Friday, May 17, 2013
Passed by a 35-21 vote, the bill now goes to the desk of Gov. Pat Quinn, who has not yet said whether he intends to sign it.
By a vote of 35-21, the Illinois Senate approved legislation on Friday that would allow doctors in the state to prescribe marijuana as pain relief for severe medical conditions. The bill now goes to Gov. Pat Quinn for his signature. According to the Chicago Tribune, the bill covers 33 specific conditions—including multiple sclerosis, cancer and HIV infection—and includes several controls, with a four-year trial program, dosage limits, fingerprinting, background checks and licensed dispensing centers. “This bill is filled with walls to keep this limited,” the paper quoted sponsoring Sen. Bill Haine (D-Alton), who urged lawmakers to pass the legislation as a compassionate measure for those suffering with extreme pain. In opposition, Sen. …
Thursday, April 18, 2013
Gov. Quinn has declared a state of emergency in the wake of flooding throughout the Chicago area.
Governor Pat Quinn declared a state of emergency as state agencies prepared to provide assistance to local governments throughout northern Illinois dealing with severe river and flash flooding. The state of emergency ensures that state resources are activated and that the federal government is aware that a disaster declaration is likely. It also allows the state to request resources as needed, such as personnel and equipment. State and local emergency personnel have been on the ground in hardest hit areas since early this morning. "Heavy rainfall over the past few days has created dangerous flooding in areas across the state," Governor Quinn stated in a press release. "Everyone should stay home and off the roads if possible. To ensure …
Sunday, April 14, 2013
Residents of our state will soon have the right to carry concealed weapons in public, but that doesn't mean safety is guaranteed.
Thursday, February 21, 2013
A storm is headed towards the south suburbs. Check out its progress towards us with our interactive weather map.
As you likely know by now, the heaviest snow of the year so far is on the way for the Oak Forest area, starting on Thursday night. Patch has The Weather Channel's app for following the storm, including radar animations of the progress. Keep checking back, and be safe! Get news alerts and Facebook updates from Patch:
Thursday, February 14, 2013
The bill will now move to the House of Representatives where it will have to pass committee and floor action before going to Gov. Quinn.
A bill to legalize same-sex marriage passed the Illinois Senate early Thursday afternoon, making a happier Valentine's Day for gay couples across the state. The Senate passed the bill—SB 10—with 34 votes in favor, 21 votes against and two abstentions. The bill will now go to the House of Representatives, where it will need 60 votes to pass. The bill will now go over to the House of Representative where it will have to repeat the same process before going to Gov. Quinn, who already voiced his support of the bill in a Chicago Tribune report. If passed, the state law defining marriage would be changed from an act between a man and a woman, to two people. "I've been told it's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when it's going to be done," …
Thursday, February 7, 2013
Legislators in support of same-sex marriage have a long way to go, but the ball is rolling.
A same-sex marriage bill may be voted on in the Illinois Senate as early as Valentine’s Day, the Chicago Tribune reports. Sen. Heather Seans, D-Chicago, sponsored the bill in last month’s lame duck session, but it took until Tuesday for it to advance past committee action in a 9-5 vote, according to the report. The bill will now go to floor process where the entire Senate will consider its passage. Should it make it through the Senate readings, it will go before the House, where the process will be repeated. If it passes the House—a big "if," according to the Tribune—it then goes up for consideration by Governor Pat Quinn. Quinn recently told the Tribune he completely supports same-sex marriage. For more, read the Chicago Tribune report.
Thursday, January 3, 2013
Cardinal Francis George releases a strongly worded letter as the State Legislature moves closer to a vote on gay marriage.
As gay marriage moves closer to a vote in the Illinois General Assembly, Cardinal Francis George has released a letter attacking the notion of same- sex marriage itself and urging Catholics to voice their objections. UPDATED: Illinois State Senate members went home on Thursday without voting the bill up or down in the final days of the veto session, although a senate committee did vote in favor of the bill to allow same-sex marraige. Supporters are hoping the bill will be passed after new lawmakers are sworn in on Jan. 9, however, it may be weeks before the bill goes before the state senate for a full vote. The marriage equality bill's failure to go before the senate for a full vote on Thursday was credited to pushback from the Catholic …
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
An appeals court has decided Illinois' ban on carrying a weapon in public is unconstitutional.
A U.S. appeals court has ruled Illinois' ban on carrying a weapon in public is unconstitutional, according to the Chicago Tribune. Under the 2-1 ruling, the state would have to allow residents to carry weapons. But the U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has given lawmakers 180 days to "craft a new gun law that will impose reasonable limitations, consistent with the public safety and the Second Amendment as interpreted in this opinion, on the carrying of guns in public," the Tribune reports. Illinois is the only state to not have some form of conceal carry, the Tribune said. Here are some excerpts from the court's opinion: "We are disinclined to engage in another round of historical analysis to determine whether eighteenth-century …
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
About 15 minutes after the polls closed, news media sources put Illinois in the Obama column, giving the president 20 electoral votes.
President Barack Obama won Illinois’ 20 electoral votes on Tuesday, defeating Republican Mitt Romney. Illinois, of course, was never in play. The only visit the president made to his home state late in the campaign came Oct. 25, when he returned to the South Side to cast an early ballot at the Martin Luther King Community Center. Obama is the first president to ever vote early in a presidential election. The Wall St. Journal and the Associated Press called the state about 15 minutes after the polls closed. The president's handling of the economy is a major factor in many voters' decision this year. "This election bears serious significance for our future," said Sheila Brady of Orland Park, outside her Fernway Elementary School polling …
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Oak Forest senior right-hander Kyle Funkhouser is a newsmaker this week. He was named the ESPNHS Gatorade Player of the Year for Illinois.
Kyle Funkhouser, a senior at Oak Forest High School, is officially a top high school baseball player in Illinois. The right-handed pitcher was named the ESPNHS Gatorade Player of the Year. He carried a 11-1 record into the Bengals' game against Marion Catholic in the semifinals of the Class 3A Lincoln-Way West Sectional. Sporting a 3.32 GPA, Funkhouser has signed a national letter of intent to play next school year at the University of Louisville. He could also be select in Major League Baseball's amateur draft. Read more about Funkhouser.
maribelle
8:23 am on Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Real problems for the Mexican Economy. 95million a year lost just due to legalization of CA CO and MI. What's next no more vaca's in Mexico? Just make it legal and leave CORPORATE (goverment) AMERICA OUT OF IT COMPLETLY, or we will have price gouging, collusion, and ever other rat bastard underhand trick our gov uses! more ›