Briefs: Child molester sentenced
A Mount Prospect man who admitted to repeatedly molesting a female relative has earned 14 years behind bars. Ronald Sampson, 25, formerly of 413 E. Lincoln St., has been sentenced to two consecutive seven-year terms after pleading guilty in October to two counts of predatory criminal sexual assault. The felonies could have put him behind bars for as many as 60 years. Cook County Judge John Scotillo handed down the sentence. Sampson was accused of molesting a female relative over an 11-year period, from 1995 to 2006. The victim was 6 years old when the abuse began, and Sampson was 14, prosecutors have said. He was arrested in July 2006 after he impregnated the girl. Sampson originally faced more than 75 counts of various sex charges in connection with the crime. The rest of those counts were dropped in exchange for his guilty plea.
Homicides at 42-year low
Preliminary figures from the Chicago Police Department show that the number of homicides in the city has dropped to its lowest in more than 40 years. Chicago police spokeswoman Monique Bond said Chicago had 442 homicides in 2007. That's 25 fewer than in 2006 and the lowest number since 1965, when there were 395. The city said it could take two weeks to finalize the 2007 homicide number because deaths are sometimes reclassified as police continue their investigations. Chicago officials credited the improvement to their tough stance on gangs, guns and drugs. Bond said the city focused on those crimes because they often lead to random violence.
Joliet man electrocuted
Authorities said a 20-year-old Joliet man died after coming in contact with an electrical wire and being electrocuted on Chicago's South Side. According to the Cook County medical examiner's office, Raul Pina was pronounced dead Tuesday at Mercy Hospital and Medical Center. Initial reports said Pina had touched a downed ComEd power line, but a ComEd spokesman said the accident involved a streetlamp owned by the city of Chicago.
We Love Soy wins award
We Love Soy Inc., an all-vegan company run by a group of Glen Ellyn entrepreneurs, received the Libby Award from peta2, a youth animal rights organization. The company's Temptation Vegan Ice Cream was voted Best Vegan Ice Cream by visitors to peta2's Web site as part of the second annual Libby (liberation) Awards, which honor animal-friendly people and products.
Man's body identified
Chicago police said Wednesday they have identified a body found buried in a basement as a 25-year-old Oak Lawn man who has been missing since 2004. Authorities said police and firefighters found the body of Eric Kaminski after they received a tip that led them to a home in Chicago's Pilsen neighborhood. The body was found with the help of cadaver dogs under six feet of concrete and limestone after a day's worth of digging. Police said a suspect in the death is held on unrelated charges. Authorities said an autopsy found Kaminski died of multiple gunshot wounds.
Global Campus begins
A fourth campus joined the University of Illinois system on Wednesday, but there were no students hustling to get to classes or meeting up with friends on the Quad. Instead, the approximately 15 students enrolled in the university's Global Campus will have virtual orientations to the online institution. "It's really not your traditional campus experience. What's been developed is innovative and exciting," said Becky Vinzant, director of student services for Global Campus. The first two degree programs will be a bachelor of science degree in nursing and a master's of education in online learning, as well as a graduate certificate in the foundations of e-learning. Students got access to class materials at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday; several logged in around 6 a.m. to download reading materials or video clips, said Chet Gardner, special assistant to President Joseph White on Global Campus. The brick-and-mortar campuses are in Urbana-Champaign, Chicago and Springfield.