afternoon news

Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker is slated to sign Wisconsin's right-to-work legislation into law today. Under the bill, workers cannot be forced to pay union dues. The measure cleared the Republican-led Legislature on Friday The state's top Republicans are calling for comprehensive immigration reform, but there have been few details about what that would entail ... Read More ...

Illinois will be getting a new prisons director. Governor Bruce Rauner has withdrawn his temporary appointment of Tony Godinez  as head of the Department of Corrections without explaining why. Godinez retired in December but stayed on during Rauner's transition ... Read More ...

Rockford Police Police say they found about 1,100 marijuana plants inside a Rockford bar. Authorities say officers were called to Fatty McGee's, in the 4800 block of E. State St, where they executed a search warrant and found the growing operation inside ... Read More ...

Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner says he's "staying out of" the Chicago mayor's race.Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Cook County Commissioner Jesus "Chuy" Garcia are facing off April 7. Emanuel and Rauner are friends and worked together in the past, but the Governor is promising he will stay out of this race ... Read More ...

The Kinnikinnick School District and its teachers' union have reached a tentative agreement on the terms of a 5-year-contract.  Our partners at Eyewitness News are reporting the Kinnikinnick Education Association plans to meet on Monday, February 23, 2015 and the Board of Education meets on Tuesday, February 24, 2015 to vote on the terms of the agreement ... Read More ...

Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner is expected to propose spending cuts and a new tax on some services during his budget address tomorrow. The speech is likely to set up a battle with Democrats who want to raise income tax rates that rolled back at the start of 2015 ... Read More ...

A Belvidere dog will be competing at this year's Westminster Kennel Club All Breed Dog Show in New York. Kent and Gwen Meyer, who own Meyer's Tails Up Farm, will be featuring Ash, a soft coated wheaten terrier. Westminster Dog Show will be held next Monday and Tuesday ... Read More ...

A Rockford woman who has been charged with supporting terrorism has been arrested in Germany. 42-year-old Jasminka Ramic of Rockford was arrested yesterday and is facing federal charges of funneling money and military supplies to extremist groups in Iraq and Syria ... Read More ...

A jury has taken less than two hours to convict a Freeport teen of first degree murder in the shooting death of another man two years ago. The jury convicted 18-year-old Traveontaye Berry of killing Cary Green Junior, who suffered four gunshot wounds to the chest, with one of them going through his heart in October of 2014 ... Read More ...

Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner says it's wrong to force state employees to pay union dues when they don't join. The governor has signed an executive order to eliminate so-called "fair share" dues for public sector workers. The order has no effect on state workers who want to be in a union ... Read More ...