Illinois State Police

Incident Near WIU Campus Proves to be Hoax

Rich Egger — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 06:23:40 +0000

Macomb police surrounded a home for five hours Wednesday evening, believing someone might be barricaded inside. But it turned out they were sent to the home on a prank call.

The 911 center received the call from 509 West Murray around 6:00 pm. Police Chief Curt Barker said the caller was a woman.

“She said there was an individual at the house and she gave the address and said that he had a firearm. And then in the background you could hear the male subject saying, ‘Are you calling the police? Are you calling the police?’ And then the phone went dead,” Barker said.

Ongoing Incident Near WIU Campus

Rich Egger — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 03:33:47 +0000

Western Illinois University sent out an alert Wednesday evening stating “Police responded to a 911 call re: person w/gun in an off-campus house in the 500 block of W Murray St.”

As of 9:00 pm, police were saying little about the incident. Trooper Dan Hill, Safety Education Officer and Public Information Officer for Illinois State Police, District 14, said law enforcement had established a perimeter, and officers were continuing to gather information and resources.

He said some houses in the area were being evacuated as a safety precaution.

Boy Killed in Dog Attack

Rich Egger — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 00:40:15 +0000

Galesburg police say they are still investigating a dog attack that killed a seven-year old boy.

Illinois Police, Military Vets, and PTSD

Rich Egger — Thu, 30 Aug 2012 23:17:47 +0000

Police officers in Illinois could soon be better trained to help military veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

A new law (HB 5587) requires a training program on the disorder be conducted by the Illinois State Police Academy and the Illinois Law Enforcement Training Standards Board.

Problems Found With Illinois FOID Program

Rich Egger — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 21:06:18 +0000

The Illinois Firearm Owners Identification program has a heap of problems.

The findings are in a report released by the Illinois Auditor General, who said some of those problems put public safety at risk.

The report said Illinois State Police sometimes don't know if the applicant has a disqualifying mental health condition.

In addition, the state is supposed to retrieve the gun licenses once they're expired, but the audit found 70% of revoked registration cards never get back to the police.

Watson Resigns from Macomb School District

Rich Egger — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:37:52 +0000

The Macomb School District has severed ties with the boy's head basketball coach who is accused of sexual abuse.

The Board of Education on February 20 approved a resignation agreement with Daniel Watson. Under the agreement, his resignation took effect December 19, 2011. He will be paid to cover the time period from mid-August to December 19.

Watson was placed on administrative leave in mid-August, just a few days after Illinois State Police announced his arrest.

Superintendent Alene Reuschel would not say how much money Watson will receive.