Author: Paul Stukel

Four people were hospitalized, one with life-threatening injuries, after a two-car collision on Randall Road in Batavia Wednesday afternoon. According to the Batavia Police Department, the crash occurred at approximately 4:19pm at the intersection of North Randall Rd and McKee Street. The involved a Tesla sedan and a Dodge pickup truck. Preliminary investigation indicates that the Tesla was heading southbound on North Randall Road and was attempting to turn left onto eastbound McKee Street when it was struck by the Dodge, which was traveling northbound on North Randall Road. Two female occupants of the Tesla were transported to an area…

A North Aurora man has been charged with two felonies for allegedly shooting at a moving vehicle near a West Chicago elementary school last November. DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin and West Chicago Chief of Police Colin Fleury announced the 20-year-old defendant has been charged with two counts of Aggravated Discharge of a Firearm (one Class X Felony and one Class 1 Felony). He was denied pre-trial release by Judge Joshua Dieden at his First Appearance Court hearing on Thursday. The defendant had been taken into custody on Wednesday. According to police, on November 7, 2025, at approximately 6:43pm,…

The City of Elgin has terminated police officer Jason Lentz after Lentz posted controversial pro-ICE comments on his Facebook page in October 2025. The termination follows an independent investigation that found he violated departmental policies and standard operating procedures when making the posts. Elgin Police Chief Ana Lalley determined that termination was the appropriate disciplinary action following a review of the investigative findings. The decision was approved by the city’s corporation counsel and city manager. Chief Lalley was made aware of the posts on Oct. 15, 2025. Lentz was placed on administrative leave the following day, and the city immediately…

Three Cook County men, two of whom are currently on parole for aggravated vehicular hijacking, led authorities on a wild chase Wednesday evening that began in Bellwood and ended in Aurora with their arrest. The men have been charged in DuPage County for a number of felonies, including armed violence and weapons charges, as well as fleeing and eluding. In Kane County, charges were brought for home invasion and trespassing. On Wednesday, officers with the Bellwood Police Department initiated pursuit of a Green Jeep suspected of being involved in a shooting. At approximately 5:50pm, an officer with the Oak Brook…

The St. Charles St. Patrick’s Parade will take place on Saturday, March 14 in downtown St. Charles, along with a variety of family-friendly St. Patrick’s-themed activities for individuals to take part in around town. The St. Patrick’s Parade will step off 2pm, from 6th Street and travel down Main Street to conclude at 4th Avenue. Attendees at the event will get to experience the sounds of Bagpipers and local marching bands and admire the vibrant parade entries while celebrating with the community. Attendees will also have the chance to capture their memorable time at the St. Patrick’s Parade by visiting the Photo…

A 51-year-old Aurora man has been sentenced to 105 years in prison for fatally shooting his recent domestic partner in January 2024. In November 2025, Travares O. Mitchell, of the 1000 block of Sard Avenue, was convicted by a jury of First-Degree Murder (Class M felony) and Armed Habitual Criminal (Class X felony). According to prosecutors, on January 13, 2024, Aurora police officers responded to a single-vehicle crash and shots fired near Prairie Street and Woodlawn Avenue in Aurora. Officers located 46-year-old Serhonda Burnett as the sole occupant and passenger in the crashed vehicle. Burnett suffered from numerous gunshot wounds…

A jury has found a 27-year-old Montgomery man guilty of First-Degree Murder (Class M felony) in the fatal shooting of 30-year-old Christopher B. McMorris of Aurora in May 2021. The jury determined that Ladarius A. Parker had personally discharged the firearm used in the murder. According to prosecutors, in the early morning of May 2, 2021, Parker was attending a party at a residence in the 1700 block of Stonegate Drive, Montgomery, when he shot and killed McMorris as McMorris sat in a parked vehicle. After an extensive investigation by the Montgomery Police Department with assistance from multiple cpunty and municipal…

A 23-year-old homeless man is in custody after attacking a St. Charles police officer with a knife Friday evening on St. Charles’ east side. According to police, at approximately 11:34pm officers from the St. Charles Police Department were dispatched to the area of East Main Street and Hunt Club Drive for a report of a subject who was reported to be running in and out of the roadway towards vehicles. The officers were met by the defendant and, after initially attempting to speak with him, the defendant quickly brandished a knife and charged at them. One of the officers deployed…

An 36-year-old Aurora man has been sentenced to six and a half years of imprisonment in the Illinois Department of Corrections after having been found guilty of punching a police officer. Last December, a jury convicted Zackery L. Moore of the offenses of Aggravated Battery to a Peace Officer Causing Great Bodily Harm (Class 1 felony) and Resisting a Peace Officer (Class A misdemeanor). According to the prosecution, on the evening of August 6, 2024, Aurora police received a 911 call for service describing a suspicious person pacing north and south along North Farnsworth Avenue near the intersection with Coolidge…

The Elgin Symphony Orchestra continues its 76th Season Classics Series with a program of powerful choral music and theatrical drama on Saturday, March 7, at 7:30pm, and Sunday, March 8, at 2:30pm, at The Hemmens Cultural Center, 45 Symphony Way in Elgin. Led by ESO Music Director Chad Goodman, the orchestra is joined by the Elgin Master Chorale and guest vocalists Laura Strickling, soprano, and Jesse Blumberg, baritone, for a moving and multifaceted program featuring works by Valerie Coleman, Edvard Grieg, and Gabriel Fauré. It is Strickling’s second performance with the ESO, her first being in May 2024 when she joined…