Work will be on Westgate from Main to Mitchell and on Whitaker from Westgate to Delmar.

During construction, motorists should expect temporary road closures, lane restrictions, and possible traffic delays.

Drivers are encouraged to use alternate routes when possible and to exercise caution near construction areas. Please be alert for construction crews, equipment, and temporary traffic control signs.

The city appreciates your patience and cooperation as we complete this work. Thank you for helping keep our road crews and the traveling public safe.

The ratings are based on the CMS Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey, which captures patients’ perspectives on their hospital experience, including communication with nurses, cleanliness and whether patients would recommend the hospital to others.

The Cheif Administrative Officer of Deaconess Illinois Crossroads, Kevin Goss, says the recognition reflects the hospital’s ongoing focus on providing compassionate, patient-centered care and creating a positive experience for every

patient.

“Our employees put patients at the center of everything they do, and we are proud of their commitment to providing compassionate, high-quality care.”

The five-star rating for nurse communication recognizes patients’ experiences with how well nurses communicate, listen, and treat patients with courtesy and respect. The cleanliness rating reflects patients’ perceptions of the hospital environment, while the recommendation rating reflects patients’ willingness to recommend Deaconess Illinois Crossroads to friends and family.

“These results are especially meaningful because they come directly from the patients and families we serve,” Goss said. “We are grateful for their trust and for the dedication of our team.”

The recognition highlights the work of employees across Deaconess Illinois Crossroads, from nurses and clinical staff to environmental services, support teams, and other caregivers who contribute to the patient experience.

Article Summary 

• A McKendree University alumnus who sent electronic messages threatening a mass shooting at the private liberal arts college in September 2025 pleaded guilty on Thursday to charges of interstate communication with a threat to injure, and to stalking McKendree University employees. 
• Rustin A. Berkshire, 40, of Vincennes, Indiana, had a documented history of stalking and harassing behavior prior to sending the increasingly unhinged messages to his alma mater. 
• McKendree is a private liberal arts college in Lebanon, Illinois, that enrolls about 2,500 students. In a statement, the university thanked law enforcement for taking action to protect its campus community. 

This summary was written by the reporters and editors who worked on this story. 

Penny Bordewick, for Capitol News Illinois 

EAST ST. LOUIS — A McKendree University alumnus accused of threatening a campus mass shooting in 2025 and stalking an employee for years pleaded guilty in federal court on Thursday.

Rustin A. Berkshire, 40, of Vincennes, Indiana, was arrested in September 2025 on charges of interstate communication with a threat to injure and stalking. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexandria M. Burns told a federal court in East St. Louis that Berkshire had threatened severe injury to students and staff at McKendree University, and had also been stalking and harassing a university staff member since September 2018. 

McKendree is a private, liberal-arts college that enrolls about 2,500 students on its campus in Lebanon, Illinois, located roughly 20 miles east of St. Louis. The Illinois State Police, FBI and the Vincennes Police Department in Indiana participated in the investigation. 

There were three victims named in the case, Burns said. Two were present at the courthouse this week, though one remained outside the courtroom; the third did not attend the hearing. 

‘i want to make you people and your students suffer’

Berkshire had sent messages to one of the victims both by electronic correspondence and through the mail, with two handwritten letters sent directly to one victim’s house. Burns said the correspondence from Berkshire included profanity and referenced feces.

The first handwritten letter, Burns told the court, was a message described as a Valentine’s Day greeting, in which Berkshire wrote “I wiped my ass” with the letter and told the female victim, “I hate your gender.” The second letter sent to the victim’s residence made more serious threats, wishing death upon the victim’s husband and son. 

Then, in the early morning hours of Sept. 3, 2025, Berkshire sent a slew of electronic messages to McKendree University threatening a school shooting. The first message was an email to a generic McKendree University account. The message self-identified Berkshire as an alumnus and spoke of his hatred for the institution.

“i want to make you people and your students suffer,” Berkshire wrote, according to an FBI affidavit filed in federal court. 

The second email, sent about 45 minutes after the first, went to a McKendree University employee and invoked the prospect of a mass shooting on campus. 

“I want to hate mckendree children. [redacted]. i want to be the evil human being that destroys their future. remember me [redacted] as find a grave.com rustin berkshire the evil shooter of mckendree university,” it read, according to court documents.

