Fairfield City Police Chief Brad Winter has announced his retirement. Mayor Chuck Griswold has appointed Det. Sgt. Keith Colclasure (left) as the new chief. Sgt. Silas Eckelberry (right) will become the new assistant chief. Current Assistant Chief Cameron Simpson will return to patrol duties. Chief Winter is retiring after 25 years of service to the city. The appointments will take effect when the City Council approves the appointments on May 13. Keith Colclasure is the son of the late Fairfield Police Chief Leon Colclasure and the great-grandson of former Fairfield officer Clarence Colclasure.
31-year-old Candice Brown has been sentenced to jail for her role in the August, 2012 slaying of a young Southern Illinois couple. Brown, the girlfriend of Danny K. Coston was sentenced Wednesday on a convictionof obstruction of justice. Following a jury trial in January, Brown was found guilty of lying to Sheriff Doug Maier about the whereabouts of Danny Brown on the night that Jacob Wheeler of Centerville and Jessi Evans of Norris City were murdered. Judge Barry Vaughn sentenced Brown to 60 days in the county jail, 30 months of probation and ordered her to complete 100 hours of community service and pay $1,000 in various fines and costs. Danny Coston is currently serving a 53 year sentence for the double homicide.
Mt. Carmel firefighters were called to a fire at the Oakview Heights Nursing Home Wednesday night. An electrical outlet overheated and burst into flames. No one was injured. The nursing home sustained minor damage.
The highest beef prices since 1987 are hitting the pocketbooks of shoppers. A dwindling number of cattle and growing export demand has tightened the supply of beef and caused the cost of fresh beef to rise to $5.28 a pound.
Frontier Community College students Emily McKibben and Sarah Vaughn have been named to the Phi Theta Kappa All-Illinois Academic Team. They received special recognition at a ceremony last week in Springfield. Pictured left to right: Eric Resor, FCC Academic Advisor and PTK Beta Alpha Lambda Chapter Advisor; McKibben, Vaughn, and Jan Wiles, Assistant Dean of Student Services.
The Fairfield Community High School Varsity Scholastic Team has qualified for a national competition in Washington D.C. In their efforts to raise money for the event, the team is sponsoring the 13th annual Mind Bowl Trivia Night at FCHS on Friday, April 25. The cost to enter is $50 per team.