MULBERRY GROVE MAN SENTENCED TO IDOC

24-year-old Bradley A. Gannon of Mulberry Grove was sentenced last week to six years in the Illinois Department of Corrections for a 2004 burglary at the Mulberry Grove school.  The burglary charges were filed in July of this year.  Gannon pled guilty to the charge.  He also had his probation revoked on three previous sentences for Battery, Disorderly Conduct, and Criminal Damage to Property.  Gannon was sentenced to jail for one year for violating his probation.  That sentence will run concurrently with the prison term. 

 

FARINA MAN KILLED IN ACCIDENT

A 28-year-old man was killed Saturday morning in a single vehicle accident in Fayette County.  Kelly Whitehead of rural Farina lost control of his car on County Road 1875E.  The vehicle overturned and Whitehead was thrown from it.  Authorities say he was not wearing a seatbelt.  Whitehead was pronounced dead at the scene.  The Illinois State Police and Fayette County Coroner Bruce Bowen are investigating the cause of the fatal crash. 

 

SEXUAL PREDATORS ON PAROLE TO BE MONITORED BY GPS

Several new laws were signed in Illinois in an effort to give law enforcement agencies more tools to protect families and communities from sex offenders.  House Bill 4222 will require offenders who are convicted under the Sex Offender Registration Act to be on a GPS monitoring system during their parole term.  It will require the Illinois State Police to have information about the number of sexual predators subject to electronic monitoring and to provide details regarding missing sex offenders to local law enforcement.  The Bill also states that if a person harbors or conceals a sexual predator or provides false information about a sexual predator's noncompliance or location, they are subject to a Class 3 Felony.  HB 4222 goes into effect immediately.

Senate Bill 2962 will make a sex offender renew his or her driver's license at least every two years and will allow the license to be canceled until it can be proven the offender is on the registry with a current address.  Senate Bill 3016 will add distinguishing body mark and license plate information to the sex offender registry and will be able to identify any offenders living within a five-mile radius of an address via a searchable mapping system.  House Bill 4179 prohibits anyone convicted under the Sex Offender Registration Act from changing his or her name.  SB 2962, SB 3016 and HB 4179 go into effect January 1, 2007.

 

BARN DESTROYED BY FIRE: SMOKE SEEN FOR MILES

Pocahontas-Old Ripley Firemen were called to a barn fire on the Alan Mettler farm on Brown Mill Avenue, just North of Old Ripley, at 9:53 AM Saturday.  The barn and all contents were a complete loss.  Several surrounding fire departments including Greenville, Grantfork, Mulberry Grove, Shoal Creek and Smithboro responded for mutual aid. Greenville firemen arrived on the scene at 10:20 AM and returned to service at 2:09 PM.

The Mettler Barn Fire

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VARIOUS ACCIDENTS AND FIRE

Area firemen were busy Saturday and early Sunday with other accidents and a fire.  Keyesport Fire department first responders were paged to a report of a train striking a car on the Mulberry Grove Road just North of Keyesport at 6:49 PM Saturday.  Victims were taken to Greenville Regional Hospital for treatment.  Mulberry Grove firemen were called to provide mutual support. 

Ambulances were called to an accident on the Mulberry Grove Road at 6:58 PM Saturday. 

WGEL will have additional information on these incidents as it becomes available.