The third round of threats was sent to McKendree University’s Facebook page in direct messages. These messages explicitly stated a desire to commit a mass shooting and kept repeating the phrase “pain and tears forever.”

McKendree University notified the Illinois State Police of the threats, which increased their presence on campus and directed officers to patrol the premises. 

Illinois State Police traced Berkshire to his home in Vincennes, Indiana. The Vincennes Police Department conducted a welfare check on Berkshire on Sept. 3, 2025, during which he stated that he had been intoxicated and that he “might have said some things,” according to court records. But the department reported that he was otherwise in “fine” condition and did not possess firearms.

Berkshire was arrested Sept. 11, 2025, about a week after sending the threatening messages.

A documented history of troubling behavior

In a statement to Capitol News Illinois, McKendree University thanked law enforcement for its actions to protect the campus community. 

“McKendree University is aware of the guilty plea in this matter. We appreciate the work of law enforcement and the judicial system in addressing this case,” the university wrote. “The safety and well-being of our students and campus community remain our highest priorities, and we remain committed to maintaining a safe campus environment.”

The supervisor of the staff member who received the direct email threat filed for an order of protection against Berkshire in February 2021. The order remains active in Clinton County. 

Even before he threatened McKendree University, Berkshire had a documented history of troubling behavior. According to the Vincennes Police Department Facebook page, he was arrested in August 2021 and charged with stalking and harassment. 

“For the past month, the Vincennes Police Department has been receiving complaints about a male, Rustin Berkshire, harassing and possibly stalking females,” the post stated. “Mr. Berkshire had been harassing ex co-workers and local business owners.”

He was convicted of stalking in Knox County, Indiana, in October 2021.

In January 2023, Berkshire filed a complaint against the Vincennes Police Department for an unspecified civil rights deprivation. The case was ultimately dismissed when Berkshire failed to state a sufficient claim. 

Berkshire could be sentenced to up to five years in prison, a maximum of $250,000 in fines, and up to three years of supervised release after serving his prison time, plus a guaranteed $100 in special assessments for each of the two federal courts to which he pleaded guilty on Thursday. 

In his plea, Berkshire waived his right to appeal and accepted three years of supervised release after his prison sentence. A judge will determine the length of that sentence on Dec. 10. He remains in custody pending his sentencing hearing. 

Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. The Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation fund it primarily.

Illinois State Police arrested 36-year-old Dominique Byrd of North Beech in Centralia on outstanding no-bond Marion and Clinton County warrants.  Officers took her to the Marion County Jail.

Salem Fire Protection District officials say they found a malfunction in the main breaker panel when called to a home on Westport Drive Friday night.  They smelled something burning, but found no fire or smoke.  They remained on scene until Ameren crews arrived.

She was born in Murphysboro, Illinois, on July 31, 1954, the daughter of Walter and Neomi Penrod. She grew up in Murphysboro, graduated from Murphysboro High School in 1972 and attended John A. Logan College.

Mary Anne married Ted Morris on Oct. 6, 1979. Together, they raised two children in a loving home where one could always find sweet tea in the fridge, delightful tchotchkes on the shelves and at least two dogs underfoot.

In the 1970s and 1980s, she worked for Brown Shoe Company before becoming a teacher’s aide at the Raccoon School District in the early 1990s, when her children were students there. As they grew older, Mary Anne turned her eye for interesting things in an entrepreneurial direction, building her own independent business as an antiques dealer. She maintained a booth at the Alton Exchange consignment mall for decades, driving there once a week to restock and visit her beloved cousin Elizabeth Darnstaedt and Elizabeth’s husband, Robert, who lived nearby.

If you attended an auction or held a garage sale in the Salem area anytime between the late 1990s and mid-2010s, you almost certainly met Mary Anne. She was often the first customer, sometimes arriving while tables were still being set up — not that this stopped her from prowling among them, scanning for treasures and always ready to make a deal.

Mary Anne never saw a homeless animal that she didn’t want to rescue or a lonely person she didn’t try to befriend. She never heard of an injustice she could let stand or a good joke she wouldn’t tell you later. With a warm heart and a sharp sense of humor, she brought a spark to every room she entered. The world is colder and dimmer without it. ut for those fortunate to love her, the memories burn bright.

