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Family and friends gathered at an Illinois church to mourn Becky Bliefnick Friday, the award-winning nurse and mom of three described as selfless and passionate who police discovered shot to demise in her house final week.
After photographs confirmed her estranged husband Timothy Bliefnick was house earlier than the funeral ended Friday, his household advised Fox Information Digital that he was really current throughout Mass, though he sat individually from the couple’s sons, who have been with their mom’s facet of the household.
“I used to be current briefly for the visitation (on Thursday night) to pay my respects with my sons after which left in order to not be a distraction whereas the boys remained with the household on the request of her mother and father,” he advised Fox Information Digital by means of his legal professional. “I checked along with her mother and father about attending the funeral service they usually stated I might. The boys sat with them whereas I sat with different relations of mine in attendance.”
The couple’s three younger sons have been staying with their father because the capturing, in line with his lawyer, Casey Schnack. The mother and father lived a mile other than each other and have been going by means of a divorce.
ILLINOIS NURSE REBECCA BLIEFNICK SHOT DEAD, COPS SEARCH ESTRANGED HUSBAND’S HOUSE
“Out of respect, Tim is giving the Postle household house to grieve collectively,” his legal professional, Casey Schnack, advised Fox Information Digital earlier. “His presence at the moment would have been a distraction to what was most essential – honoring and celebrating the lifetime of Becky.”
“Tim has been working with Mr. Postle [his father-in-law] to ensure the boys get ample time with their household,” she added.
Quincy police have stated they discovered Rebecca Bernadette Postle Bliefnick, a 41-year-old nurse and mom of three, useless of a number of gunshot wounds in her home on Feb. 23.
They served a search warrant on her husband’s house Thursday morning, a mile away from hers, however no arrests have been made and police haven’t publicly recognized any suspects.
Her household gathered for a funeral Mass at St. Peter Church in Quincy Friday morning, a day after her husband attended the wake with their sons in tow.
By all accounts, Bliefnick was selfless in her well being care occupation and her religious Catholic religion.
In July 2020, she obtained honors from the Daisy Basis after helping a lady whose husband was headed for emergency surgical procedure with gangrene and sepsis.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the lady had not been allowed to stick with her husband once they first arrived on the ER for what she thought can be “an out and in day.”
After some checks, nonetheless, he known as her and requested for her to come back immediately.
“After I obtained to his room within the ER it was empty,” the lady advised the Daisy Basis. “I misplaced it and began to cry. All I might consider was I’ll by no means see him once more.”
However Bliefnick advised her to not fear, jogged her down the hallway and helped her meet up with her husband earlier than he went into the surgeon’s room.
“I obtained to kiss him and inform him how a lot I liked him all due to Becky,” she stated. “There aren’t any phrases to precise how grateful I’m to her for what she did for me and my husband.”
On Monday, police served a search warrant at her husband’s house. They briefly detained him throughout the search however have made no arrests within the case.
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Schnack stated earlier this week that search was an essential step towards ruling her consumer out. His focus, she added, is solely on the couple’s three sons.
Moreover, police made clear that that they had not requested prosecutors for an arrest warrant following the search.
“Throughout a felony investigation it isn’t uncommon to acquire and serve quite a few search warrants for a wide range of causes,” police stated. “Search warrants are a traditional a part of the investigative course of.”
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Police are asking anybody with info within the case to name them instantly at 217-228-4470 or anonymously by means of the Quincy Regional Crime Stoppers at 217-228-4474.
“Further info can be launched after we are ready, and it’s applicable to take action,” police stated. “It is very important keep in mind that all people are harmless till confirmed responsible in a courtroom of legislation.”
Several Illinois counties that have explored the idea of secession might be welcomed with open arms in Indiana.
Legislators in Indiana’s Republican-majority General Assembly have introduced a house bill that would establish a commission to discuss whether it’s advisable to adjust the boundary between Illinois and Indiana.
The House Republicans included the bill on a list of their top priorities for the 2025 session, which specifically noted that dozens of counties in Illinois have voted since 2020 “to secede from their high-tax state,” the Indianapolis Star reported.
“To all of our neighbors in the West, we hear your frustrations and invite you to join us in low-cost, low-tax Indiana,” House Speaker Todd Huston said, according to the newspaper.
In the November election, a total of seven counties in Illinois faced a ballot question on exploring the idea of secession, and all seven voted in favor of the proposal, according to county clerks’ offices. The group includes: Iroquois, Calhoun, Clinton, Green, Jersey, Madison and Perry counties.
Prior to the 2024 election cycle, at least two dozen counties voted affirmatively on the non-binding initiatives.
The reasoning behind the referendums, according to supporters, is that the city of Chicago and Cook County have a sizable impact on the policies enacted by the state legislature, and rural counties share different interests that are not being represented by the actions of the General Assembly.
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker called Indiana’s proposal “a stunt” earlier this week.
“…It’s not going to happen, he said. “But I’ll just that say Indiana is a low-wage state that doesn’t protect workers, a state that does not provide health care for people when they’re in need and so I don’t think it’s very attractive for anybody in Illinois…”
Many legal experts have expressed skepticism that such an effort could ever be successful. That group includes Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, who penned a letter to the state’s attorney of Jersey County on the issue in 2023.
#10 Illinois faces #2 Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa, on Friday, January 17 at 6 p.m. CT. Follow along here for live updates from the dual.
Probable Match-ups
125: Caelan Riley, SO vs #28 Joey Cruz, SO
133: #2 Lucas Byrd, SR vs #3 Drake Ayala, JR
141: #17 Danny Pucino, SR vs #21 Ryder Block, FR, 2-2 or Jace Rhodes, SO, 5-2 or Cullan Schriever, SR, 3-5
149: #15 Kannon Webster, FR vs #3 Kyle Parco, SR
157: #22 Jason Kraisser, SR vs Miguel Estrada, FR
165: #15 Braeden Scoles, FR vs #2 Michael Caliendo, JR
174: #19 Danny Braunagel, JR vs #5 Patrick Kennedy, JR
184: #13 Edmond Ruth, SR vs #5 Gabe Arnold, FR or Angelo Ferrari, FR
197: #13 Zac Braunagel, SR vs #1 Stephen Buchanan, SR
285: #11 Luke Luffman, SR vs #13 Ben Kueter, FR
Local News
A GoFundMe page has raised more than $5,000 to assist with memorial service costs for a West Springfield woman who was found dead earlier this month in Springfield’s Forest Park.
Joann Garelli, 56, was found dead Jan. 7 in the Camp Star Angelina area of Forest Park, according to a Facebook post from Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni.
Garelli’s death is currently under investigation by the Hampden District Attorney’s Office and the Springfield Police Detective Bureau’s Homicide Unit.
Andrew Santiago created the GoFundMe page to help his wife, Elizabeth Herd, pay for her mother’s memorial service, according to the page. On the page, Santiago called for an end to violence against women.
“[T]he violence and abuse of women are not taken seriously and we all need to come together as one to help prevent these attacks on women!” Santiago wrote.
The page was created Jan. 9 and will remain open until Garelli’s memorial service, which is scheduled to be held Jan. 21.
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