The trial of suspended White County jailer, 38-year-old Phillip Lowery, ended in a mistrial late Friday night after the jury was deadlocked following nearly 12 hours of deliberations. Lowery stood trial on a class-2 felony charge of aggravated criminal sexual abuse. Lowery was accused of fondling a four-year-old girl. The case against him began to unfold in June of 2012 when the alleged victim’s mother was scrolling through some photos on her cell phone and pointed out a picture of the suspect. The girl told her mother that Lowery had made her fondle him. Lowery’s trial was delayed earlier this year after allegations surfaced that one of his co-workers, Melissa L. Kittinger, a 911 dispatcher for the White County Sheriff’s Department, had contacted potential jurors in the case. Kittinger was charged with unlawful communications with a juror and is free on $1500 bond.
The Cisne FFA Livestock team finished as the 3rd place team in Section 23 competition held this past week at the Richland County Fairgrounds in Olney. 115 students from 13 schools competed at the event. The team is made up of Noah Barnard, Emily Benca, Jayden Brown, Marissa Byars, Bryan Bailey, Kirsten Rodgers, Russell Hilliard, Samantha Brookman, Jared Taylor and Justin Gill. Barnard earned 4th place overall individually and Benca finished 6th overall.
The Little Wabash River at Carmi and the Wabash River at New Harmony has crested, and both are beginning a slow fall. At Carmi the Little Wabash River should fall to around 32 feet Monday. Flood stage is 27 feet. The Wabash at New Harmony should fall below its flood stage of 15 feet by next Sunday. Some more rain is possible in the area tonight and into Monday, and again on Friday.
Illinois has no areas in drought for the first time since last August, but reports say the rains have not helped with spring planting chores. The rains of the past few weeks have helped with soil moisture and the flow of streams, but have put spring planting on hold. The average precipitation for the past week was 50 percent above normal, with nearly 20 percent of the state’s topsoil rated as saturated. The 30-day forecast is indicating above-normal rainfall and below-normal temperatures, the same conditions that led to delayed planting last spring.
An Associated Press story says Illinois is slated to receive $22 million from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife for fish and wildlife conservation efforts in the state. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources says they’ll use the money to fund current projects, including research on deer and catfish. The report said deer in Illinois have been found to have diseases affecting population for the past 12 years, and the state has been making efforts to limit the spread of the diseases. The state is also monitoring the sustainability of catfish in the Wabash River.