She is survived by her husband of 47 years, Ted Morris; her children, Heather Morris and Adam Morris (Allison Petty); her cousin Elizabeth Darnstaedt; her lifelong friends Barb Jackson (Steve) of San Antonio and Cathy Marble (Jerry) of Salem; and many in-laws, nieces and nephews in the Morris family.

She was preceded in death by her parents and Robert Darnstaedt.

Mary Anne’s family would like to thank the nurses and staff at Residential Hospice for their compassionate attention and support.

A celebration of life visitation will be held on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, from 5:00–7:00 p.m. at Crouse Funeral Home in Salem.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Salem Animal Control or an animal rescue organization of the donor’s choice and will be received at the funeral home.  Online condolences and memories can be left at www.CrouseFH.com.

Team Leaderboard:

1. Red Bud 308
2. Northridge Prep 309
3. Pittsfield 310
4. Illini West 312
5. Teutopolis 314
6. Byron 324
7. Delevan 328
8. Erie 331

Missed Cut:

• Casey Westfield 335
• Williamsville 337
• Northwestern 344
• Brimfield 350

Individual Advancers:

• Porter Donjon, Red Bud 74 (T6)
• Isaac Weber, Teutopolis – 75 (T8)
• Draedan Duncan, Red Bud – 76 (T11)
• Myles Bertoletti, Roxana – 77 (T19)
• Kade Pennington, Teutopolis – 77 (T19)
• Carter McPherson, DuQuoin – 78 (T23)
• Lane Diewald, Red Bud – 79 (T30)
• Jack Muench, Red Bud – 79 (T30)
• Eli Weber, Teutopolis – 79 (T30)
• Bryce Haar, Wesclin – 81 (T43)
• Kian Garver, Casey – 81 (T43)
• Trevin Eggemeyer, Chester – 81 (T43)
• Carter Geralds, Sparta – 81 (T43)
• Christian Swalley, Greenville – 81 (T43)
• Colby Hartmann, Red Bud – 82 (T54)
• Jack James, Newton – 83 (T60)
• Colton McGee, Mt Carmel – 83 (T60)
• Mathew Habing, Teutopolis – 83 (T60)
• Tyler Volk, Casey – 83 (T60)
• Ryan Hosfield, Casey – 84 (T67)
• Blake Marcheski, Red Bud – 85 (T69)
• Owen Kremer, Teutopolis – 87 (77)
• Jack Weber, Teutopolis – 91 (83)

The 2a boys are at Weibring Golf Club.  West Chicago leads Quincy Notre Dame by 6 shots for the lead with St Anthony 5^th shooting 305 and Mate Dei a stroke behind them in 6^th.  Althoff missed the cut by 3 strokes.  Individually Ben Patel of West Chicago shot 3-under and is tied with teammate Owen Coniaris.  Maddox Rakers of Mater Dei is tied for fifth.  Salem Senior Landen Maxey saw his golf career at SCHS end shooting 85 and missing the cut along with Luke Heaney of Mt Vernon.

Team Leaderboard:

1. West Chicago 286
2. Quincy Notre Dame 292
3. St Viator 299
4. Lake Forest 300
5. St Anthony 305
6. Mater Dei 306
7. Normal University 307
8. Lake Villa 307

Missed Cut:

• Althoff 310
• Mahomet Seymour 316
• Kaneland 324
• Sycamore 328

Individual Advancers:

• Maddox Rakers, Mater Dei – 71 (T5)
• Carson Tribout, Althoff – 74 (T14)
• Will Kampwerth, Mater Dei – 75 (T20)
• James Turpiano, St Anthony – 75 (T20)
• Logan Gowin, St Anthony – 76 (T25)
• Brendan Gibson, Columbia – 76 (T25)
• Adam Robinson, Jerseyville – 77 (T31)
• Briggs Whitley, St Anthony – 77 (T31)
• Liam McAllaster, St Anthony – 77 (T31)
• Christian Smith, Althoff – 77 (T31)
• Hudson Gilliland, Althoff – 78 (T40)
• Caden Kite, Waterloo – 78 (T40)
• Bennett Moss, Mater Dei – 79 (T47)
• Jameson Mcallaster, St Anthony – 79 (T47)
• Darren Klein, Mascoutah – 80 (T56)
• Bryce Toennies, Mater Dei – 81 (T58)
• Grant Howard, Althoff – 81 (T58)
• Eli Lucas, Highland – 82 (T67)
• Cooper Klay, Mater Dei – 82 (T67)
• Wade Putnam, Mt Zion – 82 (T67)
• Zander Rutz, Mater Dei – 86 (85)

The 3a boys are at The Den at Fox Creek and Evanston is the top team 6 shots ahead of Edwardsville for the team lead.  Lester Low of Evanston shot 6-under to take the lead.

