Midwest

Pritzker names new head of embattled Illinois family services agency

Published

2 years ago

January 7, 2024

Pritzker names new head of embattled Illinois family services agency

Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Wednesday named his director of juvenile justice to take over the troubled Department of Children and Family Services.

Heidi Mueller, 49, will replace Marc D. Smith, who has been at the helm since 2019 and has been held in contempt of court numerous times for improper housing of young people under the agency’s care. Smith, who announced his resignation in October, will help with the transition through January.

Mueller has been director of the Department of Juvenile Justice since 2016. The agency oversees the custody of young people committed to the state by Illinois courts.

HEAD OF EMBATTLED ILLINOIS CHILD SERVICES AGENCY TO RESIGN AT YEAR’S END

“I have witnessed firsthand the critical importance of a strong and supportive safety net for our state’s most vulnerable residents and the tragedy that results when there are holes in that net,” Mueller said in a statement. She thanked Smith for “driving real progress at DCFS.”

Mueller, who currently makes $173,250, was chosen after a nationwide search. Pritzker said her “transformative” work at Juvenile Justice has gained her national attention.

“Heidi’s care and compassion for the most at-risk young people in our state and her exceptional leadership are hallmarks of her career and I know that her passion and expertise will be a significant asset as we continue to improve our state’s child welfare system,” Pritzker said in a statement.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker greets constituents as he campaigns in Bellwood, Illinois, on Nov. 1, 2022. (Erin Hooley/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

Smith, 54, whose salary is $210,000, began his tenure months into Pritzker’s first term. The Democrat had pledged reforms, releasing an outside report on agency failures including the deaths of three children under its care in just a few months.

But the department continued to struggle. In 2022, Smith was held in contempt of court on numerous occasions for failing to find proper placement for young people in the agency’s care. Pritzker repeatedly blamed his Republican predecessor for the dismantling of private social-service agencies capable of proper youth housing during a budget stalemate with Democrats in the Legislature from 2015 to 2017.

The situation has seen little improvement. DCFS’ own annual report on placement released last week showed that during the fiscal year that ended last June, hundreds of children were kept in so-called temporary quarters, in some cases for months, or held in psychiatric hospitals beyond need for treatment or juvenile incarcerations past their release dates because DCFS had no place to put them.

The DCFS inspector general’s annual report released last week indicated that during the same fiscal year, 160 children with some level of involvement with the department had died.

PRITZKER ADMIN SCRAPS CHICAGO MIGRANT CAMP PLAN OVER SOIL CONTAMINATION CONCERNS

“The DCFS director has arguably the hardest and most important job in state government. Heidi Mueller has an outstanding reputation as a reform-minded manager and brings substantial child welfare experience to the task,” said Charles Golbert, the Cook County public guardian, whose office has filed class-action lawsuits over lengthy placements in psychiatric hospitals and juvenile justice incarceration. He urged Mueller to make the expansion of DCFS’s placement capacity an urgent priority.

Heidi Dalenberg, interim legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois, which also has legal action against DCFS, said Mueller “must embrace the challenge of finding a safe place to stay — preferably with the child’s family members” and turn away from large, institutional settings.

“This is a challenging job that requires a leader with vision and a commitment to transformational change,” Dalenberg said.

Robert Vickery, currently deputy director of programs at Juvenile Justice, will serve as interim director of the agency during a search for Mueller’s permanent replacement.

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Iowa

Seven Of Eight 3A Slots Filled For Iowa High School Boys State Tournament

Published

2 minutes ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Seven Of Eight 3A Slots Filled For Iowa High School Boys State Tournament

Seven of the eight spots for the upcoming Class 3A Iowa High School Athletic Association Boys State Tournament were determined Monday night in substate championship action.

Advancing to the Casey’s Center in Des Moines, Iowa were ADM, Ballard, Storm Lake, Carroll, Gilbert, Pella and Solon. On Tuesday, Cedar Rapids Xavier will play Dubuque Wahlert Catholic, as that game was moved due to the Dubuque Wahlert Catholic girls competing in the girls state tournament.

The seven teams advancing were all the higher seeds, as six of the seven picked up victories on their home court. The other – Storm Lake’s 66-53 win over Sergeant Bluff-Luton – was held at nearby Buena Vista University.

