Illinois Briefs - 12/6/11

Former Governor's Sentencing Begins Today

(Chicago, IL)  --  It will take two days and end with Rod Blagojevich knowing how long he'll be heading to prison.  The former Illinois governor will begin his sentencing hearing in Chicago this morning.  The judge in the case says he expects the sentencing proceedings to take two days.  Federal prosecutors have said they want a sentence between 15 and 20 years.  Blagojevich's lawyers want probation.  The former governor was convicted of corruption for trying to sell President Obama's U.S. Senate seat from Illinois.

Illinois To Lose Nine Post Offices

(Chicago, IL)  --  The fear is becoming real for folks in some downstate communities that they will lose a post office this time around.  The U.S. Postal Service earlier this year announced plans to close facilities in Bloomington, Carbondale, Centralia, Chicago, Effingham, Fox Valley, Quincy, Rockford and

Springfield.  Now those plans are inching closer to reality. Congressman Don Manzullo tells the "Bloomington Pantagraph" that he will fight to keep all of Rockford's Post offices open.  Manzullo says that city cannot afford to lose more jobs.  The post office closings are part of a cost cutting move.

FBI Clears Champaign Officer In Pepper Spray Incident

(Champaign, IL)  --  A central Illinois police officer who pepper sprayed a jaywalking suspect has been cleared again of any wrong doing.  The FBI told the "Champaign News Gazette" that it found no evidence of a crime or civil rights violation in the case that dates back to June.
The Illinois State Police also found no crimes on the part of the officer.

Farmers Eligible For Federal Help

(Washington, DC)  --  The USDA says some farmers in central Illinois can apply for drought and flood assistance.  Doug Bailey with the Farm Service Agency office in Springfield says the weather in 2010 was a mixed bag for farmers.  To qualify for the federal aid, producers must have lost at least ten percent of an "economically significant" crop.  A full list of counties that are eligible for help can be found on the USDA's Farm Service Agency website.

Man Sentenced For 11th DUI

(Bloomington, IL)  --  A Bloomington man was sentenced to 20 years in prison for a conviction on his 11th driving under the influence case.  Prosecutors say 49-year-old William Dietrich's license had been revoked since 1983.  His first DUI conviction was in 1982.  Dietrich had previously received eight years in prison for a Class X conviction in Tazewell County.

Man Accused Of Threatening Cop

(Eureka, IL)  --  A southern Illinois man's bad night at a central Illinois strip club just got a lot worse.  A Woodford County grand jury has indicted Derek Phillips of West Frankfort Illinois for threatening to kill a central Illinois deputy and his family.  Phillips ended up in the back of a Woodford County squad car after he was kicked out of the Kappa Kabana strip club.  That's when police say Phillips started kicking the car windows and threatening the deputy and the deputy's family.  The charges carry up to five years in prison.