8-31-2006

ZONING BOARD MEETS TO CONSIDER THREE VARIANCES

The Greenville Zoning Board of Appeals met Tuesday night and heard appeals for three zoning variances. They recommended a variance for one of the three requests. The Gary and Sandra Bearley's request to infringe into the required setback at 420 Wyatt Street met Board guidelines and was recommended for City Council approval. The Zoning Board recommended against a request for a carport infringement on Washington Avenue and they also recommended to Council to deny a Zoning variance to allow the placement of a mobile home on South First Street.  The Zoning board is looking for a few new members. Interested persons should contact City Hall.


ARE CRIMINAL SEXUAL CASES ON THE RISE?

Whether it is on a regional or local level, there seems to be an increase in the number of sexual assault and abuse cases in the news.  Tragically, many of these involve juvenile victims.  WGEL talked with Bond County State's Attorney Chris Bauer who believes there has been an increase in the number of cases filed but not necessarily an increase in the number of crimes.  He says public awareness is a factor.

Often prosecutors believe there is something going on but don't have sufficient evidence to back up their suspicion.  He credits teachers, counselors, and social workers for being more aware of the signs of abuse and reporting cases to authorities.

Bauer explained the biggest challenge in prosecuting a criminal sexual assault case involving a juvenile can be the victim.  He says a child may not seem like a credible witness to some and their testimony may be questioned.  Bauer adds that the child victim has also been traumatized and this can complicate getting information.

As of August 25, there were twenty-four registered sex offenders living in Bond County, five of those in Greenville. 

In recent years there have been new kinds of evidence allowed for use in prosecuting criminal sexual assault cases.  However, according to Bond County State's Attorney Chris Bauer, some of these have been tossed out at the appellate court level.  Bauer says the public has some working knowledge of this technology through what he calls "The CSI Phenomenon," referring to the popular TV series. 

Bauer believes that people watching the show are amazed by the technology used in investigating cases.  He says this can be a fallacy because DNA evidence is not always available in a timely manner.  Bauer explained that perpetrators of these crimes are exerting their power over someone else causing that victim to wait to report the case.  This loss of time can result in a lack of evidence needed to successfully prosecute the crime. 

In criminal sexual assault cases, prosecutors must sometimes convince adult victims that there is no shame in what has happened to them.  Often, victims worry about their case becoming part of the public record and their name being used by the media.

 
bdry


DREDGING AT PATRIOT'S COULD BEGIN SOON

The water level at Patriot's Park continues its gradual drop and when it reaches the desired level of around six feet, work on the silt dam will begin.  Funded through the Clean Lakes Program, this multi-phase project has been years in the making.  Once the rip rap portion was complete, the process began August 15 to lower the lake from its current level of over 12 feet.  KPD Director Jerry Sauerwein told WGEL that he is hopeful that the project will not require the lake to fall to six feet.  Sauerwein says the water is being released to allow a concrete cable mat to be overlaid on the silt dam.  Blankenship Construction will also begin the lake dredging which should take between two to three weeks to complete.  Another phase is the construction of a new boat ramp south of the old one.

GC FRESHMAN ARRIVE IN LARGE NUMBERS

It’s not often that Greenville has traffic jams but that was the case last Friday morning near the college campus as incoming freshman arrived in large numbers.  It’s the annual New Student Orientation weekend also known as NSO and GC officials are excited about the coming school year.

WGEL spoke with Dr. Pepper Dill, Vice-President of Enrollment Management about what they are describing as an historic weekend.  Over 400 freshman, the largest incoming class in school history, will be checking in.  Dill attributes this to the good work of Greenville College’s counselors and the school’s reputation. 

Dr. Dill says the total school enrollment will top 1000 for the first time in Greenville College’s 114 year history.  The school had its first indication of large numbers as early as April and began planning for the large freshman class during a retreat hosted by President James Mannoia in May. 

gc


rr

KORTE CD NOW AVAILABLE AT WATSONS

As reported recently by WGEL, local singer and musician Dave Korte has recorded a gospel CD entitled "The Old Country Church."  The album features sixteen inspirational favorites and includes instrumental accompaniment by Swamp Weiss and background vocals by Dave's daughters Mary and Jo.  The CD is now available at Watson's Drug Store in downtown Greenville. 

SAT SCORES SHOW SOME IMPROVEMENT STATEWIDE

The College Board announced on Tuesday the SAT scores for the class of 2006.  Overall combined scores for mathematics and critical reading dropped by seven points from last year.  This was the first time the SAT featured a writing section.  Nationally, females scored higher than males on the writing portion, which consisted of multiple-choice and essay.  In Illinois, the 2006 seniors showed a slight improvement in math but a drop in scores for critical reading.  Locally, neither Greenville nor Mulberry Grove high schools offer the SAT but opt for the ACT test. 

THURSDAY SPORTS

JR HIGH BASEBALL
The Mulberry Grove Eagles lost 5-1 to St. Elmo.  Jesse Sloan scored on John Rickman’s RBI single. 

HS VOLLEYBALL
The Varsity Lady Comets opened their season with with a 25-23, 25-12 loss to Carlinville.  The JV team fell 25-14, 26-24 while the freshman squad was edged 25-23, 19-17.  Coach Allison Hall called it a great season opener for the varsity squad with “lots of teamwork.” 


 

OBITUARIES

No New Local Obituaries

THE WGEL SECRET WORD IS GIVEN MONDAY THRU FRIDAY IN THE 11AM, NOON, 1 & 2PM HOURS. WRITE IT DOWN AND WHEN WE CALL, YOU COULD WIN $50.

 

Wgel.com | Community Calendar | Daily Archive