Dolton, Ill. (ECWd) - The Village of Dolton was ordered to pay more than $50,000 for their willful, intentional, and in bad faith violations of the Freedom of Information Act when it denied several FOIA requests submitted by John Kraft. These FOIA denials were allegedly on the...
Paris, Ill. (ECWd) - Responses to a Freedom of Information Act request indicate that the Federal Bureau of Investigation is continuing its investigation of Paris School District 95, at least as late as May of 2025. In May, more than a dozen employees of the school district...
Paris, Ill. (ECWd) - Press Release: Arrests have been made in connection with the arson that occurred at Vance School on the morning of September 4, 2025. The incident is currently under active investigation by Paris Fire Department, Paris Police Department & Office of the State Fire...
Paris, Ill. (ECWd) - Early this morning, the old Vance School in Paris, Illinois was engulfed in flames. The Paris Fire Department is still on scene. No other information is available at this time. Cover photo was taken by Vermilion County Watchdog at around 4 am this morning. [gallery link="file"...
Charleston, Ill. (ECWd) - After reviewing the video clip numerous times, boosting the audio and playing with the equalizer to reduce some of the background noise, it is clear to us that Judge Sullivan clearly said "I'm a Judge in the circuit. I'm just hoping to...
Paris, Ill. (ECWd) - Once again, we have to warn people of an anonymous Facebook page purporting to be affiliated with the University of Illinois College of Media (it is not), which typically only reposts news articles from other sources, while sometimes posting things apparently designed...
Boone County, Ill. (ECWd) - Julie A. Bliss, the former Boone County Clerk, was sentenced today. She was initially arrested in late-2023, and indicted on a 26-count felony indictment, resigned from office at the end of July, 2025, and entered a negotiated guilty plea on three charges last...
Shelby Co., Ill. (ECWd) - Our Freedom of Information Act ("FOIA") lawsuit against Shelby County and its State's Attorney is still moving forward, despite the local, anonymous premature celebrations. There was a hearing today on our Motion to Vacate the dismissal ordered last month. Our attorneys were...
Coles County, Ill. (ECWd) - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 27, 2025 Results of Coles County Jail 2025 Compliance Monitoring Report I am honored to announce that the Coles County Jail has recently completed the annual inspection process through the Illinois Department of Corrections, and our facility has been declared...
Milton Township, Ill. (ECWd) - We first reported on the unlawful contract to issue traffic tickets (here) signed by the former Milton Township Supervisor. We also noticed the township posted a "Scam Warning" on its website in an attempt at distancing themselves from the actions of the...