Team Leaderboard:

1. Evanston 287
2. Edwardsville 293
3. Naperville North 298
4. Hersey 298
5. Benet Academy 298
6. New Trier 300
7. Lake Park 307
8. Dunlap 308
9. Hinsdale Central 308

Missed Cut:

• Geneva 311
• Burlington Central 317
• Brother Rice 344

Individual Advancers:

• Tyler Murray, O’Fallon – 71 (T5)
• Henry Willenborg, Edwardsville – 73 (T12)
• Bennett Briggs, Edwardsville – 73 (T12)
• Michael Shaw, Edwardsville – 73 (T12)
• Luke Maxim, Edwardsville – 74 (T20)
• Drew Capron, Edwardsville – 83 (T84)
• Brian Cooper, Edwardsville – 83 (T84)

In 1a girls action at Red Tail Run, Quincy Notre Dame leads Mater Dei by 17-shots going into day 2 with Alton Marquette 3^rd and Okawville made the cut in 8^th place.  Individually Brooklyn Phillips of St Anthony is in the lead after her even round 72.  Kailee Gregg of Carlyle is tied for 17^th and will play today along with Centralia freshman Chloe Hodge who shot 84 and is tied for 28^th.

Team Leaderboard:

1. Quincy Notre Dame 324
2. Mater Dei 341
3. Marquette 347
4. Metamora 349
5. Bloomington Central Catholic 351
6. Byron 353
7. Tri Valley 355
8. Okawville 359

Missed Cut:

• Carthage 362
• Rockford Lutheran 362
• Wheaton St Francis 376
• Pleasant Plains 399

Individual Advancers:

• Brooklynn Phillips, St Anthony – 72 (1^st)
• Maggie Pruetzel, Marquette – 75 (2^nd)
• Merryn Elliott, Carterville – 77 (T6)
• Haley Ochs, Newton – 79 (T10)
• Mia Emig, Highland – 79 (T10)
• Finley Meyer, Mater Dei – 79 (T10)
• Kailee Gregg, Carlyle – 81 (T17)
• Alex Clayton, Charleston – 83 (T24)
• Maya Kampwerth, Breese Central – 84 (T28)
• Chloe Hodge, Centralia – 84 (T28)
• Aubrey Coleman, Trico – 84 (T28)
• Bella Muniz, Okawville – 84 (T28)
• Bryn Winkeler, Mater Dei – 85 (T33)
• Kaylie Behrman, Okawville – 86 (T35)
• Abilene Winkeler, Mater Dei – 87 (T40)
• Kaylee Piar, Marquette – 89 (T45)
• Chloe Musenbrock, Mater Dei – 90 (T50)
• Lexi Taylor, Marquette – 90 (T50)
• Covelynn Geisler, Marquette – 93 (T66)
• Delaney Viehl, Okawville – 93 (T66)
• Delaney Kuhn, Okawville – 96 (T75)
• Emmy Tepe, Okawville – 96 (T75)
• Elena Winter, Mater Dei – 97 (79)
• Olivia Cummings, Marquette – 102 (T84)
• Emmalyne Muniz, Okawville – 102 (T84)
• Sophia Voss, Mater Dei – 103 (T86)
• Amelia Hoppe, Marquette – 105 (88)

In 2a girls at Hickory Point, Stevenson is in the lead, 8 shots clear of 2^nd place with Edwardsville making the cut tied for 7^th.  Taylor Miller of Plainfield East is the individual leader shooting 6-under 66.  Edwardsville’s Ally Suhre is tied for 3^rd shooting 2-under.

