people in the United States are killed, and 97,000 injured by gun violence. June 2 is the birthday of Chicago teen Hadiya Pendleton, who was shot and killed in a Chicago park in 2013, just days after performing in the parade for President Obama’s second inauguration. This tragic event moved the lawmakers to designate the first Friday in June as a time to recognize Hadiya nationally. In Hadiya’s memory, the resolution encourages people to wear orange, the color hunters wear for safety, to promote awareness of gun violence, and to serve as a reminde

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Budzinski Tours Local Businesses Hit by President Trump's Tariffs

3 months 2 weeks ago
SPRINGFIELD — Last week, Congresswoman Nikki Budzinski (IL-13) toured First to the Finish, a sporting apparel store in Edwardsville, Ill., and Martinelli’s Market, Bakery and Deli in Champaign, Ill., to highlight the impact of President Trump’s tariffs on small businesses. “President Trump campaigned on lowering costs, protecting American industry, and bringing home good-paying jobs. However, imposing sweeping tariffs on our closest trading partners is not the way to get there. Instead, this approach has saddled folks with rising prices and deep uncertainty about their futures,” said Congresswoman Budzinski. “Last week, I spoke directly with the owners of First to the Finish and Martinelli’s Market, to hear their concerns about running a business in this volatile economy. I assured them that I’ll keep fighting to put their needs first, hold the President accountable, and work to bring down costs for working families.” Congresswoman

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The Head of a Tennessee Youth Detention Center Will Step Down After “Loss of Confidence” in His Leadership

3 months 2 weeks ago

This article was produced by WPLN/Nashville Public Radio, a 2023 ProPublica Local Reporting Network partner. Sign up for Dispatches to get our stories in your inbox every week.

Richard L. Bean, the longtime superintendent of the East Tennessee juvenile detention center that bears his name, abruptly announced Friday that he will be stepping down. His decision to retire came the day after the Knox County mayor said he had lost confidence in Bean’s leadership.

Bean, 84, has been superintendent of the juvenile detention center since 1972. A 2023 investigation from WPLN and ProPublica found the facility was using solitary confinement more than other detention centers in the state. Sometimes the children were locked up alone for hours or days at a time. That kind of confinement was also used as punishment, in violation of state law.

At the time, Bean broadly defended the practices at the facility, saying he wished he had more punitive abilities and that people who pushed back didn’t understand what was necessary.

After the story ran, the head of the detention center’s governing board told local TV station WBIR that he thought the Bean center was “the best facility in the state of Tennessee.”

Renewed scrutiny on the detention center began last week when Bean dismissed two employees, including the facility’s only nurse. The nurse’s termination was first reported by Knox News, and the mayor described her dismissal as “retaliation” because she had reported to state investigators significant issues with medical care at the facility, which she said went unchecked and unaddressed by Bean.

On Wednesday, Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs and juvenile court Judge Tim Irwin wrote a letter to Bean demanding he reinstate both employees. Irwin is a nonvoting member of the center’s governing board of trustees but selects one of its three voting members.

“These dismissals may well lead to lawsuits against you and the county,” the letter reads, “which could cost the taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars.”

The following day, Jacobs wrote a letter to the governor calling for immediate state intervention and detailing issues with medication in the facility going missing, errors with medication reporting and “even medication going to the wrong detainees.”

In a public video statement, Jacobs said he had “no confidence that these issues will be addressed with the center’s current leadership or the governing board that oversees the Bean juvenile detention center.” He called for the Knox County Sheriff’s Office to take over operation of the center but said he has limited power to intervene.

By Friday, Bean announced that he would leave his post as superintendent in two months after he gets the facility “shipshape,” according to a press release. He did not respond to requests for comment but said in the press release that his last day will be Aug. 1.

During WPLN and ProPublica’s investigation of the Bean center, documents revealed that state officials repeatedly had put the Bean center on corrective action plans and had documented its improper use of seclusion yet continued to approve the center’s license to operate without the facility changing its ways.

