The Salem Community High School Prom will be Friday, May 3rd from 8:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. at Salem Community High School in B.E. Gum Gymnasium. This year's theme is "Timeless Memories," and the colors representing the theme are gold, champagne, and black. Doors will open to the public at 7:00 p.m. Special music will begin at 9:00 p.m. with coronation starting at 9:30 p.m. and the Grand March immediately following coronation. Retiring Queen Maya Susmena (daughter of Del Susmena and A...

A US District Court Judge has sentenced a former teacher at the New Baden Grade School to ten years imprisonment for soliciting child abuse material from minors. 26-year-old Jonathan C. Villmer, Jr. of New Baden, Illinois was charged by criminal complaint in August of 2023. He will be required to register as a sex offender and serve an additional 7 years on supervised release upon his release from prison. Prior to his indictment, Villmer taught first grade at New Baden Elementary School and...

The Kell Fire Protection District has received a $26,000 Office of State Fire Marshal Small Equipment Grant. The funds will allow the purchase of a breathing air compressor to fill self-contained breathing apparatus bottles. The district currently has a cascade unit that allows them to fill the SCBA bottles from air that has already been compressed in larger bottles to transfer to bottles on the SCBA's themselves. Currently, Kell relies on Salem, Centralia, or Mt. Vernon Fire Departments to...

There was another large turnout on Friday for the Salem Community High School Green Team Electronic Recycling Drive. Noah Slater is the President of the student recycling effort. "We've had a pretty consistent of cars coming in. We've had a good turnout. The boxes are full. A lot of electronics are being recycled. That's good. We've had a lot of printers." Slater says about 25 students helped each hour. Sponsor Drew Johnson says they had about the same or just a little less do...

Story and photos by Steven Stilt With prom season in full swing and graduation just around the corner, students from Sandoval, Odin, and Patoka high schools saw firsthand the dangers of intoxicated and distracted driving on Friday. Sandoval High School hosted a two-vehicle mock crash on the school's north parking lot, with numerous emergency agencies responding to the scene. According to Brenda Kunick, one of the event's organizers, the program warns against driving under the influence of alc...

Salem Police arrested 44-year-old Billy Smith of Butler, Illinois for felony domestic battery following an altercation at a residence he has been staying on East Bryan Street in Salem. Police report the alleged victim sustained minor injuries, but declined hospitalization. He was taken to the Marion County Jail to await a first appearance before a judge. 37-year-old Garrett Talbert of Alma Hatchery Road in Odin was arrested by sheriff's deputies on a no bond Marion County felony failure to...

By JOHN O'CONNOR AP Political Writer SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) - The Federal Election Commission has fined the campaign fund of a former Illinois congressman $43,475 for failing to refund excess contributions in a timely manner. A letter from the FEC this month reports the fine against Republican Rodney Davis' campaign committee, Rodney for Congress, and its treasurer, Thomas Charles Datwyler. The violations occurred during the 2021-2022 election cycle. Federal campaign finance law prohibits co...

WOODSTOCK, Ill. (AP) - Three children were hurt when the minivan they were in rolled down a hill Saturday morning into a concrete baseball dugout in northern Illinois' Woodstock. The children, ages 12 and 13, were hospitalized with mild to moderate injuries. They were among four children in the parked minivan which is believed to have been accidentally slipped into drive while the radio was being adjusted, Woodstock police said in a statement on Facebook. A baseball game was being played in ...