Team Leaders:

1. Stevenson 295
2. Lincoln Way 303
3. Hinsdale Central 307
4. Barrington 307
5. New Trier 315
6. Fremd 319
7. Dunlap 322
8. Edwardsville 322
9. Lake Park 322

Missed Cut:

• Benet Academy 323
• Normal University 331
• Mt Prospect

Individual Advancers:

• Ally Suhre, Edwardsville – 70 (T3)
• Zoey Ficken, O’Fallon – 79 (T40)
• Natalie Lawler, Marion – 80 (T49)
• Giorgia Thoms, Carbondale – 80 (T49)
• Kylie Lintker, Edwardsville – 80 (T49)
• Emerson Gusewelle, Edwardsville – 83 (T68)
• Alexis Hunt, Edwardsville – 89 (83)
• Betsy Gates, Edwardsville – 96 (90)
• Anna Brynildsen, Edwardsville – 102 (94)

]]> https://southernillinoisnow.com/2026/10/10/the-ihsa-boys-and-girls-golf-state-tournaments-will-finish-up-today-after-the-first-round-of-cuts-yesterday/feed/ 0 https://southernillinoisnow.com/2026/10/09/marvel-tv-series-zodiac-sets-2028-disney-release/ https://southernillinoisnow.com/2026/10/09/marvel-tv-series-zodiac-sets-2028-disney-release/#respond Fri, 09 Oct 2026 20:00:00 +0000 Syndicated Content 2026-10-09T20:00:00+00:00 https://d2644.cms.socastsrm.com/?guid=d81e8d2c4a1531147b41fa8f1e63a00b

The Marvel TV universe is expanding.

A new live-action series called Zodiac is set to debut on Disney+ in 2028. Brad Winderbaum, the head of Marvel Television, Animation, Comics & Franchise, made the announcement at Marvel Television and Marvel Animation’s New York Comic Con panel on Thursday.

“It’s a spy thriller,” Winderbaum said. “And for anyone who knows the comics, if you look closely at this title design, you’ll see a few clues about where we’re going.”

Zodiac is set to start shooting in London in spring 2027.

"I can’t tell you anything else about it yet because it’s a secret,” Winderbaum said during the panel. "We’re going to start casting it in a couple weeks."

This new series marks the first live-action Marvel show announced since 2025's Ironheart. The series Wonder Man premiered in January but was eventually canceled despite originally scoring a second season renewal and an Emmy nomination for its star, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II.

As for upcoming Marvel series, VisionQuest is set to premiere on Disney+ Oct. 14. It marks the end to the trilogy of shows that also includes WandaVision and Agatha All Along. Daredevil: Born Again, meanwhile, will return for its third and final season in 2027.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News, Disney+ and Marvel Television. 

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

President Donald Trump’s administration denied Illinois’ request on Thursday for federal disaster relief in eight counties after days of severe weather hit the state in August.

Gov. JB Pritzker submitted a request to the Federal Emergency Management Agency last month seeking resources to help the eight counties recover from flooding, tornadoes and severe wind damage. FEMA Administrator Cameron Hamilton said in a response letter that assistance was “not warranted,” according to the governor’s office.

“Our communities are still picking up the pieces from the destruction caused by severe weather this summer,” Pritzker said in a statement. “Donald Trump should never play politics with their homes, businesses, and infrastructure.”

The governor’s request covered Champaign, Cook, Ford, Fulton, McLean, Tazewell, Vermilion and Will counties. It came after the state completed a preliminary damage assessment and determined the damage was beyond the state’s ability to handle by itself and contending it should meet the threshold for federal assistance.

On Aug. 11, a storm produced tornadoes and wind gusts approaching 100 mph in southern Cook County and Will County, according to the National Weather Service. Many of those same communities were slammed by tornadoes and high winds on July 27 and were still recovering.

FEMA granted Indiana’s request on Aug. 25 for federal help following the same Aug. 11 storm which left many residents just across the state line without power for weeks.

More storms on Aug. 13 brought significant wind damage to McLean County, where the Normal Fire Department said it set a new record for most calls during a 24-hour shift. Many communities in central Illinois reported flooding from another round of storms on Aug. 14.

Illinois submitted its disaster declaration Sept. 15. Pritzker said the delay was needed to get a clearer accounting of damage, though his Republican challenger Darren Bailey criticized him for not submitting it sooner.

On Thursday, Bailey issued a statement saying he was also “disappointed” by FEMA’s decision.

“I’m calling on the FEMA to re-evaluate and reverse this decision to ensure the hardworking Americans who live in our state get the relief they desperately need,” Bailey said.

