Peru considers handling ordinance violation tickets in-house

Getting arrested for DUI or driving with an expired license could leave you paying to get your car out of the impound.  The Peru Police Department charges impound fees and because of a change in state law they’ll need to begin offering you the chance to argue the fee with a hearing officer before you go before a judge.

That has Peru Police Chief Doug Bernabei thinking the city should pass an ordinance allowing the hearing officer to also handle tickets for city ordinance violations.  Bernabei explained it to the city council Wednesday night.  He says since they would have to pay a lawyer to be the hearing officer, they may as well have them hearing ordinance violations so they don’t have to pay the city attorney to appear in La Salle County Circuit Court.  It would also allow whatever they collect from the fines to stay in Peru and not be split with the Circuit Clerk.

Bernabei thinks it would cost $500 a month to have a hearing officer.  The aldermen have a couple of weeks to think about it before they take action.

Local sport celebrities to attend United Way fundraiser

Attend a wine and beer tasting and you’ll likely bump into someone you know.  If you attend a special wine and beer tasting Friday night in La Salle you’ll run into a few popular sports figures.

“Meet the Legends” is the theme of the the United Way Beer and Wine Tasting at 5:30pm Friday at Senica’s Oak Ridge in La Salle.

Julie Sloan Executive Director of the United Way says Houston Astros pitcher and St. Bede Academy graduate J.A. Happ will be there along with a few others.

You’ll also have chances to win Notre Dame, Blackhawks and other sports tickets during live and silent auctions.

Sloan says the money raised tomorrow night will go to their 18 member agencies.  Tickets are $25 a piece and include unlimited wine and beer sampling and food.

Forensics Expert Gives Grisly Details Of Twardowski Murders

While it took only one hit to kill Catherine Twardowski, a forensic pathologist says her husband Al went down with a big fight.

Dr. Scott Denton testified today in the Keith Mackowiak murder trial that Catherine had one injury to her forehead while husband Al suffered close to 30 different bruises or cuts to his arms, hands, wrists, fingers and head. Denton says the fatal blow was to the back of his head, fracturing his skull and tearing his brain.

The doctor testified the head blow to Al Twardowski was made by a hammer. Yesterday, Keith Mackowiak’s ex-girlfriend testified that Mackowiak called her the day of the Twardowski murders saying he got into a fight and hit someone with a hammer.

Mackowiak attorney George Kielian though drilled home the fact that Denton was only making his judgments based on pictures of the original autopsy done by Dr. Brian Mitchell. Denton was asked to give his opinion after Mitchell died before Mackowiak’s trial began.

Kielian argued that despite Denton agreeing with Mitchell’s findings, Mitchell never mentioned a hammer as a cause for the Twardowski injuries. Denton told Kielian Mitchell didn’t mention a hammer because he was only being asked about external injuries, not internal.

Testimony is continuing this afternoon in Ottawa.

Kinzinger gains endorsements from La Salle and Bureau County Republican Committee Chairmen

Would you like a new Congressman or are you content with the job Republican Adam Kinzinger has been doing?  Kinzinger faces Congressman Don Manzullo in the primary for the recently redrawn16^th District.

Local Tea Party officials and the statewide Tea Party organizations are endorsing the more experience Manzullo, Kinzinger has received endorsements from several Republican Party County Chairmen.

La Salle County Republican Committee Chairman Susan Thornton and Bureau County Republican Committee Chairman Barry Welbers are among them.

The new 16^th district will include all of Putnam, Bureau and La Salle Counties and stretch north to Rockford.

More Area Troops Headed To Middle East

About 120 Illinois National Guard soldiers will soon begin training for a nine-month mission in Kuwait.

The National Guard says members of the 444th Chemical Company will head to Kuwait later this winter to provide security and other services for other units in the country. The soldiers will train in Mississippi before leaving and are expected to come home early in 2013.

The guard plans a ceremony for the soldiers at 1 p.m. Sunday at the National Guard Armory in Galesburg.