Briefs: Horse slaughter ban upheld
A federal appeals court in Chicago has upheld an Illinois law that bans the slaughter of horses for human consumption. Unless an appeal is filed, the ruling will force the closure of the Cavel International plant in DeKalb, the last horse-slaughtering plant in the United States. The meat is shipped to be eaten by diners overseas, except for a portion sold to U.S. zoos. The state of Illinois banned that practice earlier this year, but the plant had been operating while the court of appeals made its decision. The Cavel plant has operated in DeKalb for about 20 years, and plant officials say it slaughters about 1,000 horses a week.
Teen charged in robberies
A Schaumburg teenager was indicted by a grand jury this week on charges he robbed four Northwest suburban convenience stores at gunpoint, prosecutors announced Friday. Ramond Jacobs, 19, of the 2600 block of Briar Trail, faces four armed robbery charges. Authorities say Jacobs robbed a Schaumburg White Hen on Aug. 20, the 24/7 Pantry in Rolling Meadows on Aug. 21 and two 7-Eleven stores -- one in Palatine on Aug. 19 and one in Arlington Heights on Aug. 23. In each case, he used a small handgun, according to reports. Jacobs was arrested in late August but originally was charged in connection with only three of the robberies, prosecutors said. Bond at that point was set at $250,000 for each of the charges. He still is in jail.
Attorney disbarred:
Barrington attorney Robert Hallock, who played a role in the tenure of former Village President Marshall Reagle, had his Illinois law license suspended recently by the state supreme court as the justices review his standing following a conviction on fraud and income tax evasion charges. Hallock was sentenced in February to two years in federal prison out of a Georgia case apparently unrelated to his work with Reagle, according to federal records. The attorney was hired by Reagle during his reign between 2001 and 2005 to litigate several controversial lawsuits against the village and its trustees.
Wheeling man gets 3 years
A 55-year-old Wheeling man was sentenced to three years in prison Thursday, weeks after pleading guilty to a child pornography charge. Byron Genson also will have to register as a sex offender. Genson, of the 1500 block of Clearwater Drive, originally faced numerous counts of child pornography. He was arrested after Darien police discovered pictures of child pornography on his home computer, officials with the Cook County state's attorney's office said. The police had been executing a search warrant stemming from a DuPage County investigation. A forensic analysis of Genson's home computer eventually revealed he'd distributed the porn to others via the Internet.