STATE
WEDNESDAY
Illinois lawmaker proposes fantasy sports regulations By SOPHIA TAREEN The Associated Press CHICAGO – Illinois would regulate daily fantasy sports websites and add consumer protections under a proposal filed Tuesday by a state legislator who said his plan could spark discussions about how to handle a fast-growing industry under scrutiny nationwide. Under the legislation, using sites, such as DraftKings and FanDuel, wouldn’t be considered gambling in Illinois, but companies would need policies for audits and barring employees from competing. The legislation also prohibits players under 18 and allows sites to check players for child support obligations or tax liens. Rep. Mike Zalewski, a Riverside Democrat, said his plan could be at the forefront of overseeing the popular emerging technology where some payouts top $1 million. “Players with interests are protected. We don’t have people playing the games who shouldn’t be playing,” he said. “We should have some [of the] best practices to make sure everyone has a level playing field.” The Illinois legislation comes as other states are trying to determine whether the popular websites are legal. Earlier this month, Nevada regulators ordered the sites to shut down, saying they couldn’t operate without a gambling license. The sites insist they are skill-based wagers, not luck-based, so gambling regulations don’t apply.
“Players with interests are protected. We don’t have people playing the games who shouldn’t be playing. We should have some [of the] best practices to make sure everyone has a level playing field.” Mike Zalewski State representative, D-Riverside Illinois Gaming Board spokesman Gene O’Shea wouldn’t comment on the legislation Tuesday, saying such sites are “currently under review” in the state. He previously said he believes the sites are illegal in Illinois, and the board would seek a legal opinion. Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s office said Tuesday no opinion had been issued. The industry, which points to an exemption under a 2006 Internet gambling act, appeared on board with the Illinois proposal. Boston-based DraftKings said in a company statement the legislation “represents a reasonable and measured step toward oversight of fantasy sports.” Zalewski said he would pursue the legislation in the spring.
October 28, 2015 Northwest Herald Section B • Page 3
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BRIEFS Accused ex-Elburn officer could spend life in prison
ELBURN – The former Elburn police officer charged with numerous counts of sexual assault could spend the rest of his life in prison if convicted of each count, according to Kane County court records. David Wright David Wright, 54, is accused of sexually assaulting a child he knew over a period of years, from March 21, 2005, to April 27, 2015. The child was younger than 13 when the assaults began, court records show. He was indicted in June on 33 counts: 16 counts of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child, a Class X felony; 11 counts of criminal sexual assault, a Class 1 felony; and six counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse, a Class 2 felony. The Kane County State’s Attorney’s Office this month filed a notice indicating the conduct alleged in the counts “constitutes a separate and distinct act from the conduct alleged in each of those counts,” according to court records. Therefore, the records state, the minimum sentence would be 143 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections if Wright is convicted on each count. – Shaw Media
Walgreens buying Rite Aid, creating store giant
NEW YORK – Walgreens is buying buy rival Rite Aid for about $9.41 billion in cash, creating a drugstore giant with nearly 18,000 stores around the world. The deal combines the largest and third-largest U.S. drugstore chains, based on store counts. And it makes one of the world’s
largest pharmaceutical buyers even bigger at a time when other key health care players like insurers and drugmakers also are expanding through multibillion dollar deals. Deerfield-based Walgreens said it will pay $9 for each share of Rite Aid Corp. That’s a 48 percent premium to Rite Aid’s closing price of $6.08 Monday. Shares of both companies jumped Tuesday after The Wall Street Journal first reported the deal. The companies said the deal is worth $17.2 billion, when debt is included.
Man convicted in death of 12-year-old Quincy boy
QUINCY – A jury in western Illinois convicted a 20-year-old man of murder in the March shooting death of a 12-year-old Quincy boy. Jurors took less than 90 minutes Monday to find Steson Crider guilty of first-degree murder in the killing of Ray Humphrey Jr. The boy’s father, Ray Humphrey Sr., has said his son mistakenly was targeted because he was wearing a hooded sweatshirt similar to one worn by someone in a bar fight. Crider faces 45 to 85 years in prison at his sentencing scheduled for Dec. 21.
Teacher strike gives kids month off school
EAST ST. LOUIS – Self-described computer geek Edgar Williams has a clear vision of his future: Study electrical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, or perhaps Caltech. But at a time when the soft-spoken sophomore should be engrossed in his studies at East St. Louis High School, he has to be content with the tutoring and other help he can get for three hours a day at an Upward
Bound center because of an ongoing teachers strike in his southern Illinois community. “I feel mad,” Williams said Tuesday. “This is just going to slow me down.” The strike began Oct. 1 after union members rejected a tentative deal between their representatives and the school district in East St. Louis, a poor black community of about 27,000 residents in southwestern Illinois that is across the Mississippi River from St. Louis. The district, which has been under state control since 2011 because of its poor performance, said it needs to save $10 million over the next 10 years. Under the rejected deal, teachers would have received a one-time payment of $2,000 and modest raises but the amount of time it would take to reach top salary scale would have nearly doubled, to 21 years. Negotiators met Tuesday to discuss a new offer that would reduce the amount of time to get to top-scale, but neither side has shown signs that it is ready to end the stalemate.
Rauner honors man who fought attacker
MORTON – Gov. Bruce Rauner has honored a 75-year-old central Illinois chess instructor who fought off a knife-wielding man threatening to kill children at a library. Rauner was in Morton on Monday, when he declared it James Vernon Day. The Pekin Daily Times reported the governor said during an event at Morton Public Library that Vernon is “a true American hero.” The Army veteran was instructing 16 children Oct. 13 when authorities said 19-yearold Dustin Brown entered the room with two knives. The
children were able to escape the room after Vernon put himself between Brown and the door. The struggle left him with two slashed arteries in his hand and damaged a tendon in his finger.
Illinois gymnastics coach accused of sexual abuse
SCHAUMBURG – A suburban Chicago gymnastics coach is accused of sexually abusing two children with disabilities during a trip last spring to Georgia for a competition. Forty-eight-year-old Patricia Hermann of Schaumburg is charged with three counts of sexual battery against a minor and one count of aggravated sexual battery in Cobb County, Georgia. A Cook County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman said Hermann was arrested Saturday by Schaumburg police and booked Monday into the county jail, where she’s being held without bond pending extradition to Georgia. For years Hermann has coached and worked with children with disabilities as the founder and CEO of Elite Stars.
Peoria woman gets 24 years for stabbing death
PEORIA – A Peoria woman has been sentenced to 24 years in prison in her boyfriend’s stabbing death. The Peoria Journal Star reported 26-year-old Janay E. Hayes agreed to a plea deal with Peoria County prosecutors Monday, the same day her case was to go to trial. Prosecutors agreed to the 24-year sentence and to not pursue charges against Hayes for unspecified incidents at the Peoria County Jail. Hayes agreed to waive appeals. Authorities said Hayes stabbed 24-year-old Cadman M. Coates last October at an apartment after the two got into a fight. – Wire reports
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