Afternoon News Update: Monday January 26
- A Rockford woman has been arrested after driving while intoxicated with her two-month-old child in the car. Rockford Police responded just after 2 AM Sunday morning to a traffic crash on South Alpine Rd. 24-year-old Katlyn Acord rear-ended a vehicle stopped at a red light. Police found her child in a car seat unbuckled in the backseat. Acord is facing many charges including drunk driving.
- Great news for the Stateline area community of Cherry Valley. Four new stores are set to open their doors at CherryVale Mall by March. The mall announced this afternoon that 4 retailers including junior apparel, fashion accessories, and more are setting up shop. Ooh LA La beauty bar, Crazy Teez, Vanity, and Selah are among the new retailers.
- Rockford Police’s Chief Chet Epperson testified this morning at a hearing in front of the Board of Fire and Police Commission. The hearing is being held in regard to a complaint filed against Epperson by the Police Union. The union says Chief Epperson improperly intervened in a 2013 Rockford Police investigation. Officers responded to a report of a domestic dispute at the home of NAACP President Lloyd Johnston. The complaint alleges that Epperson told Johnston not to cooperate with police officers, a claim Epperson denies.
- An internal audit is underway in Ogle County into almost $11,000 that's unaccounted for from a sheriff's department towing fund. The Dixon Telegraph reports that officials expect the audit to take a couple of months. The investigation began after a forensic auditor could not account for the money in the county's administrative tow fund. An ordinance allows the sheriff's department to charge $350 when it has vehicles towed.
- Officials in the city of Rockford and Winnebago County say they're ready to discuss merging their 911 emergency call centers. Officials say local leaders are willing to analyze how a merger would work almost a decade after the two systems were separated. The Winnebago County Sheriff's Department handles emergency calls outside of Rockford, while the city's 911 center dispatches police and fire help to callers inside the city limits. Both municipalities want to reduce costs because of budget deficits and improve services to residents.
- Amazon will start collecting sales tax from Illinois consumers next month to comply with a new state law.The online retailer will be required to collect the 6.25 percent tax starting February 1st. It's unclear how much sales tax Amazon sales will generate, but it could amount to tens of millions of dollars.
- Rockford police release the identity of the man found shot and killed Sunday morning on the city's southeast side. They say 37-year-old Christopher A. Kearns of Rockford was discovered in the driver's seat of a car parked in the 1700 block of 17th Street. Kearns sustained a gunshot wound to the head, police say. No arrests have been made. This case marks Rockford's fourth reported homicide investigation in 2015. Kearns also resided in Montgomery City, Illinois, according to police.
- Documents show Pat Quinn left behind a list of more than 70 businesses to grow or sell medical marijuana when he left the Illinois governor's office this month. Quinn is letting Governor Bruce Rauner's administration award the licenses. A Rauner spokesman says aides will review the evaluation process and forward their findings to the attorney general.
- Governor Bruce Rauner is telling state universities to expect budget cuts this year. But University of Illinois Chancellor Phyllis Wise says staff cuts and furloughs are off the table as the university prepares for life with less money from the state.
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