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A 13-year-old boy was arrested in St. Louis County on suspicion of first-degree murder and robbery in connection with the shooting.

by Rose Lundy, The Maine Monitor

In Maine, the number of nursing home beds is declining even as the state’s population grows older and medical needs continue to rise. Assisted living facilities have expanded their presence across the state, attempting to meet the demand. The Maine Monitor and ProPublica would like your help in reporting on how well these facilities are run, especially in looking after people who need a high level of medical care, and whether the state is doing enough to ensure that residents’ needs are being adequately met. If you have firsthand experience of living, working or caring for someone in one of these facilities, we would appreciate your help and perspective.

We are focusing on large residential facilities, classified as Level 4, that have seven or more beds in private or semiprivate rooms, as well as common living and dining areas.

We want to hear from residents or their family members about the medical care provided by Maine’s Level 4 assisted living facilities. We’d also like to hear from Mainers who are struggling to find an assisted living facility that they can afford or that provides adequate care.

We also are hoping to hear from workers in the Level 4 assisted living facilities, as you understand the challenges that accompany the rising demand for care.

We take your privacy seriously. We are gathering these stories for the purposes of our reporting and will contact you if we wish to publish any part of your story. We are the only ones reading what you submit.

We may not be able to respond to everyone, but we read each submission, and they all help inform our work.

Almost half of products cleared so far under the new federal biofuels program are not in fact biofuels — and the EPA acknowledges that the plastic-based ones may present an “unreasonable risk” to human health or the environment.

GRANITE CITY – Prather Early Childhood Coordinator Marci Dodds has been named the 2023 Early Childhood Teacher of the Year by The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE), as announced Thursday by ISBE. Dodds was recognized Thursday with an assembly at Prather, and ISBE will celebrate the awardees at a banquet on April 29. Out of almost 500 applicants, Dodds was selected for this honor because of her commitment to the students and staff at Prather. You can read more about Dodds and the entire cohort of 2023 Teachers of the Year on ISBE’s program page . "I am grateful to be a part of a child's first experience with school. Being part of the team that can show them that this is a safe place where they can learn new skills and meet new friends," said Dodds. "Being able to assist parents with the transition to their child being at school. It's just amazing to be able to be a part of so many firsts for families." Dodds is in her 18th year in the in the Granite City Community

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Let’s hear it for the girls! On Saturdays and Sundays in February, Eckert’s Country Restaurant in Belleville, Illinois, will host Galentine’s Brunch. Gather your favorite gal pals and enjoy Eckert’s

The post Galentine’s Brunch appeared first on Explore St. Louis.

CARBONDALE - Southern Illinois University President Dan Mahony made the following comment about Gov. J.B. Pritzker's recent announcement of funding for the SIU campuses. “Across Southern Illinois University’s campuses, we sincerely thank Governor JB Pritzker for proposing continued investment in higher education with a recommended, historic across-the-board seven percent operations funding increase, totaling $100 million for all of higher education in the upcoming fiscal year," Mahony said. "If adopted, this could provide roughly $14 million more for the SIU campuses. This investment is very much appreciated news as we continue to provide a great education for our students and serve as a critical economic driver for central and southern Illinois." Mahony continued and said beyond expanded operations support for the SIU campuses, it’s great to see proposed new increases in funding for MAP grants by $100 million. "These dollars, which provide need-based aid covering

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GRANITE CITY – The Illinois Department of Transportation announced lane closures in both directions of Interstate 270 between Illinois 3 and Riverview Drive in Missouri beginning at 5 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 25, weather permitting. One lane in each direction will remain open throughout the weekend. The lane closures are needed to accommodate pavement patching. All lanes will reopen by 5 a.m., Monday, Feb. 27. Motorists should expect delays and are encouraged to use alternate routes during this closure. 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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EDWARDSVILLE — Madison County is offering grant opportunities to non-profit and local government providers in an effort to combat the opioid epidemic. The Madison County Mental Health Board is accepting request for proposals until March 17 on its opioid remediation settling funding. “This is a part of monies that are flowing from settlements with big drug companies," Mental Health Board Director Deborah Humphrey said. In November 2022, State’s Attorney Tom Haine announced that Madison County would receive and estimated $3.7 million in funding as its share of the settlement on behalf of local governments across the country in litigation against three distributors of opioids — AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health and McKesson — and one manufacturer of opioids, Janssen. Haine said the companies agreed to pay $26 billion to litigants over 18 years. In 2022, Madison County received its first two installments, totaling $243,323. “Pursuant to the settlement

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EDWARDSVILLE — Madison County State’s Attorney Tom Haine announced Friday that a driver in a crash that claimed three lives has been convicted of aggravated intoxicated driving and sentenced to 17 years in prison. The driver, 19-year-old Blake A. Jones of Worden, pleaded guilty Friday to three counts of aggravated driving with a blood-alcohol level 0.08 percent or more resulting in death. The charges stemmed from a crash on Aug. 13, 2021, at the intersection of Bethalto Road and McCoy Road. The crash resulted in the deaths of John A. Cafazza, 55, his wife Melissa R. Cafazza, 52, and their youngest son, Dominic Cafazza, 12, all of Bethalto. “First and foremost, our prayers and concerns remain with the Cafazza family,” Haine said. “This is a tragedy all around. Drinking and driving destroys lives and wrecks futures. Here, a young man’s reckless choices and blatant disregard for others took three beloved lives at once, and he now faces many years in

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ST. LOUIS -- The woman who went viral on social media yelling racist comments at a Latino family in the St. Louis area is arrested for harassment. According to the city police department's website, officers took Judy Kline, 54, into custody Thursday morning. She's being held at the St. Louis City Justice Center this morning [...]

ST. LOUIS -- Milder temperatures are headed our way this weekend. Expect a quiet day Saturday with partly cloudy skies and highs in the low 50s. The system that is bringing California heavy rain and mountain snow will be moving into the area by Sunday. There is a chance of scattered showers in the afternoon, [...]

On February 25, 1966, CBS premiered a TV documentary, "Sixteen in Webster Groves." Many St. Louisans were outraged when the program made most of the parents and teens look self-obsessed. Here was columnist Clarissa Start's take on the program.

Lincoln University of Missouri in Jefferson City will unveil the Dorothy E. Steward Art Gallery at 11:30 a.m. Friday March 10 on the second floor of the Richardson Auditorium on the LU campus.