LP welcomes its athletes tonight

LaSalle Peru High School is welcoming its track athletes home tonight and among them is a state champion. Logan Zeman won a state title in High Jump earlier today in Charleston. Brett Kowalczyk took 8th in shot put. Last week, LP’s Lesly Rocha and Megan Krolak finished 7th and 8th, respectively, in the 3200 meters event last weekend.

According to LP’s Matt Baker, the athletes will be greeted by police and fire trucks at Love’s in Oglesby about 7:30. The route extends through downtown Oglesby on Walnut to Route 71 where it will turn west through Jonesville. It will move into and through downtown LaSalle onto Route 6 and then into Peru. In Peru, the route will turn north on Peoria and then east on Shooting Park Road. The parade will make a right onto Creve Coeur and end at the high school.

Zeman is 1 of only a few Cavalier student-athletes to become a state champion. He earned the top spot today with a jump of 6’8″.

Driver face felony in rollover accident

All three people in a rollover near Leland today went where they did not want to go – the passengers to hospitals and the driver to jail.

LaSalle County Deputies say it happened just after 2 this morning on a county road. One passenger, 18-year old Nathan Vesely of Leland was flown to Good Samaritan in Downers Grove. The other passenger, 22-year old Dayton Brown of Leland flown to St. Anthony’s in Rockford. There is no report available on their conditions.

The driver, 20-year old Josh Bushland of Earlville, ran from the scene but was later found. Bushland is currently in the county jail for leaving the scene of an injury accident – a felony. The crash is still being investigated.

Local senator warns that income tax increase isn’t a dead issue

Do you think lawmakers should be able to make important votes even after they lose an election?

Senator Sue Rezin and other Republican lawmakers think many Democrats are planning to have “lame-duck” politicians help to make the temporary income tax hike permanent.

Rezin says this kind of thing happened in 2011 when the tax hike was supported by politicians who had just lost an election, including then State Representative Careen Gordon who came out against the tax increase then changed her mind and got a state job.

Rezin calls what Gordon did and what other lame-duck politicians may do after the November election unacceptable political gamesmanship. Rezin and other Republicans have signed a resolution pledging to oppose a lame-duck session tax hike.

Congressman and military veteran responds to VA secretary resignation

Your congressman is feeling better about things regarding care for veterans following the resignation of Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki.

Republican Adam Kinzinger says “I’m encouraged to know that new leadership will have the opportunity to make the massive changes necessary to clean up the broken bureaucracy at the VA”. Kinzinger calls Shinseki a good man but problems in the VA system required a new direction.

Investigators say at least 23 veterans died as a result of delayed or denied care from VA hospitals.