TEL_04012014

Page 1

Your source for community news and sports 7 days a week.

TIGERS XXYXXY RUDE VISITORS IN XXXX DUKES’ HOME OPENER

Downtown could be granted $50K DIXON CITY COUNCIL, A3

BASEBALL, B1

TELEGRAPH Tuesday, April 1, 2014

SERVING DIXON AND THE SURROUNDING AREA SINCE 1851

DIXON

ROCK FALLS

Resident relieved that ‘everyone made it out safe’

Evidence in pit bull death analyzed

‘Materials’ lost in fire BY CHRISTI WARREN cwarren@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 521

DIXON – Joe Leif wasn’t home when fire scorched his Dixon apartment, but his girlfriend and her daughter were. Luckily, his girlfriend discovered the fire before anyone was hurt.

The Dixon City Fire Department got a call about the fire at 404 W. Second St. at 9:42 p.m. Saturday. Though they haven’t been able to officially determine a source of the flames, which started in a closet, Chief Tim Shipman noted the closet had an an electric light fixture, which might have been

to blame. Leif, 27, who was with some friends in Rock Falls at the time the fire started, lived in an upstairs apartment. His girlfriend was lying on a bed when she first noticed the flames. FIRE CONTINUED ON A2

JUST GETTING WARMED UP AT STERLING SKATE PARK

Animal control details timeline of dog’s discovery BY KATHLEEN A. SCHULTZ kschultz@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 5535

Photos by Michael Krabbenhoeft@mkrabbenhoeft@saukvalley.com

As temperatures rose into the mid-60s and rain that had been forecast held off Monday afternoon, youngsters armed with scooters, adrenaline and sporting an distinct disregard for danger descended on the skate park in Sterling. Above, Julian Heald, 10, of Rock Falls performs a briflip as fellow tricksters look on. To the right, Detrick Johnson, 13, of Sterling lands a tailwhip.

MORE PHOTOS See the Sauk Valley through the viewfinder of SVM’s photo staff. New photos every day at www.saukvalley.com And check out the staff’s handiwork on Page C12 in every SV Weekend section.

ROCK FALLS – A necropsy was performed Monday on an adult male pit bull found a week ago today in a Rock Falls rental home. The dog appears to have died of dehydration or starvation, officials say. Results will be sent to a state lab to try to determine the time and cause of death, said Vanessa Scott, Whiteside County Animal Control warden. Its owner, Joseph Nelson, 37, of Rock Falls, was arrested Friday afternoon on a charge of aggravated cruelty to an animal, a felony that carries 1 to 3 years in prison. He was in Joseph Whiteside County Nelson Jail on Monday on $50,000 bond and has a court hearing Thursday. Animal control was notified of the dog’s death on Tuesday, and in turn notified the Whiteside County Sheriff’s Department. Deputies arrested Nelson after a 3-day investigation, Sheriff Kelly Wilhelmi said. Whether the lab will be able to determine its cause of death depends on how badly decomposed the carcass is, Scott said. Although the dog appears to be an adult, its body weighed only 25 pounds, Wilhelmi said. This case may be a first for the county in recent history: Scott, who has been with the agency since 1992, said she could not recall a single case in Whiteside County in which authorities were able to amass enough evidence to prosecute someone for felony animal cruelty. According to Scott and Wilhelmi: On March 14, Animal control received a call asking the agency to check on the welfare of the dog. Workers went to the home in the 1000 block of Lincoln Street that day. EVIDENCE CONTINUED ON A4

ILLINIOS | INCOME TAX PROPOSAL

No stance taken on permanent tax hike Lawmakers mum on their position BY DAVID GIULIANI dgiuliani@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 5525

You’ve been giving the state government an extra week’s pay every year since 2011. That’s when the state increased its income tax from 3 percent to 5 percent.

$1.00

TODAY’S EDITION: 20 PAGES 2 SECTIONS VOL. 163 ISSUE 234

The hike was billed as temporary, but Gov. Pat Quinn last week proposed to make it permanent. Two local lawmakers have yet to take a stand on Quinn’s proposal – state Rep. Mike Smiddy, D-Hillsdale, and Sen. Mike

INDEX

Jacobs, D-Moline, whose districts include Whiteside County. “I don’t want to say whether I would support or oppose it,” Smiddy said in a telephone interview Monday. “Being that I’m on the Appropriations Committee, I want to see that we go through this process. I want to have firm numbers in front of me.”

BUSINESS ......... A10 COMICS ............... A9 CROSSWORD......B9

DEAR ABBY ......... A7 LIFESTYLE ........... A7 LOTTERY ............. A2

In an interview with the QuadCity Times last week, Smiddy was reported as saying that the idea to extend the temporary tax increase was a good move. “We’ll just have to look at it, see what they bring for us in the Legislature in the next few months,” he told the newspaper.

OBITUARIES ........ A4 OPINION .............. A6 SPORTS ...............B1

HIKE CONTINUED ON A4

Rep. Mike Sen. Mike Smiddy Jacobs A member of the Fellow Democrat Appropriations says state has Committee, “a lot of reasons Democrat wants to keep the tax,” “firm numbers in but points out its front of me.” temporary billing.

Today’s weather High 51. Low 33. More on A3.

Need work? Check out your classifieds, B5.

TO SUBSCRIBE TO THE PAPER, CALL 815-284-2224 OR 800-798-4085


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.