Wednesday, May 15, 2013
The National Transportation Safety Board recommends reducing the limit. Some say it would save lives. Others say it's unreasonable. What do you think? Tell us in the comments section.
Do you think Illinois needs stricter guidelines for the blood-alcohol threshold for those driving under the influence? On Tuesday, the National Transportation Safety Board recommended states lower the blood-alcohol threshold for driving under the influence from .08 to .05 percent. About 10,000 deaths a year are related to drunken driving. The NTSB says the lower limit would save 500 to 800 lives a year. Officials at the American Beverage Institute called the proposal "ludicrous." It said the average woman could reach the 0.05 percent limit by having one drink. Secretary of State Jesse White said the lowered alcohol limit needs "further study," White's spokesman told the Daily Herald. In 2011, there were 1,977 DUI arrests in Cook County's…
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Gov. Pat Quinn is pushing for 11 Illinois counties to be named major disaster areas.
- GOVERNMENT
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Thursday, May 9
Governor Pat Quinn today asked President Barack Obama to declare 11 Illinois counties major disaster areas following the storms and heavy rainfall that moved through the state in mid-April. If the governor’s request is approved, residents in those counties will be eligible to apply for grants and low-interest federal loans to help recover from the historic flooding. Counties included in the request are Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Fulton, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, LaSalle, McHenry and Will. “We must do everything possible to help families impacted by this historic flooding as they rebuild their lives,” Governor Quinn said. “Today we are making a strong case to President Obama to help expedite the review and approval process so the people of …
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart releases a surveillance video that purports to show a corrections officer didn't slip and fall as he claimed in a workers compensation claim.
Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart wants you to know he's keeping an eye on the "duty injury king" — a corrections officer known among his peers for submitting false injury claims while on the job — and others like him. The sheriff's office released a video tape Wednesday that purports to show the time and location where a corrections officer claimed he slipped and fell, injuring his back on Nov. 20. The officer is now suspended without pay, and the sheriff wants to press criminal charges. The sheriff's office's claim about the video states: On November 20th of last year a Correctional Officer submitted a false injury report claiming that he sustained a back injury while returning from transporting a detainee. He reported to other staff the he …
Thursday, April 18, 2013
From interstates to local roads, our map provides updates on closures and high-standing water in your area.
From the Wisconsin border to the south side of Chicago and into the western suburbs, local roads, interstates and highways were closed Thursday because of flooding. Click through the pins above to see which roads in your area — or on your route to and from work today — have been closed due to flooding or have high-standing water. Police are encouraging drivers to avoid roadways with standing water. If you come upon an area with high-standing water or that is closed, add that information to our map by visiting this link. Otherwise, let us know about the closure by commenting below. Drivers are asked to beware of high-standing water on roadways. The water on a roadway can be deeper than it appears and can cause a vehicle to stall or be …
Thursday, April 11, 2013
Today, scattered showers are likely before 1 p.m. Cloudy skies and high of 50 degrees is in the forecast.
Rain, rain go away. The Palatine area is expected to see plenty of April showers in the coming days with rain—and some snow—in the forecast, according to the National Weather Service. Today, scattered showers are likely before 1 p.m. Cloudy skies and high of 50 degrees is in the forecast. On Friday, there is a slight chance of sprinkles and flurries between 1 p.m. followed by sprinkles in the afternoon. It will be breezy and a high near 45 degrees is in the forecast. We may get some reprieve from the rain on Saturday and Sunday. Mostly cloudy skies and a high of 47 degrees is forecasted on Saturday and mostly cloudy skies and high of 62 degrees is in the forecast on Sunday. Here is a more detailed look at the forecast for Palatine for …
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Area voters reported little to no wait at polling places during Tuesday's local election.
On Tuesday, 18.8 percent of voters made it out to the polls in suburban Cook County to vote in this year's local election, according to the Cook County Clerk's website. While the turnout was higher than other area counties, it was an average turnout for a local election in Cook County. Since 2005, turnout in Cook County has ranged from as low as 16.7 percent of voters casting their ballot in 2011 to as high as 27 percent voting in 2005. Comparably speaking, during last fall's presidential election, 70.7 percent of registered voters made it to the polls in suburban Cook County. Cook County voters reported little to no wait at the polls on Tuesday. "At 4:30, there were 110 votes cast in District 2. No lines at that point," according to a…
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Cook County came in as 78 most healthy county out of the 102 counties in Illinois.
Cook County residents are among the least healthy in the state, according to annual health rankings released Wednesday by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Cook County came in as the 78th healthiest county out of a total 102 Illinois counties. The following factors were used to measure a county's healthiness: length of life, quality of life, clinical care, health behaviors, socioeconomic factors and physical environment. The report provides a snapshot of health statistics for Cook County. For example, the report states that 26 percent Cook County adults are obese and 24 percent lack physical activity. Additionally, 19 percent of Cook County adults smoke. The report noted that the excessive drinking rate is 21 percent. The report also …
Thursday, March 7, 2013
The hope is that the new feature will help identify the deceased.
- POLICE & FIRE
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Thursday, March 7
The Cook County Medical Examiner's Office launched a web page Wednesday that includes photos of unclaimed bodies and is meant to help families identify the deceased. (Readers are advised that the images available through the above links may be disturbing and/or graphic). The medical examiner decided to launch the new feature after working with the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System's website in recent months, posing information about some unidentified bodies, including one woman who was later identified, according to the Chicago Tribune. The website includes information on nine unidentified bodies and three of the bodies includes photos. A note on the website warns that the images may be graphic in nature. The dates that the…
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
In 2012, 42.5 percent of District 211 retirees received six-figure pension payments.
Retired educators from District 211 are taking home pensions that are much higher than most educators in other districts across the state. In 2012, 42.5 percent of District 211 retirees received over $100,000 in pension payments while the 630 total district retirees received an average pension of $86,982, according to the Daily Herald. While six-figure pensions make up seven percent of the total pension payments in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will counties, less than one percent of retired educators in the remaining Illinois counties bring home that amount, according to the Daily Herald.
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
More than 1,200 employees statewide will lose their jobs in coming months, according to local media reports.
A handful of Cook County companies will be closing or have announced mass layoffs, according to notices filed by the companies with the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Development. Those companies include: FreightCar America, Inc. in Danville is expected to layoff the most employees—254—in the state in coming months. The layoffs are expected to begin on April 18 and continue through May 2. Other suburban companies that will be affected by layoffs or closings include: The Illinois Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act requires employers to provide 60 days advance notice of pending plant closures or mass layoffs, according to the Department of Commerce and Economic Development website.
Bucephalus
8:42 am on Friday, May 17, 2013
Or Frank you could read the article: "85 percent of all drivers arrested for DUI are first time offenders." I'm pretty sure that 15% (those who are repeat offenders) does not qualify as "most." more ›