Chad Feldotto replaces former executive director Tom Betsinger, who was charged last July with allegedly attempting to run over a person with his pickup truck in Yorkville and driving under the influence of alcohol.

With about 30 observers in the courtroom and on Zoom, a former Wonder Lake ski team instructor and grocery store owner admitted Tuesday to sexually abusing a child in the mid-1990s.

Prairie Grove School District 46 Superintendent John Bute has left his position in the middle of the school year, seemingly abruptly.

Kendall County Judge Jody Gleason on Tuesday made the decision after reading a doctor’s evaluation of Darryl Lee Jr., 19, who is charged with killing a man using a hammer and knife and injuring another person Oct. 22 at the Chick-fil-A restaurant in Oswego.

Parts of the Woodstock Walmart reopened Tuesday after a fire on New Year’s Eve that authorities said was intentionally set and caused millions of dollars in damage.

The annual event in downtown Joliet featured New Orleans-style music, food and street entertainment.

A Joliet man was arrested after he was accused of robbing about $5,000 worth of collectible Funko Pop figurines from a 55-year-old man. 

A developer is eyeing the construction of 12 to 15 buildings – including shops, restaurants and a possible hotel – at the site of the demolished Pheasant Run Resort in St. Charles.

Officers responded to the shooting about Sunday in the 1100 block of Clement Street, said Joliet Police Sgt. Dwayne English.

A group of preservationists are making a last-ditch effort to convince the Geneva City Council not to approve demolish request for the circa 1840s blacksmith shop at 4 E. State St.

A crew of firefighters remained on the scene overnight with the sprinkler system out of service to ensure there are no flare ups, the Joliet Fire Department said.

A Crystal Lake officer was the subject of an internal investigation after he misplaced a personal weapon, which was picked up by a convicted felon, authorities said. Here is the result of the investigation of the officer.

Firefighters found smoke and flames showing from the rear of the house. No residents were home at the time of the fire, the Joliet Fire Department said.

Duane Meyer, 43, is charged with four counts of first-degree murder, two counts of aggravated arson and one count of concealment of a homicidal death in connection with an Oct. 19, 2016, Byron house fire in which his ex-wife, Margaret “Maggie” (Rosko) Meyer, 31, was found dead

Flash, the wandering husky rescued from a frigid pond in St. Charles Township last month has found his forever home in Woodstock.

At an emergency meeting Tuesday, the Kankakee School Board approved the immediate closure of Edison Primary due to structural issues in the building, which had been home to 185 students in kindergarten through third grades.

Brave Arts Creative Studio, at 115 S. Hennepin Ave. in Dixon, is open Monday through Friday at various times for kids to get creative at open studio or learn about art in a more structured setting and for art parties designed for families and adults.

A DeKalb group that spent much of 2025 protesting President Donald Trump’s administration is planning another demonstration at noon on Tuesday to rally against the president's actions in Venezuela.

As the result of Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul's lawsuit, a Carroll County judge has ordered two former Carroll County residents, who are white, to pay more than $90,000 for their months-long campaign of intimidation against their neighbor, who is a Black man.

Community members lined Main Street in downtown St. Charles on Saturday with a message they argued city officials are failing to hear: That ICE is not welcome in the community.

Authorities said a man is in a medically induced coma and may lose his eye from a fight outside a bar in McHenry on New Year’s Eve, for which a local man has been charged.

Flu activity in suburban Cook County elevated from high to very high for the week ending Dec. 27, and continues to increase, according to the Cook County Department of Public Health’s respiratory surveillance data.

Traffic was reduced to one lane near downtown Main Street in St. Charles over the weekend as the city repaired a water main break. Here’s what continues to be closed.

The DeKalb District 428 school board is expected to vote to approve a new superintendent at a special meeting Monday. If approved, Billy Hueramo's 3-year contract will begin July 1.

The Joliet Public Library's Black Road branch closed on Dec. 15. The partial reopening will provide more space for reading and browsing the library’s full collection,

After years of delays, a developer is expected to present his final plan to turn the long-vacant former St. Mary’s Hospital on Fisk Avenue in DeKalb into an apartment building.

According to the McHenry County Department of Health’s respiratory illness surveillance report, respiratory illness as a whole and flu, COVID and RSV are all at peak levels.

From elections and major developments to big hires and more, here’s some DeKalb County news we’re keeping an eye on in 2026:

The Friends of the Fox River is urging community members to join their efforts to prevent the U.S. EPA from ending protections for millions of acres of wetlands and miles of streams. It all comes down to what's defined as "Waters of the United States."

Woodstock Mayor Mike Turner has reponded to two violent public acts that happened on New Year’s Eve and thanked police and prosecutors for their prompt responses.

A fire that started in a water heater closet inside an apartment building in DeKalb late Thursday initially displaced seven residents, authorities said. As of Friday afternoon, only one resident from one unit remains displaced, said Acting Fire Chief Luke Howieson.

Firefighters rescued an Aurora woman trapped inside her apartment during a fire on New Year’s Day; a dog was also rescued.

A Whiteside County man has been charged with criminal sexual assault, battery, and unlawful restraint in connection with a Dec. 31 incident

Hours after an audacious military operation that plucked leader Nicolás Maduro from power and removed him from the country, President Donald Trump said Saturday that the United States would run Venezuela at least temporarily and tap its vast oil reserves to sell to other nations

The first-time parents of the first baby to be born in DeKalb County in 2026 drove their child home to Hinckley on Friday.

Saying he wasn’t comfortable with forcing the county to pay, a Whiteside County judge has denied the public defender’s office's request to hire an expert to watch consumptive DNA evidence testing in a case accusing a Sterling man of sexual assault and abuse.

Charges have been upgraded to aggravated arson against a 21-year-old woman who is accused of intentionally setting a fire in Walmart in Woodstock.

The Richmond Township supervisor and clerk, who were elected, as well as the office manager, all resigned on the same day.

A man “maliciously attacked” a woman in a gas station in Woodstock and said he intended to kill her, police said.

Crystal Lake police have arrested a man who they say was drunk while driving a damaged Cadillac and possessing a stolen pistol, a scale and box coated with cocaine.

A driver was killed in a single-vehicle crash near Harvard Wednesday, authorities said.

A developer wants to install an industrial and commercial business park with travel center, a gas station and convenience store along Peace Road in DeKalb. The plan is being called the DeKalb Commerce Center, documents show.

The charges alleged Christopher McClinton used a counterfeit $100 to buy a lottery ticket on July 13 from a gas station in Joliet.

The charges, filed Tuesday, Dec. 30, stem from a Dec. 7 incident in which the man is accused of possessing meth while carrying a loaded BB gun.

Demolition has begun on Crystal Lake's Academy Building, one of the oldest structures in town. Preservationists' efforts to save it were unsuccessful, but they were able to document the building before its demise.

A fire Wednesday evening at Walmart in Woodstock prompted the store to be evacuated and to remain closed for the evening.

A two-story house in Cary and its contents were deemed a total loss in a Wednesday fire that caused partial collapse to the structure. A pet remained missing.

DeKalb police are asking for the public’s help in an investigation of a reported burglary in the Summit Enclave subdivision on Christmas Day.

Will County welcomed a lot of new businesses in 2025 – and saw a few long-time ones close their doors. The restaurant and coffee scene is bustling.

A 65-year-old Dixon man was charged Wednesday, Dec. 31, with home invasion and attempted murder, accused of entering a Dixon home and stabbing a man, according to Dixon police.