Illinois
Illinois Gov. Pritzker criticizes sheriff for hiring deputy who fatally shot Sonya Massey
“How did the sheriff end up hiring this person?” Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker asked during a news conference on Tuesday.
Bodycam footage shows fatal shooting of Sonya Massey
Police body camera footage captured the moments in the fatal shooting of Sonya Massey in the Springfield, Illinois area.
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker on Tuesday criticized Sangamon County Sheriff Jack Campbell for hiring the sheriff’s deputy who fatally shot Sonya Massey in her kitchen after she called for help last month.
“I have a lot of questions and I’m so far disappointed with the answers that I’m hearing from the sheriff,” the governor said during a news conference in Chicago. “How did the sheriff end up hiring this person? (He) must have known their background, must have. I mean, no one hires somebody without checking the hirees’ background.”
Sean P. Grayson, who was fired after shooting Massey in the face, faces first-degree murder charges. He pleaded not guilty to the charges in Sangamon County Court on July 18 and remains in custody.
Grayson’s personnel files released last week by the county included testimony from one of his former police chiefs saying, “he needed more training” and also documented the two DUI convictions he had received in 2015 and 2016.
The records revealed he also scored “low” on his cognitive assessment as part of his psychological evaluation but met the acceptable standards for being hired.
Campbell hired Grayson in May 2023 after serving in the Logan County Sheriff’s Department and other Springfield-area police departments. His decision to hire Grayson has prompted an attempt to put an advisory referendum on the November ballot asking whether Campbell should stay in office.
The push comes from five Democrats on the Republican-majority county board and would not require the sheriff to step down if the voters approved it. Campbell has been steadfast in not leaving his office.
“I was elected sheriff to lead this office and protect the people of the county through good times and bad and certainly we’re going through a rough time right now,” Campbell told the The State Journal-Register, part of the USA TODAY Network, last week. “For me to abandon the sheriff’s office now would be irresponsible.”
He added: “We’re certainly suffering, and the community is suffering, and I want to be here to help lead out of this situation that we’re in.”
‘We failed Sonya. We failed Sonya’s family and friends’
Campbell, a Republican, has been sheriff since 2018 and is next up for election in 2026. He admitted the department “failed the community. We failed Sonya. We failed Sonya’s family and friends.”
One of those board members pushing for the advisory referendum, Sam Cahnman, said Tuesday that “the best way to find out what the electorate wants is through an election.”
Cahnman said although the vote would be advisory, “the Jack Campbell I know is an honest, dedicated public servant, and I believe he would heed the will of the voters.” Also sponsoring the resolution were Marc Ayers, Tony DelGiorno, Kevin McGuire, and Gina Lathan.
Twenty of the county board members are Republicans with eight Democrats. There is one vacancy, though that seat will need to be filled by a Republican.
The county board would have to pass the referendum at its Aug. 13 meeting for it to get on the ballot.
Asked whether he thinks Campbell should resign, Pritzker emphasized he wants more transparency in the hiring process. Last week, U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski, D-Springfield, told reporters in Springfield she was still looking for more information before she could call for his resignation.
Contact Patrick M. Keck: pkeck@gannett.com, twitter.com/@pkeckreporter.
Contact Steven Spearie: sspearie@sj-r.com; X, twitter.com/@StevenSpearie.
Illinois
4 people wounded in 3 shootings within 24 hours in Evanston, Illinois
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Illinois
TCT #redbirds connect with community through ISU CTEP summer immersion
Illinois State University’s Chicago Teacher Education Pipeline (CTEP) had a blast this summer with all four cohorts in the Teach Chicago Tomorrow (TCT) program following Illinois State pathways.
With the program in its fourth year, the impact of summer immersion programming across the years was evident. Depending on their year in the program, students participated in scaffolded community and school experiences that build on each other toward the central goal connecting future Chicago Public School (CPS) teachers to the CTEP model of the community-minded teacher.
TCT scholars participated in experiences in Illinois State partner communities across Chicago, shadowed current CPS teachers, attended professional development workshops, spent time with community families, and visited campus.
As their educator journey continues, summer immersion keeps TCT scholars grounded in their “why.” A rising sophomore said, “I want to connect and guide the students to envisioning a better future for themselves and the community by first guiding them to be the best version of themselves.”
Each summer, as the scholars progress through the CTEP program, they deepen their knowledge of what it means to be a community teacher and see the neighborhood surrounding a school through an assets-based lens: “Every community has someone who needs help and has members that will support them.” Another rising junior noted, “These (community) experiences are most impactful because I learned that there are resources around communities that can be useful as an upcoming teacher.”
Spending time with children and current teachers are key components of summer immersion. One rising freshman said, “I loved working with the kids and getting a chance to show the skills I’ve learned in my (high school) CTE program.” Shadowing current CPS teachers is always a top highlight. As a rising junior said, “Being able to actually go to a classroom and be involved with students renewed my motivation to teach.” Another noted, “I got the chance to talk to teachers about my fears.”
One new experience for the rising seniors was an independent immersive experience with a community family who has children in CPS. As the scholars go into their final year of their education program, this experience provided them with an authentic opportunity to engage directly with a family as a future teacher. One scholar said: “Meaningful (community/family) engagement can help teachers gain a better understanding of what their students go through on a daily basis. This is an experience that I will carry with me when I teach.”
Summer immersion is a critical piece of the TCT-Illinois State CTEP partnership providing connective experiences across the four years of study. Students build on their knowledge while connecting with ISU faculty and staff, current CPS teachers, PreK-12 students, community scholars and, importantly, each other. CTEP is thrilled to be a part of this impactful and effective program supporting TCT #Redbird scholars and future CPS teachers.
Illinois
Winning $900K jackpot ticket sold online in Illinois
ILLINOIS (WLS) — An Illinois resident woke up $900,000 richer this week.
ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watch
The player won the jackpot by matching all five numbers of Sunday’s Lucky Day Lotto midday drawing, according to Illinois Lottery.
READ ALSO | Self-dubbed ‘King of Cash’ wins $3 million on scratch-off ticket
The winner purchased the ticket online. The winning numbers were: 8-14-20-24-27.
Winners have one year from the date of the winning draw in which to claim their prize.
It’s unknown where the resident is from in Illinois. It’s also unknown if the winner has already claimed their prize.
READ ALSO | $2 million winning Powerball ticket sold at Logan Square grocery store
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