Fairfield FFA Member Sara McGehee was elected as the new Section 23 FFA President last night at the Section 23 Banquet at Edwards County High School. Other officers elected include Vice President Paris Van Dyke of North Clay and Cody Falk, Jorrie Van Dyke, Aubrey Lambird, and Trenton Payne of Olney.
New Section 23 FFA Officers
40-year-old Fairfield resident Brian P. Davis was sentenced to seven years in prison yesterday in Clay County Circuit Court, according to State’s Attorney Phillip M. Givens. Davis pleaded guilty to a Class 2 felony count of possession with intent to deliver methamphetamine and accepted a negotiated plea, which also includes one year of mandatory supervised release.
Two Fairfield residents were booked in the Wayne County Jail early this morning. County deputies arrested 33-year-old Anthony M. Garrison on a Wayne County warrant for criminal damage to property and disorderly conduct, and Fairfield police arrested 36-year-old Nancy M. Kollak on a Wayne County warrant for deceptive practice. Both were held, pending the posting of $520 bond.
Continental Tire in Mt. Vernon is offering $5,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of anyone involved in a recent bomb threat to the facility. The threat was made late last week and is unrelated to threats made in April, per the company. It says plant evacuation procedures were followed, and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office and Secretary of State Bomb Unit were notified; law enforcement was able to determine the threat was not credible.
32-year-old Salem resident Michael Wessel was arrested over the weekend in a massive meth bust. He was charged with armed violence, possession of a firearm by a felon, aggravated possession with intent to deliver meth, aggravated domestic battery, and aggravated unlawful restraint. Salem police responded to a report of a woman who had been battered, held against her will, strangled, and threatened with a handgun. Police investigated the home and found over 1,600 grams of suspected meth, four handguns, a rifle, ammunition, scales and packaging items, pills and narcotics items, and nearly $19,000.
Fairfield Public School District 112, along with Jasper, New Hope, and Geff districts, will conduct Child Find/Preschool Screenings on May 17th and 18th at North Side School. The event is for children three to five years old who are not yet enrolled in public school and who will not be eligible for kindergarten for the upcoming school year. Screenings will take about 45 minutes, and appointments must be made so children don’t have a long waiting period. Parents should call 842-6501 to make an appointment or to get more information.
Fairfield Mayor Mike Dreith says the City is in a holding pattern regarding resurfacing Main and Delaware streets. The IDOT project was announced in 2018 but has faced several delays; bids for materials were supposed to go out last November, but the City was told at that time it would have to wait until this November for any potential action; if bids go out this fall, work could begin in 2023.
The Fairfield City Council will meet tonight at 6 at City Hall. It is scheduled to discuss an ordinance amending the liquor code to add a Class Q License for bed and breakfast establishments, specifically the Victorian on Main. The ordinance will also seek to clarify the necessary boundary between a business seeking a liquor license and a church, school, or nursing home.
Fairfield Community High School will hold its graduation services in its east gymnasium this Sunday at 2 p.m. Superintendent Jill Fulkerson said yesterday the move comes because of mercurial weather conditions for the weekend, but there will be no seating limitations for guests. The FCHS Band will play Pomp and Circumstance, Senior Class President Hunter Biggs will give an address, and Elmer McDuffee will announce the American Legion Citizenship Awards. The Valedictorian and Salutatorian will be announced on Sunday.
Law enforcement officials, including a U.S. Marshals Task Force, apprehended escaped Alabama inmate Casey White and corrections officer Vicky White following a vehicle chase in Evansville, Indiana, yesterday. A task force member reportedly drove a vehicle into a Cadillac in which Vicky White was a passenger; she suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound and died from her injuries at a hospital. Casey White will be brought back to Alabama, where he faces murder charges.
The IDPH reported four new cases of COVID-19 in Wayne County since Friday afternoon. Jefferson County added three cases, Edwards and Marion counties two, and Hamilton, White, and Lawrence counties one. Richland, Clay, and Wabash counties held steady on the state website. As a state, Illinois announced 14,427 new cases and nine additional deaths.
State government employees now have a few more years to take advantage of a pension buyout program. Governor J.B. Pritzker signed a law last week extending the current buyout plan through June 2026, which supporters say will save the state money and give workers a lump-sum option. The pension buyout is available to state employees, university workers, and teachers; more than 4,500 people have selected the option.
Illinois Treasurer Mike Frerichs says his office is looking to return millions of dollars to state residents. He says, in many cases, the case is simply waiting to be claimed, as the state brings in money from companies and financial institutions twice a year; he recommends people check for any unclaimed property at icash.treasurer.gov on their birthdays and half-birthdays.
River stages as of this morning: the Little Wabash east of Fairfield stands at 17.91 feet, above the 17 ft. flood stage. Meanwhile, the Skillet Fork at Wayne City has a reading of 6.02 feet (flood stage is 15 ft.). The Little Wabash below Clay City is at 10.84 feet (flood stage is 18 ft.). Bonpas Creek at Browns reads 2.45 feet, and the Little Wabash at Main Street in Carmi reads 13.37 feet. The Wabash River at Mt. Carmel sits at 14.30 feet.
Today’s crude oil price is $96.00, down $6.75 from yesterday. The June crude oil price is $103.50, down $6.51 from yesterday morning.
Community Connection with Fairfield Mayor Mike Dreith