SPRINGFIELD, Ill (AP) – Gov. Bruce Rauner has appointed a gaming industry veteran to lead the Illinois Lottery. The Republican governor filed paperwork Friday with the Illinois Secretary of State to appoint B.R. Lane as superintendent of the lottery system. Lane is a former executive with an Indiana-based computerized gaming company called International Game Technology. He…
WASHINGTON (AP) — For months, the U.S. economy’s strength has been flagging. Manufacturing slowed. Fewer homes were built. Cheaper gas failed to ignite consumer spending. Yet month after month, employers kept on hiring vigorously. In March, the economy’s slump finally overtook the job market. Employers added just 126,000 workers — the fewest since December 2013…
St. Louis, MO (KTRS) – Police say a traffic stop last year in St. Louis County ended in an unexpected admission. The incident occurred in July of 2014. Police pulled over James Redmond for having improper license plates. The officer said as he approached the car, he could smell marijuana. Redmond admitted to smoking marijuana…
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. (AP) – An Alton man has been sentenced to 50 years in prison after being convicted in the shooting death of his cousin. Madison Circuit Judge Richard Tognarelli handed down the sentenced against 24-year-old Damond Riddlespriger on Tuesday following his January conviction on a charge of first-degree murder. Authorities say Riddlespriger shot 22-year-old…
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – The number of Missouri bridges in poor condition is expected to increase dramatically over the next decade as state funding declines. State transportation commissioners were told Tuesday that Missouri currently has 600 bridges on state highways that are rated in poor or critical condition but are not in Missouri’s five-year…
O’FALLON, Ill. (AP) – A growing southwestern Illinois bedroom community is considering leasing the city’s water and sewer systems to a private company to generate money for citywide improvements. Voters in the St. Louis suburb of O’Fallon will consider dueling, non-binding ballot measures on the topic in the April 7 municipal election. One was written…
MOUNT CARBON, W.Va. (AP) – Fires burned for hours after a train carrying more than 100 tankers of crude oil derailed in a snowstorm in West Virginia, plunging at least one tanker into a river while sending a fireball skyward, authorities and residents say. Federal railroad and hazardous materials officials are probing Monday’s derailment. One…
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Students at most University of Missouri System schools will see tuition rates increase next year by less than 1 percent. The Missouri Board of Curators voted Thursday to increase residents’ tuition by 0.8 percent, in line with inflation. Some students will see bigger increases, including nonresidents and graduate students at…