Had FEMA approved Pritzker’s request, it would’ve unlocked several federal programs for residents and businesses impacted by the storms, including grants for repairs. Local governments would have also been able to use FEMA’s public assistance program to repair infrastructure and receive reimbursements for debris removal and emergency responses to the storms.

Blue state denials

Each member of Illinois’ congressional delegation, including the three Republicans, also signed a letter to Trump supporting Pritzker’s request.

“Much like a toddler throwing a tantrum, Donald Trump continues to punish Americans who live in states that did not support him in the last election,” U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, a Springfield Democrat, said in response to FEMA’s decision Thursday.

It’s the third time FEMA has denied a request from Illinois since Trump took office again in 2025. Last year, the Trump administration denied two requests for assistance after summer storms caused severe flooding in the Chicago area. Pritzker criticized the decisions as “politically motivated,” although FEMA has denied that in media statements. The U.S. Small Business Administration did approve low-interest loans for businesses impacted by the flooding.

The SBA has also approved Pritzker’s request from earlier this year following spring tornadoes. Illinois has seen more than 200 tornadoes this year — more than any other state.

A Politico analysis earlier this year found Democrat-led states saw just 23% of their disaster requests granted in his second term, compared to 89% for Republican states. Under the past six administrations — including Trump’s first term — states led by either party saw similar rates of approval, between 70% and 90%. The analysis also found the administration took twice as long to issue decisions on requests from blue states.

Trump’s administration has sought to raise the threshold for events to qualify for FEMA disaster assistance by 50%, which would’ve reduced the federal government’s disaster relief spending by $1.5 billion between 2012 and 2025, according to NPR.

Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.

This article first appeared on Capitol News Illinois and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

CHICAGO — Illinois bettors lost more money than ever last year, according to a new state report.

State coffers, meanwhile, went in the opposite direction, collecting a record $2.7 billion in gambling-related revenue — a 19.2% increase from the previous year. It marks a 90% increase from fiscal year 2019, the final year before the state approved a massive gambling expansion aimed at raising revenue for the state’s ongoing capital infrastructure plan.

A report released this month by the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability noted revenues are expected to grow further in the coming years, as several new permanent casinos open, new slot machines enter Chicago bars and restaurants, and sports wagering continues its rapid growth with new fantasy sports offerings.

For the second year in a row, video gambling machines surpassed the Illinois Lottery as the largest-grossing source of wagering revenue in the state. Those machines brought in more than $1 billion in state and local tax revenues, while lottery revenues remained relatively flat at $788 million.

Sports wagering remains the fastest-growing source of gambling revenue, with more than $15 billion wagered in 2026 alone, generating $593 million in state taxes.

Casino receipts grew 13% from the year prior, but COGFA warned that recent growth is largely due to new casinos opening rather than better performance among individual casinos. Since state lawmakers passed a massive gambling expansion in 2019, the number of casinos allowed to operate in Illinois has risen from 10 to 17.

Prior reporting by Capitol News Illinois and the Illinois Answers Project found that gamblers in Illinois lost nearly $8 billion last year alone.

Read more: Addicted to gambling in Illinois: ‘Someone has decided they can make money off you’ | What Compulsive Gamblers Know

Adam Hoffer, director of excise tax policy at the Tax Foundation, a nonpartisan tax policy nonprofit, said gambling taxes like Illinois’ can put the state’s interests at odds with the interests of residents struggling with gambling addiction.

“This puts the state in a weird position, right?” Hoffer said. “They want to discourage activity on one hand, but it’s their revenue source on the other hand.”

The state last assessed problem gambling during the pandemic when sports gambling wasn’t yet fully implemented. That report estimated 383,000 Illinois adults had a gambling problem, and another 761,000 were at risk of developing one, though some clinicians consider the estimates an undercount.

Problem gamblers have one of the highest rates of suicide; the assessment estimated one in 10 problem gamblers in Illinois had thought about or attempted to end their life that year. One in three had done so in their lifetime, it found.

Parlaying losses

Sports gambling has become a billion-dollar industry in Illinois in the six years since it was legalized. Last year, bettors in the state placed more than 319 million sports wagers. Nearly 99% of those bets were made online.

