Illinois Public Media News

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources is considering options to deal with thousands of invasive Asian carp that are clustering near the base of the Lake Decatur dam. But a DNR official says there are safeguards in place to keep them from getting over the dam.

After decades of growth, the number of men and women in the Illinois prison system has declined sharply in the last several years. A complex blend of decisions is behind the drop — ranging from the highest reaches of power in the General Assembly down to individual police on the beat.

When the economy suffers, as it has in many rural Central Illinois communities, shoppers tend to become bargain hunters, looking for the best deals to help stretch their ever-thinning dollar. That has helped expand the market for discount stores.

The sentencing phase of the Brendt Christensen trial enters its fifth day Friday. Federal public defenders called eight witnesses Thursday in their effort to save him from the death penalty. 

Prosecutors and police officers have been sending too much DNA to the Illinois State Police crime lab. People are waiting in jail as a result of the massive backlog. Plus, schools across Illinois badly need more teachers. One statewide program has been trying to recruit more of them, as early as high school. Also, earlier this year a prison in Danville removed 200 books from an education program library. But now, after public pressure, the books are back in the prison. And after more than a century, the Chicago Defender will no longer be available in print.