Dean Olsen

The former Sangamon County sheriff – who refused calls for his resignation after Sonya Massey’s 2024 murder, then abruptly retired, citing stress on his family and the sheriff’s office – recently defended the office against recent allegations of “institutional shortcomings.” Jack Campbell, 61, responded to questions from Illinois Times after Sangamon County deputy Travis Koester […]

The president of the union that represents deputies in the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office pleaded with a judge to be lenient in sentencing former deputy Sean Grayson for the murder of Sonya Massey. Sangamon County Deputy Travis Koester was ultimately unsuccessful but told Circuit Judge Ryan Cadagin in a letter that Grayson, 31, deserved mercy […]

The only Democrat whose name will be on the March 17 primary ballot for Sangamon County sheriff decided Feb. 9 to withdraw from the race. Springfield resident Marc Bell, the lone Democrat on the ballot, posted on his campaign’s Facebook page that a lack of financial support from the Democratic Party was the reason for […]

Members of Sonya Massey’s family, who declared victory with the recent sentencing of her killer to a 20-year prison term, say they hope her tragic death leads to policy changes in Sangamon County and nationwide.  The sentence, which likely will be appealed to a higher court by lawyers representing former Sangamon County sheriff’s deputy Sean […]

Plans for a $500 million data center to be built by Dallas-based CyrusOne in rural southwest Sangamon County could receive final zoning votes from county officials later this month and in March. A public hearing on CyrusOne’s plan to build a 636-megawatt data center complex covering 1.4 million square feet on 230 acres of farm […]

A woman who almost lost her life because of a crash caused by Michael Egan said the 90-day jail sentence he received Jan. 30 for drunken driving was too lenient, but because of the criminal justice system’s inherent bias toward police, not surprising. “Unfortunately, I was expecting him to skate out easy because he’s a […]

A Sangamon County judge on Jan. 29 gave former sheriff’s deputy Sean Grayson the maximum sentence – 20 years in prison – for the July 2024 murder of Sonya Massey, culminating a nationally publicized case that led to ongoing discussions and action locally to bridge racial divides. A cheer went up in the courtroom and […]

The woman appointed as the new Sangamon County sheriff in the wake of the July 2024 murder of Sonya Massey says her experience, education and determination make her worthy of being elected to a four-year term. “I just feel like we started moving in the right direction for improvements,” Paula Crouch told Illinois Times when […]

Generous raises granted in collective bargaining contracts such as those negotiated for police and firefighters, coupled with a rise in headcount and increases in pension costs, threaten to push the city toward a fiscal cliff in three or four years, Springfield’s immediate past budget director says. Without tax increases or cuts in services, the city’s […]

A $7.6 million court settlement stemming from a data breach that affected almost 869,000 Hospital Sisters Health System patients will result in average payments of $40 to $50 for 80,000 people. That estimate – representing patients who responded by mail to become part of the class-action settlement – came from Nickolas Hagman of the Chicago […]

Most of the 250 people who turned out at a public meeting Jan. 5 in Lincoln to hear a Florida-based company’s plans to build a $5 billion data center in rural Logan County clapped, chanted, stood and yelled in opposition. “Who asked for this future for Logan County?” Mount Pulaski resident Sebastian Scassiferro said in […]

A public outcry and inaccurate information on social media about a proposed data center in rural Logan County have prompted officials to delay votes on zoning necessary for the project until at least February. In the meantime, representatives of Miami-based Hut 8 Corp. plan to make a presentation and answer questions about the company’s proposal […]