Illinois
One killed in southern Illinois crash involving a garbage truck
By West Kentucky Star Staff
Jul. 07, 2024 | 04:58 PM
| WILLIAMSON COUNTY
A crash that involved a garbage truck shortly before noon Saturday in Hurst claimed one life.
The Williamson County Sheriff’s Office says their preliminary investigation shows that a garbage truck was traveling south on Illinois 149, when the driver lost control and collided with an SUV traveling in the northbound lane.
The driver of the SUV was pronounced dead at the scene.
Names of those involved have not yet been released, and the accident reconstruction investigation is continuing.
Illinois
Slick City, Illinois' newest 'indoor slide park,' opens in Chicago suburbs — and its not just for kids
Slick City, Illinois first-ever indoor, waterless slide park is now open in the Chicago suburbs — and its filled with giant, colorful slides that are for adults, too.
NBC 5 and Chicago Today’s Matthew Rodrigues visited the 40,000 square-foot action park in North Aurora Friday, to catch a glimpse of exactly what a slide park for all-ages looks like — and take a spin on some of the slides.
According to the park, Slick City Action Park, located at 1830 Town Center in North Aurora, opened earlier this fall. It’s the first of its kind in Illinois, according to a press release, with eight huge dry slides, two air basketball courts, an air dodgeball court, a trapeze, zipline, jungle gyms, an arcade and more.
The slides range in length and speed, ranging from “Mega Launch,” “Big Wave,” “Avalanche” and “Cowabunga.”
“Ready, set, launch!” a description of “Mega Launch” said. “Take sliding to new heights — literally! Hold on tight for the ride of your life.”
While parts of the park are designed towards younger children, the park says its “revolutionary engineering” is designed for all ages. According to the park, 20% of its guests are over the age of 18.
“Parents are getting in on the action,” Kevin Dugal, Slick City North Aurora’s VP of Operations said. “Cousins, older siblings.”
According to a spokesperson, the eight slides at the Aurora location are for those age four and up, with tickets starting at $13.99.
Slick City Action Park aims to open 500 locations across the United States, with spots already open in Colorado, Texas and Arizona. More locations are planned for additional cities, including Chandler, Arizona, and Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, the release said.
More information about the park and hours can be found here.
Here’s a sneak peek into what the North Aurora location looks like:
Illinois
Winnebago County residents share experience on public defense in Illinois
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WIFR) – Lawmakers say Illinois has not significantly changed its public defense structure since 1949.
The community hopes to change that to bring liberty and justice for all awaiting a trial.
At least five people shared their first-hand accounts with public defenders Thursday with the hope Winnebago County and the state takes better action to fix what some say is a crisis in our courts.
‘King Moosa’ was involved in a serious criminal case and had a constitutional right to a public defender, but he says he felt helpless with his representation. Moosa shared his story Thursday night with dozens of others hoping for change
“My public defender, years later, even admitted that she wasn‘t even capable to represent me,” he says.
“This is an opportunity for us to deal with some structural issues that will actually make justice more accessible to those who need it the most,” says New Zion Baptist Church Pastor K. Edward Copeland.
State Rep. Dave Vella says public defenders are understaffed and overloaded with cases. He says the main Winnebago County public defender was tied up in court all day Thursday because of this.
“We don’t have swift justice for either the victims or for the defendants, and it costs a lot more money for the taxpayers,” says Vella.
That’s why Vella introduced the Funded Advocacy and Independent Representation, or FAIR Act, which in part will create an office of the state public defender to assess client needs, staffing and resources statewide.
“Every case these are human lives we‘re talking about,” says ’King Moosa’.
State Sen. Dave Syverson says they’ve spent more on defense-level funding at the Winnebago county level than they’ve ever had before.
“When there are delays in trials, which is very frustrating. It’s usually delays that are caused by the defense delaying things,” says Syverson.
One person who has been in the Winnebago County jail for five years still waits for his trial. He spoke to the room tonight via phone call.
It’s not just criminal cases people also shared stories about family cases. One person shared they are in a battle with DCFS.
Copyright 2024 WIFR. All rights reserved.
Illinois
Illinois voters give stamp of approval on three nonbinding referendums
Illinois voters got to weigh in on three nonbinding referendums on this year’s ballot. And according to the latest results, all of them have passed.
While the advisory questions won’t change current law, state legislators now have a better understanding of what voters want.
One referendum asked voters if candidates who interfere or attempt to interfere with the work of election workers should be penalized.
Another asked whether a 3% tax surcharge should be put on income over $1 million to fund property tax relief.
The third asked if coverage of IVF and other reproductive health treatments should be covered by health insurance.
Reset gets the details and talks about what’s next.
GUESTS: Pat Quinn, former Democratic Illinois governor
Lindsay Allen, assistant professor of emergency medicine at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
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