“What we do is treat everybody like they’re in here for murder,” Bean told WPLN during a 2023 visit to the facility. “You don’t have a problem if you do that.” Most of the children in the Bean center are not in for murder and instead are awaiting court dates after being charged with a crime.

When asked if he was worried he might get in trouble for the way he was running the facility, Bean said, “If I got in trouble for it, I believe I could talk to whoever got me in trouble and get out of it.”

by Paige Pfleger, WPLN/Nashville Public Radio

Southwestern High School Semester 2 2024-2025 High Honor And Honor Roll

3 months 2 weeks ago
BRIGHTON - Following are the High Honor Roll and Honor Roll lists for Southwestern High School’s second semester of the 2024-2025 academic year: HIGH HONOR ROLL Senior Class of 2025 High Honor Roll List for Semester 2 Cadence Ater, Ike Austin, Lainie Behrends, Reagan Beilsmith, Ian Brantley, Logan Custer, Gracie Darr, Madison Fenstermaker, Kyle Foss, Hailey Gula, Ashlyn Hall, Alexis Harrop, Addison Jeffers, Ella Kadell, Kori Laubscher, Ryan Lowis, Nicholas McGee, Ava Pulley, Nicholas Ragsdale, Anneliese Shatley Junior Class of 2026 High Honor Roll List for Semester 2 Gage Alexander, Ava Ballard, Bram Beuttel, Levi Brantley, Taylor Cairns, Alivia Cecchini, Lucy Childress, Madelyn Egelhoff, Madelyn Gordon, Josie Hagen, Wyatt Lahr, Miranda Lenger, Kinley Lucas, Christian Ruyle, Olivia Schneider, Alyssa Schuchman, Dalton Scott, Isabella Snyder, Amelia Walden, Vivian Zurheide Sophomore Class of 2027 High Honor Roll List for Semester 2 Briann Anderson, Jaden Basnett,

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Natalie Shepherd Joins Bond Architects as Associate After Interning There

3 months 2 weeks ago
Bond Architects announced that Natalie Shepherd has joined the Bond team full-time as an architectural associate. Shepherd spent the past two years working and studying at Bond Architects as an architectural intern. She recently graduated from Ranken Technical College St. Louis, with a degree in architectural technology. Before going back to school to study architecture, […]
Tom Finan

Homeland Security’s list of ‘sanctuary cities’ pulled down after sheriffs object

3 months 2 weeks ago
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Homeland Security over the weekend took down a public list of cities and jurisdictions that the Trump administration labeled as “sanctuary” cities, after a sharp rebuke from a group representing 3,000 sheriffs and local law enforcement. On Saturday, National Sheriffs’ Association President Sheriff Kieran Donahue slammed the list as […]
Ariana Figueroa

DOT Agrees to Remove Race, Gender Based Criteria From DBE Program

3 months 2 weeks ago
From Construction Dive The DOT has agreed to settle a case challenging the constitutionality of its Disadvantaged Business Enterprise program, effectively barring women- and minority-owned companies from automatic inclusion in the initiative. In a joint motion filed May 28 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky that still needs a judge’s approval, […]
Tom Finan

Lambert Airport Seeks Help in Moving Airlines As Part of $3B Terminal Project

3 months 2 weeks ago
From St. Louis Business Journal:  St. Louis Lambert International Airport is seeking help creating new passenger boarding bridges for gates and moving others as it looks to shift airlines around the facility amid work on the $3 billion single-terminal redevelopment. It wants a contractor to procure and install 10 new passenger boarding bridges and walkways, […]
Tom Finan

Lake St. Louis man arrested after 5-hour standoff in Columbia

3 months 2 weeks ago
COLUMBIA, Mo. - A Lake St. Louis man is in custody following an incident that led to a five-hour standoff over the weekend in Columbia. According to authorities, Columbia police were called to the 2700 block of Summit Rd. around 4:30 a.m. Saturday for a domestic disturbance. Court records state that when police arrived, they [...]
Megan Mueller