Local attorney indicted for allegedly voting twice in Peoria County's April election
Thorn M. Smith was charged with voting more than once after prosecutors say he submitted both a mail-in ballot and attempted to vote in person during the 2025 spring election cycle.
Smith, an attorney, allegedly voted via a mail-in ballot in March and then again voted in person at a polling place on April 1, according to prosecutors. Despite an election judge's computer indicating that he had already voted via a mail-in ballot, Smith signed a form stating he did not vote previously and submitted a second ballot, according to Jodi Hoos' office.
The second ballot was not counted.
More: County administrator and public defender among highest-paid Peoria County employees
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Attorney indicted for allegedly voting twice in Peoria County election
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
35 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Mt. Holly man admits to racist threat with firearm at NoDa pizza shop
A Mt. Holly man pleaded guilty to a federal civil rights violation in a Charlotte court Tuesday after he admitted to threatening eight individuals with a firearm due to their race, color, religion, and national origin. The incident occurred in June 2024, inside a Zämbies Pizza in NoDa, where 32-year-old Maurice Hopkins confronted a group of friends, questioning their nationality and making derogatory remarks. PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Man kicked out of NoDa pizza shop for racist remarks returns with gun According to a release from the United State's Attorney's Office, he escalated the situation by leaving the restaurant and returning with a loaded AR-15 style rifle, causing the victims to flee. Court documents reveal that Hopkins threatened to punch the victims and retrieve a firearm to kill them. Hopkins pleaded guilty to one count of interference with federally protected activities, a charge that carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. He remains in federal custody as a sentencing date has not yet been set. VIDEO: 9 Investigates: Racist, antisemitic books found in Charlotte's 'Little Free Libraries' Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
35 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Day 3 of trial for alleged mastermind in Young Dolph murder
Hernandez Govan will be live in the courtroom at 9:30 a.m. in the video box above. MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Hernandez Govan, the man accused of orchestrating the death of rapper Young Dolph, is set to appear in court for day three of his trial Wednesday morning. On Tuesday, Angela Arnold, the girlfriend of Cornelius Smith, was the first witness to take the stand. She told the court that to her knowledge, Smith never had direct contact with Big Jook and that he would communicate with Govan to send and receive messages. She also testified she saw Govan at a carwash hours after Young Dolph's death, when Smith picked up a cellphone from Govan he had left in the white Mercedes used in the murder. Various Memphis Police Investigators were then called to testify in court, along with cell phone records. According to the investigators, they went over calls and text records of Goavn, Smith, and Big Jook in the months leading up to the murder and afterward. They say Smith appeared to have several outgoing calls to Govan. But in cross-examination, Govan's defense attorney explained the reasoning for their communication, saying, Govan supplied Smith with various types of pills, and Johnson talked with him because he was an aspiring rapper. Another investigator who testified said detectives went to the airport to execute a search warrant on Big Jook's phone and asked if they could speak to him, but he refused. This story will be updated. ► Day 1: Trial of alleged mastermind in Young Dolph case ► Day 2: Trial of alleged mastermind in Young Dolph case Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Virginia teens suspended for questioning transgender student about being in boys locker room
Two Virginia teen students are being suspended after they were recorded on video questioning why a female student who identifies as male was in the boys locker room. The Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) is suspending the Stone Bridge High School students for 10 days following a Title IX investigation into the incident earlier this year, attorney Josh Heltzer, who represents the boys' families, told 7News. Heltzer said that LCPS found the boys to be responsible for sexual harassment and sex-based discrimination in a case that has sparked a furious response from parents the boys' parents as well as Virginia's attorney general, who has argued that the school agency's process was biased and retaliatory. Parents Blast School Board As Boys Investigated For Complaining About Trans Student In Locker Room Heltzer said the families were notified by LCPS on Friday of the decision. The school agency has not publicly announced the suspension. The punishment includes a no-contact order with the complainant, including not being able to be in any of the same classes. The boys are also required to meet with school administrators to determine a corrective action plan, according to Hetzler. Seth Wolfe, one of the boys' parents, told 7News that he was angered by the decision and said it was concerning development. Read On The Fox News App "[We're] saddened by the decision-making process and how that went," Wolfe said. Another parent, Renae Smith, was also furious and said she had already pulled her child out of the school and that the family had moved out of state. "[We're] absolutely floored that they came back and branded my son responsible for sexual harassment and sex-based discrimination with no solid evidence whatsoever," Smith told 7News. "We're talking about scarring him for life by a biased process that's supposed to protect fairness, but it's shocking. It's wrong, and it should terrify every single parent." Smith said she is concerned that the decision will follow her son because it will be on his permanent academic record and could impact his college applications. Virginia School Districts Support For Transgender Students' Rights In Governor's Race Spotlight Both Wolfe and Smith said that LCPS is sending a message that any student who expresses views that disagree with Policy 8040 will be punished. Policy 8040 is a controversial guideline adopted in 2021 that permits students to use restrooms and locker rooms that align with their gender identity rather than their biological sex. "They're going to have to follow what Loudoun County says, what they believe is right, and what goes against other people's beliefs, or what we believe is right," said Wolfe. "What they're doing to our children is just despicable," added Smith. Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares referred LCPS to federal authorities, accusing the school agency of improperly targeting three male students not for misconduct, but for expressing discomfort about sharing a locker room with a member of the opposite sex, according to Fox 5 DC. It is unclear whether the third student will be suspended. Miyares said the footage did not show discriminatory or derogatory behavior, but rather the boys asking the student recording them to leave. The video was recorded by the trans student. While it is illegal to record inside locker rooms, an LCPS official confirmed to Fox 5 DC in May that none of the boys appeared in compromising positions in the video and, therefore, it was determined that no privacy laws were violated. The LCPS told Fox News Digital that it does not publicly discuss private student matters. A spokesperson said that the school system "has a comprehensive and objective process for Title IX investigations." The Founding Freedoms Law Center, which has been representing the families in this case, said it will keep fighting the case until this determination is overturned. "The Founding Freedoms Law Center is working with our clients on next steps, but we are not going to let these boys go down without a fight; we're going to stand with them all the way till they are innocent," Victoria Cobb, the president of the Family Foundation of Virginia, told 7News. "Our clients have done nothing wrong and they deserve to be deemed innocent," Cobb said. The incident is not the first to draw national on LCPS. It made national headlines in 2021 when a father was arrested and hauled out of a board meeting for speaking out about the sexual assault of his daughter by a trans student at a local school. LCPS also spent $11 million on adding gender-neutral single-occupancy restrooms in nine schools in the district. "We've seen time and time again that Loudoun County, if given the opportunity to do the right thing, will instead do the wrong thing," Cobb said. "LCPS, once again, shows that it is willing to harm students in the name of woke ideology, while every student is harmed when they do things like deny federal funds to kids' education. These boys, in particular, are being made examples of what happens when someone crosses school indoctrination."Original article source: Virginia teens suspended for questioning transgender student about being in boys locker room Solve the daily Crossword