ADM claimed a 30-point decision over Nevada while Ballard bested Oskaloosa, 79-45. Carroll claimed a three-point triumph vs. Sioux Center, Gilbert bested rival North Polk, 73-62, Pella eliminated Keokuk, 60-47, and Solon downed Central DeWitt, 49-44.

The state tournament bracket will be released following the conclusion of the Cedar Rapids Xavier-Dubuque Wahlert Catholic contest.

The 4A substate championships are also on deck for Tuesday evening.

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Kansas

Kansas City man sentenced for cocaine trafficking, possession of illegal firearm

Published

8 minutes ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Kansas City man sentenced for cocaine trafficking, possession of illegal firearm

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) – A Kansas City man was sentenced in federal court for his role in a drug trafficking conspiracy and possession of an illegal firearm.

According to the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri, 22-year-old Antoine R. Gillum was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison without parole.

His sentencing stems from a June 2024 incident in a metro gas station. KCPD investigators contacted Gillum inside and found that he had discarded a 9 mm pistol in an aisle between the merchandise. He also discarded a pill bottle containing multiple illegal substances: cocaine base, oxycodone/acetaminophen and oxycodone.

Officers searched the vehicle Gillum had arrived in and found approximately 32 grams of cocaine base.

On May 6, 2025, Gillum pleaded guilty to one count each of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Jennings. It’s a part of ‘Operation Take Back America,’ a nationwide Department of Justice initiative to eliminate cartels and transnational criminal organizations.

No further information has been released.

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Michigan

2 Smoothie King employees fired for refusing to serve customer in Trump hoodie

Published

38 minutes ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

2 Smoothie King employees fired for refusing to serve customer in Trump hoodie

Two employees who refused to serve a man and his wife because he was wearing a hoodie with President Trump’s name on it were fired after a video of the heated encounter went viral.

Erika Lindemyer and her husband, Jake, were forced out of a Smoothie King franchise location in Ann Arbor, Michigan, following a fiery clash with two young female workers on Sunday.

The employees claimed they didn’t “feel comfortable” serving the couple because of Jake’s pro-Trump hoodie, as captured by Erika in a viral video.

Jake and Erika fired back at the pair and insisted that they were being “discriminated” against based on their “political views.”

“We were just wanting a smoothie and you literally looked at us and I asked you if everything was OK and you said ‘We don’t feel comfortable serving you’ because of my husband’s hoodie. That is discrimination,” Erika spat.

“Okay, well, have a great day,” the first employee said.

“That is illegal,” Erika tried to insist again.

“I said Trump discriminates [against] us,” another employee chimed in.

“Okay, well that has nothing to do with us getting a smoothie!” Erika guffawed.

“OK, well that’s who you support though, that’s who you love,” the first employee chided.

“What’s embarrassing is that we’re American citizens and I wanted to get a smoothie,” Erika huffed.

The second employee noted that they “have a right to refuse service” and directed the couple to the exit.

“You asked a question and [the other employee] gave you an answer. Have a great day. Have a great day. The door’s right there,” the second worker said.

Erika threatened to call the police while storming out, but it’s unclear if she did.

In a separate video shared Monday, one of the workers joked that she might’ve “accidentally started a race war” and called on the public to help remove Erika’s video.

“I am a minor and she recorded me without my permission. The people in the comments are all white and they’re all being hella racist, guys, please help me get this video taken down,” she implored.

Smoothie King confirmed that the girls involved in the viral confrontation “are no longer with the business” as of Monday.

“As a brand, Smoothie King is committed to ensuring our stores are a place free of discrimination of any kind, where every guest and team member is treated with care and respect,” the company wrote on X.

The owner of the Ann Arbor franchise location will also enforce “mandatory retraining for all employees that outlines our guest experience standards.”

In early December, a woman who worked at a Target in California was berated by a customer for wearing a Charlie Kirk “Freedom” T-shirt.

When the employee insisted she was allowed to wear the red shirt, the irate customer accused her of supporting “a racist.”

The medical center where the agitated customer worked was bombarded with upwards of 6,000 “profanity-laced” phone calls after online sleuths doxxed her personal information.

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