Guard convicted of forcing inmate fights
A Kane County jury has found a former security guard guilty of encouraging detainees to fight at an Illinois youth prison.
Michael Klimek, 46, of Yorkville, was accused of urging certain juvenile detainees to physically attack other detainees while he was a security guard at Illinois Youth Center in St. Charles in 2016. Authorities learned of Klimek’s misconduct after one of the victims was attacked in a shower at the facility and informed his therapist.
U.S. transportation secretary in Joliet
U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is in Illinois Wednesday to talk about the Biden Administration’s infrastructure investments.
The secretary will be in Joliet this afternoon for a ribbon cutting event at the Joliet Gateway Center Bus Station to talk about mass transit investments.
Chicago nursing home sued for letting residents wander
The families of two seniors with dementia have sued an Illinois long-term care facility, claiming the facility did not prevent residents from wandering away and allowed them to live in "totally undignified conditions."
The two seniors’ experiences are detailed in separate lawsuits filed against New City Supportive Living in Chicago. According to one lawsuit, a 69-year-old resident, known for wandering, was able to leave the facility in 2020 and roamed for more than 24 hours before she was found several miles away.
Man hit by snow plow gets $8 million settlement
An Iowa state board has approved an $8 million payment to an Illinois man who was left permanently disabled when he was hit by an Iowa Transportation Department snow plow in 2019.
Police said Terry Bunting of Viola was clearing the windshield of his semi after pulling over in Le Claire when he was hit by the blade of a passing snow plow. Court records said the driver of the plow said he saw Bunting and moved to retract the plow’s blade, but pulled the wrong lever, leaving it extended.
Willie Nelson coming to Illinois State Fair
The Illinois State Fair has announced that Willie Nelson & Family will headline the Illinois Lottery Grandstand on Tuesday, Aug. 16.
Opening for Nelson will be four-time Grammy nominee Elle King. Tickets for the show go on sale this Saturday, May 7. The Illinois State Fair runs from Aug. 11 through Aug. 21.
April was cloudier than usual
You weren't imagining things. April was a gloomy and cloudy month.
According to statistics, the percentage of daytime hours with sunshine reached its second lowest level for April since 1893. In Chicago, for example, only 34% of the days featured sunshine, the lowest number since 2011.
