Livingston County

More than 150 people attended a town hall meeting Thursday night at Streator High School to discuss recent violence in the community and solutions moving forward, including a pair of high school seniors who asked questions about safety.

Due to a threatening message directed at Tri-Point schools, classes were cancelled today at the district’s three schools.

A tornado watch is in effect for Bureau, Putnam, Marshall, Woodford and Whiteside counties until 11 p.m. Sunday; and La Salle, Grundy, Lee, Livingston, Kankakee, Ford and Iroquois counties until 4 a.m. Monday.

New vote totals on Tuesday show a Joliet candidate has become the third-highest vote getter for one of three seats on the Joliet Junior College Board of Trustees. 

State Rep. Amy “Murri” Briel, D-Ottawa, is collaborating with Safe Journeys, a local nonprofit that specializes in sexual assault and domestic violence support, to host a Safety Planning event from 1 to 3 p.m. April 11, at Briel’s Ottawa district office.

A Joliet Junior College board trustee has appeared to have survived her reelection bid after fellow trustees censured her 15 times since 2024 and released a report a month before the election that claimed she harassed the college president.

The Prairie Singers are hosting a series of concerts starting at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, April 3 at St. Michael's in Streator, 2 p.m. Sunday, April 6 at St. Bede in Peru, 7 p.m. at St. Patrick's in Ottawa, and then at 2 p.m. Sunday, April 13 at St. Patrick's in Seneca.

Joliet Junior College’s president reported he’s been subjected to harassing behavior from two members of the Board of Trustees and the hostility of one of those trustees caused him to feel unsafe.

Dwight police announced earlier this week they had arrested Ernest Petro, of Lincoln, in connection with the drug-induced homicide of Eric Shepherd in July 2024.

The Streator City Council approved several roadwork items, including land dedications for a road expansion and a roadwork contract to improve North Illinois and East Morrell streets.

State Sen. Chris Balkema, R-Channahon, is starting his first year in the Illinois Senate and has been appointed to committees.

Two Streator residents were arrested in South Streator last week on Friday, Jan. 17, after a search warrant led to the seizure of firearms, ammunition and drugs.

With Valentine’s Day approaching next month, State Sen. Chris Balkema, R-Channahon, is asking for help to brighten the day of senior citizens across the 53rd Senate District.

Heritage Corridor Destinations held an open house on Jan. 8 for its new office at 701 Essington Road, Suite 100 in Joliet. Attendees at the open house included business partners, community leaders and stakeholders.

Streator Woodland's principal was named as the Elementary Principal of the Year

The Livingston County Health Department announced the the schedule for its free smoking cessation classes for 2025.

Hunters in Illinois took a preliminary total of 82,496 deer during the seven-day 2024 Illinois firearm deer season that concluded Dec. 8.

The Girls Just Want To Have Fund$ golf outing has raised $14,000 for the Young Women Leaders Scholarship Fund.

A Streator man was sentenced to 18 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections after being convicted of aggravated battery with a firearm.

Three Streator residents were sentenced Dec. 16 to prison after being arrested in a drug and weapons bust in October of last year.

Five Streator residents were charged following a shooting reported Nov. 26 on the 1400 block of South Cleveland Avenue in South Streator, the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office said Monday.

The Livingston County Sheriff’s office reported Tuesday numerous people were taken into custody for various offenses following a reported “shots fired” incident in the 1400 Block of South Cleveland Street in South Streator.

A Streator man who police said barricaded himself in a residence Sunday in South Streator recently was charged with sexual exploitation of a child and predatory criminal sexual assault of a child.

A suspect was arrested without incident Sunday in South Streator following a reported armed home invasion where it was believed the suspect was barricaded at a nearby residence, the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.

Two men from Streator have been charged in connection with a residential burglary in rural Cornell, following an investigation by the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office.

Four Streator men were charged Tuesday with the seldom-filed felony of criminal drug conspiracy. Streator police said other suspects in a drug and theft ring would be charged, as well.

The police searched the truck Sunday and found binoculars and bolt cutters in the cab. The trailer they were hauling was stolen. Both driver and passenger had been previously granted pre-trial release.

The period for filing nomination petitions for the April 1 Illinois Valley Community College Board of Trustee election begins Nov. 12.

The Illinois Valley Symphony Orchestra is partnering with the Starved Rock Country Community Foundation to support its needs.

The first freezing temperatures of the seasons are expected to roll in Tuesday night and Wednesday morning for a large portion of northern Illinois, the Nation Weather Service reports.

A 70-year-old Chicago man arrested this summer in Livingston County now faces new felony charges in Ottawa after police said he bought a lawnmower using a fraudulent check and ID.

Woodland School administrators and the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office determined comments made by a junior high school student to a group of students Thursday didn’t pose any threat to the safety or well-being of students, teachers and staff.

The IDNR will host public meetings throughout northern Illinois to provide information on the status of chronic wasting disease, its effect on free-ranging deer populations, and IDNR’s ongoing efforts to manage the disease, including a meeting in Princeton.

The suspect in last month’s shooting at Streator City Park has a lawyer, a new court date and soon might have a new judge. Tyshawn Doyle is being held at La Salle County Jail.

A Streator man was arrested Monday by a U.S. Marshals task force for charges connected to a shooting that occurred July 20 in City Park.

The Joliet Junior College Board of Trustees is seeking applicants willing to serve as a trustee until the April 2025 election

Streator police said Monday two men had an apparent dispute in the parking lot of City Park that led to the Saturday shooting.

The gunshot victim injured Saturday in Streator is expected to recover from his injuries, Streator police said Sunday.

Scattered tree limbs, utility wires and some poles were downed across La Salle, Bureau and Putnam counties Monday night after storms with wind gusts as high as 60 to 70 mph passed through the region.

A tornado warning was issued until 12:30 a.m. in La Salle and Livingston counties for Streator, Pontiac and Dwight.

Join the Livingston County Soil and Water Conservation District for a Women in Ag Meeting: Ideas Inc. – How to Add Conservation to Your Land.

The Livingston County 4-H Show is scheduled July 17-20.

If your taxes this year are higher than in 2023, it's likely because your home is worth more. A tax analysis revealed tax rates mainly slid while residential values soared.

Illinois hunters took a preliminary statewide record of 17,208 wild turkeys during the 2024 Illinois spring turkey season.

The Diocese of Peoria announced Saturday it will merge 156 parishes into 75 parishes with 127 worship sites, and in the process, close a handful of churches in La Salle, Bureau, Putnam, Marshall and Livingston counties.

The IDOA encourages farmers and agrichemical facilities to take part in a free agrichemical container recycling program. Beginning in the middle of July and continuing into August, sites throughout the state will collect containers that are recycled to make shipping pallets.

Four Woodland Hall of Fame inductees spoke Friday during an assembly for students, teachers and some community members at the school's gymnasium.

Community and family members gathered Saturday to remember 7-year-old Dalton Mesarchik, of Streator, and to seek answers and justice following his 2003 homicide.

Here are four takeaways from Tuesday’s primary election in La Salle and Bureau counties.

Incumbent state Rep. Dennis Tipsword, R-Metamora, is sitting in good position to gain the Republican nomination for the November general election, in a district that includes La Salle, Bureau, Putnam, Marshall and Livingston counties.