Get the latest news from around Illinois.
Champaign News-Gazette: Reluctant watchdogs dragged into auditor probe again
Where did the $500,000 go?
That’s what Streator resident David W. Cooke wants to know. He’s probably not going to find out on his own — the forces of evil are aligned against him. But the retired nuclear power plant employee isn’t going to give up.
Chicago Tribune: Ethics board says it lacks jurisdiction to take up sexual harassment inquiry into Madigan ally
City ethics officials on Wednesday said they lacked the jurisdiction to look into a campaign worker’s request for a review of Ald. Marty Quinn’s conduct in a sexual harassment case that got his brother kicked out of House Speaker Michael Madigan’s political organization.
The Chicago Board of Ethics found that Alaina Hampton’s harassment allegations against Kevin Quinn covered a time period before the City Council put in place ordinances this year to require officials to report unlawful or corrupt activity.
Decatur Herald & Review: 22 Illinois school districts sue state, governor over funding shortfall
More school districts from downstate Illinois have joined a lawsuit against Gov. Bruce Rauner and the state, saying the current education funding system violates the rights of students and districts.
The lawsuit, originally filed in St. Clair County in April 2017 and amended Monday to add more districts, said state lawmakers have failed to allocate enough money to meet “adequacy targets” for school funding that were determined by the new evidence-based funding model lawmakers approved in August. Twenty-two districts are taking part, including Pana and Taylorville.
The Southern: 15 Illinois libraries to share $724K in state grants
Fifteen libraries across Illinois will share more than $700,000 in state grants to help pay for critical remodeling and renovation projects.
Secretary of State Jesse White, who also serves as state librarian, announced the funding on Tuesday. He says public libraries are “cornerstones of our communities” and the money will help them remain “the best information resource centers available to citizens.”
Chicago Tribune: Emanuel abruptly ends council meeting amid fight over police academy
A fight over a controversial West Side police academy brought an abrupt end to Wednesday’s City Council meeting, as Mayor Rahm Emanuel ordered aldermen to return for a vote Friday.
Groups of young protesters have spoken out against the proposed academy for months. On Wednesday, aldermen were set to approve transferring $20 million from a land sale near Goose Island to help cover the $95 million price tag for the training center. But Northwest Side Ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa, 35th, and South Side Ald. David Moore, 17th, used a procedural move to delay a vote until the next meeting, scheduled for next month.
Highland Park News: District 113 cuts ties with embattled superintendent, approves $300,000 severance
Township High School District 113 has terminated its five-year contract with Superintendent Christopher Dignam amid a firestorm of complaints about a toxic work environment, an exodus of staff members and a leadership style of intimidation.
Following a closed door meeting Tuesday, the school board voted 5-1 to approve a separation agreement with Dignam, whose resignation is effective June 30. In exchange for his resignation and other conditions, District 113 will pay the superintendent a $300,000 severance payment, Board President Elizabeth Garlovsky announced.
Chicago Tribune: Ex-Calumet Township trustee gets 1 year and 1 day in prison for public corruption
There are two sides to former Calumet Township Trustee Mary Elgin, Judge Joseph Van Bokkelen said.
She was elected to an office designated to serve the most needy in the community, but she used her role to serve her own self-interests to stay in power, he said.
Belleville News-Democrat: SIU study, if approved, may delay vote on splitting university system
If a state House resolution calling for an independent study on the future of Southern Illinois University passes, a legislative vote on whether to split the two campuses that make up the system will not take place in the coming weeks, according to one lawmaker.
State Rep. Katie Stuart, D-Edwardsville, said in a phone interview that state Rep. Jay Hoffman, D-Swansea, will not call for a vote on his bill to separate SIU Edwardsville from SIU Carbondale, if a resolution for a study were to pass.