Pronouns are the workhorses of the English language and I never found them to be particularly controversial – until recently. In case you’ve forgotten your fourth-grade grammar lessons, some examples of pronouns are: he, she, we, they, it. Recently, a Catholic priest in Arizona found out that sometimes the grammar police wear clerical robes and […]
Scott Reeder
Scott Reeder is a staff writer at Illinois Times.
Posted inNews
Fatal consequences
More than two years after her 14-year-old daughter and three other people were killed in a head-on car crash, Brenda Protz is still seeking justice – not just in her own family’s tragedy but for other families who may find themselves in similar circumstances. Police and prosecutors say the fatal crash was a result of […]
Posted inNews
See for yourself
Sangamon County is pioneering a way of making court cases more transparent – it’s livestreaming hearings on the internet. “To the best of my knowledge, we are the first county in Illinois to do this,” said Circuit Clerk Paul Palazzolo. Cameras were first allowed in Illinois courtrooms 10 years ago, under an initiative spearheaded by […]
Posted inOpinion
Cutting the columnists
Phil Luciano, perhaps Illinois’ best newspaper columnist, hung up his fedora at the Peoria Journal-Star and left the newspaper business. I’ve known Phil for 35 years and have long admired his writing. We were once classmates in a graduate program at Sangamon State University back when “Big Jim” Thompson was in the Governor’s Mansion and […]
Posted inNews
From Springfield to statewide
It’s been a long time since someone from Sangamon County sought a state constitutional office, but this year veteran prosecutor John Milhiser, a Springfield resident, is seeking the GOP nod for secretary of state. Since stepping down as U.S. attorney in the Central District of Illinois, Milhiser has taught government, English and history at Lawrence […]
Posted inOpinion
More than puppy love
I picked up the phone the other day and made a dinner reservation for a Valentine’s Day date. The manager wrote down, “Party of two for 7:30 p.m.” I couldn’t help but smile. It will be my 20th Valentine’s Day date in a row with the same person. Folks sometimes ask what brought us together. […]
Posted inNews
Fancy Nancy illustrator donates artwork
An annual art show to raise money for Sangamon County foster children is stepping it up a notch and getting fancy. Fancy Nancy, to be precise. In early January, Illinois Times published a story about a local ministry, The James Project, hosting its sixth annual Artsy: An Art Fair for Kids in Care! to raise […]
Posted inOpinion
Preferential treatment
Colleges should admit the most qualified applicant. That’s the way many of us were taught life is supposed to work. But we know it often doesn’t. The U.S. Supreme Court is taking up the issue of university admissions in its upcoming term. It will look at the admission formulas used by Harvard University and University […]
Posted inNews
More girls accuse detective’s son of sexual abuse
The girls were 14, 15 and 16; Zane Merreighn, the adult son of a Springfield police detective, is charged with sexually abusing them, and their parents say area law enforcement failed to adequately protect their daughters. Merreighn, the 22-year-old son of detective Jennifer Oglesby Mack, was arrested Oct. 26 on charges of sexually abusing a […]
Posted inNews
Mary Miller takes on Rodney Davis
The new 15th Congressional District borders three states, encompasses one-third of Illinois’ counties, is overwhelmingly Republican and is the new battleground between two GOP incumbents: Rodney Davis and Mary Miller. “Conventional wisdom says this is Rodney Davis’ race to lose, but I’m not so sure. I wouldn’t write Mary Miller off. She has the endorsement […]
Posted inOpinion
Letters get results
I mail letters to get results. This month, I noticed a leak under my kitchen counter and called a plumber. He told me how much it would cost and asked for payment in advance. Over the next week, plumbers visited our house multiple times but the project was never quite done. My wife and I […]
Posted inNews
See for yourself
Kokela Slaughter is proud of her son who will soon graduate from Lanphier High School, but she wants to know why he was punched in the head by a Springfield police officer. On Nov. 17, police officers responded en masse to a fatal stabbing at Lanphier High School. A 15-year-old girl has been charged in […]
