Champaign Council Will Vote To Welcome Refugees
CHAMPAIGN – The Champaign City Council will vote Tuesday night on a resolution allowing a local agency to continue its work with refugees. Lisa Wilson with the Refugee Center says a recent White House executive order requires them to get the formal consent of all the communities where they resettle refugees. Besides Champaign and Urbana, the center still needs consent from Savoy, Rantoul and Champaign County. – Jim Meadows, Illinois Newsroom
Northern Illinois University Freezes Rates To Increase Students
DEKALB – Northern Illinois University officials continue to look for ways to attract new students. Fall enrollment hit its lowest level in 50 years. Officials recently announced they will freeze tuition rates for the sixth year in a row. Room and board rates will also remain flat next year. The university will cap tuition around $4,700 per semester for students taking 12 or more credit hours. – Chase Cavanaugh, WNIJ News
Gov. Pritzker Says He Hasn’t Spoken To Speaker Madigan About Investigations
SPRINGFIELD – Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker said Monday he has not spoken to House Speaker Michael Madigan about a series of federal inquiries. That’s despite reports that investigators appear to be targeting the speaker’s inner circle. Pritzker has always taken a diplomatic approach to Madigan, even as the speaker faced scandals over aides accused of sexual harassment and, more recently, was named in federal inquiries. Asked whether he had spoken to Madigan about the investigations, Pritzker suggested a conversation is unnecessary. Madigan has not be charged with wrongdoing and has said he’s “not a target” of an investigation. – Brian Mackey, Illinois Newsroom
Former Illinois City Clerk Convicted Of Child Porn
HARVARD — A former city clerk in the northern Illinois community of Harvard faces a maximum sentence of five years in state prison after being convicted by a judge of one count of possession of child pornography. Andrew Wells was arrested in 2016 after a flash drive that had many of his personal documents on it was found to contain pornographic images. In finding Wells guilty, the judge said he couldn’t understand how Wells could not have noticed the pornography. Wells, who was acquitted on two other counts of the same felony charge, is scheduled to return to court for sentencing next month. – Associated Press
DNR: Illinois Hunters Bagged 75K Deer During 7-Day Fall Hunt
SPRINGFIELD — Hunters took more than 75,000 deer during Illinois’ seven-day firearm hunting season this fall, according to preliminary totals compiled by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. That number represents a 7% drop in the number of deer harvested from 2018, when nearly 81,000 deer were taken. But the second part of this year’s season, from Dec. 5-8, saw an uptick over last year. More than 25,000 deer were harvested during the second season, a 14 percent increase from 2018. State wildlife officials say that there are other hunting opportunities under way or approaching, including archery hunting and hunting with muzzleloaders. – Associated Press
