Salem's new police chief says his top priorities are getting the staff fully trained and specialty positions in the department filled. Tyler Rose was promoted to Chief from Deputy Chief last week with the departure of Chief Todd Boles. Rose did not apply for the chief position the last time it was vacant. "Last year when I was promoted from investigations to the Deputy Chief position, it was very short notice," Rose said. "I was given just a few weeks of training before stepp...

Unemployment in Marion County declined one-tenth of a percent between February and March. The March rate is 5.4-percent, which is seven tenths of a percent higher than a year ago. The Illinois Department of Employment Security says 760 are on the unemployment roll, down 126 from February. The county's workforce jumped nearly 300 and is currently at 15,395. Clinton and Washington County have the lowest unemployment rates in the region at 3.9 percent, both down slightly from February. Jeffer...

Two people were injured in a two-vehicle crash at Elm and Rexford in Centralia Saturday night. Centralia Police say 24-year-old Shakaria Woodley of Fairway Drive in Centralia apparently ran the stop sign while traveling eastbound on Rexford and ran into the passenger side of an SUV driven by 37-year-old Riley King of Bethel Road in Sandoval who was northbound on Elm Street. Woodley reportedly left the scene of the crash, and a citation is still pending. King and one of three passengers in Woo...

Salem Police say they were able to lasso a pig that showed up on the front porch of a home near Cope and Donoho on the south side of Salem. Officers were equipped to handle the situation because they carry rope in their squad car. Once the pig was in 'custody', police fanned out in the area to try and find its owner. Instead, they had another area resident come up to them who reported he had a pig in his backyard. Police were able to confine that pig temporarily in a fenced yard. As the s...

Here are some photos from this year's Centralia High School May Fete, "Heavenly Rhythm." Photo Credit: Pat Hodges

Madison County State's Attorney Tom Haine has announced that a jury has found a 42-year-old Fayette County man guilty of abducting a woman from the parking lot of a Collinsville coffee shop at knifepoint and forcing her to drive to Troy, where he raped her. The jury deliberated a little more than an hour before finding Timothy J. Dubois of Shobonier guilty of Aggravated Criminal Sexual Assault (Class X enhanced felony), aggravated criminal sexual assault (Class X felony), Aggravated Kidnappin...

Centralia Police arrested a 24-year-old Centralia man for domestic battery. Toby Boughers of Fairway Drive was taken to the Marion County Jail to await a first court appearance on Monday. Centralia Police arrested 38-year-old Amanda Casner of South Vincent in Salem on an outstanding Marion County felony no-bond failure-to-appear warrant and a no-bond Clinton County misdemeanor failure-to-appear warrant. Centralia Police arrested 34-year-old Walter Mancinelli, who told them he was homeless, o...

Bill filed after Taylorville student was assaulted on bus By BEN SZALINSKI Capitol News Illinois bszalinski@capitolnewsillinois.com Article Summary The Illinois Senate advanced a bill that would ensure students who commit sexually violent crimes can be expelled from school. The bill filed by Sen. Steve McClure, R-Springfield, was in response to an incident in Taylorville where a girl was sexually assaulted by an older, male student on the bus. The proposal received strong support in the Senat...