Fueling that growth are parlay bets, which allow bettors to stack multiple outcomes — the Padres beat the Cubs, the Sox make it to the World Series and Tyson Bagent throws two touchdowns against the Packers — into a single bet.

If even one leg of the bet fails, the whole parlay fails. Because the odds get worse as more legs are added, the bets offer high payouts on relatively low wagers, making them particularly attractive.

“Especially if you’re at a 16-leg parlay that you might be able to put in $1 and it’ll pay you $100,000,” recovering compulsive gambler Caleb Driker-Ohren said. “All it takes is one team to win a game. Like, how hard is that? Just get another team to win their game and then when it hits, too, it’s a rush.”

Parlay bets are so attractive, in fact, that bettors placed them almost 200 million times in the past fiscal year, accounting for three in every five bets placed.

Open interactive chart in a new tab

And while parlay bets were responsible for almost a third of sports wagering payouts, parlay bettors also accrued the highest net losses at $879 million; nearly 62% of all betting losses in the year came from parlays.

Gambling losses are disproportionately felt by compulsive gamblers, especially when it comes to sports betting. Though the breakdown in spending has not been studied in Illinois, a 2024 study in Connecticut found that nearly 71% of all legal gambling revenue in the state came from the less than 7% of residents identified as problem or at-risk gamblers.

Over half of sports bets, it found, were made by less than 2% of Connecticut residents identified as compulsive gamblers.

Despite bettors placing fewer bets this year than the year before, state tax revenues were still higher thanks in part to a new per-wager tax instituted for bets placed online.

Illinois’ sports wagering revenue outpaces that of other states that have enacted similar legislation in recent years. Gamblers in Pennsylvania, which has a similar population size and opened sports betting two years before Illinois, saw losses of $663 million in fiscal year 2026, trailing Illinois’ $1.4 billion.

Gas station casinos

When Illinois first allowed slot machines, or video gambling terminals, outside of casinos in 2012, insiders estimated they would plateau at around 20,000 machines.

But while casinos and other forms of gambling were limited amid the pandemic, video gambling terminals flourished. Illinois sets no limits on the number of establishments that can offer video gambling.

The state is now nearing 50,000 video gambling terminals, or “the equivalent of over 40 ‘full-size’ Illinois casinos,” according to the report.

Chicago’s city council recently voted to lift its longtime ban on video gambling terminals. Since over a fifth of the state population resides in Chicago, the report predicts the city’s legalization to have a “huge impact” on video gambling revenues.

Open interactive chart in a new tab

Already, Illinoisans are losing triple the money they did a decade ago to these slot machines, which are considered one of the most addictive forms of gambling.

That’s not just because there are more machines, the report shows; the net income per machine has increased from around $117 per day in 2016 to over $182 in 2026.

Illinoisans lost more than $3.3 billion in total playing slots last fiscal year. For the second year in a row, state and local governments netted over $1 billion in video gambling taxes.

Prediction markets

One somewhat unknown variable when it comes to sports betting revenue is the continued growth of unregulated prediction markets.

State lawmakers passed a law attempting to bring prediction markets like Polymarket and Kalshi under the regulatory umbrella of sports betting, though the move faced an expected legal challenge.

It would have created a fee structure that budget analysts predicted would have brought in $5 million in state revenue. The law would also have subjected prediction markets to other sports betting regulations, like requiring customers to be 21 and older and disallowing bets on in-state college teams.

The Illinois Gaming Board sent cease and desist letters to 13 online operators, including Kalshi and Polymarket, seeking to bring them into compliance.

Read more: Prediction market Kalshi sues Illinois over its push to regulate sports bets

The companies, however, maintain that they are exchange markets regulated exclusively by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and that Illinois’ attempt to regulate them violates the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution.

Kalshi, its financial partner Coinbase and the CFTC sued the state in June to block the taxes from taking effect.

A federal judge ruled in their favor this week, issuing a preliminary injunction to protect the companies against Illinois’ enforcement of its gambling regulations based on her finding that the markets should be federally regulated as financial swaps, not gambling.

“Many of the financial instruments at issue are likely swaps as defined by the Commodity Exchange Act — they just happen to be swaps that people find entertaining and fun,” U.S. District Judge Martha Pacold wrote in her ruling.

She did not yet rule on whether Kalshi could be subject to the state’s transaction fees, saying more argument was needed.

Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation. 

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