Big night tonight at Flinn Stadium in Quincy, as the Quincy High School Class of 2009 has graduation ceremonies.

Let’s hope everybody is safe. There is an all-night graduation part after the ceremonies, with the idea to lock the kids inside and let them have a safe and fun party to celebrate.

Some students won’t attend. They will drink. They will think they are celebrating, though they are wrong.

During Baccalaureate Thursday night, Rev. Wally Carlson told the graduates he knew some of them would celebrate in ways he thought might not be the best.

“I urge you to use that computer between your ears,” he said.

Let’s hope everybody is safe, nobody gets behind the wheel after drinking, everybody wakes up Saturday and celebrates a successful graduation.

Memorial Day Weekend was again a safe one in our area.

Both the Illinois State Police in Pittsfield and the Missouri State Highway Patrol in Macon report there were no fatalities on our roadways last weekend.

In Missouri, Troop B officers investigated 16 traffic crashes, with 13 injuries and one fatality in Chariton County. None of our Northeast Missouri counties had a fatal crash. Troop B has 16 counties.

Troop B officers made 16 arrests for driving while intoxicated, issued 375 speeding citations and 169 seat belt citations, and assisted 104 motorists.
Troop B officers also issued 224 seat belt citations and eight citations for failure to properly secure a child in an approved child restraint seat.

In Illinois, this marks the sixth straight year there has not been a fatal vehicle crash on Memorial Day Weekend.

District 20 troopers issued 337 citations, including 168 for speeding and 130 for occupant restraint violations. There were 12 alcohol-related arrests, three for for DUI. There were 116 total warnings issued, 31 for speed.

A judge who peppers his opinion with Caddyshack quotes should be nominated for a Supreme Court position.

Click here for more ….

A short and moving tribute took place this morning in the City Hall parking lot. Quincy Police Chief Rob Copley and various law enforcement officers observed a moment of silence to remember their fallen comrades, police officers who have been killed in the line of duty.

The QPD Honor Guard hoisted flags, and Jeff Schuecking played Taps on his trumpet. Not sure what it is about Taps, but it’s about the most moving and loneliest sound you could ever hear.

In 2008, 134 police officers were killed in the line of duty in this country, four in Illinois. The Quincy Police Department has also suffered losses, though thankfully not in recent times.

Among those Quincy officers remembered today:
William H. Dallas, died May 30, 1876 by gunfire;
Thomas J. Seehorn, died Aug. 19, 1878 by stabbing;
Robert Bumster , died May 24, 1919 by gunfire;
Osmer G. Milbert, died October 28, 1957 by gunfire;
Frank J. Howell, died Feb. 19, 1964 by heart attack;
Floyd J. Farrar (Illinois State Police), died Dec. 17, 1968 when struck by a vehicle.

You gotta love a judge who tells a defendant exactly what he thinks.

Former NBA player Corie Blount was sentenced today to a year in prison for a marijuana possession charge. Investigators said he was charged in connection with finding 29 pounds of marijuana at his home and at a relative’s home.

Blount claimed it was for his use and to share with friends.

Judge Craig Hedric didn’t buy it.

“Cheech and Chong would have had a hard time smoking that much,” he told Blount.

Hedric also fined Blount $10,000 and ordered him to surrender two vehicles and $34,000 in cash seized in the bust.

Jodi McGrew graduated from Quincy High School and was at Chaddock in Quincy. She was brutally murdered last year by her brother in law.

Jodi’s mother, Sandi Zogg, says justice was not served when her killer was sentenced to 50 years in prison.

Click here for my column about Sandi Zogg’s quest.

Click here for Sandi’s online petition.

Click here for Jodi McGrew’s myspace.com page.

The U.S. Supreme Court’s Arizona v Gant decision has local authorities offering opions. Click here for The Whig story.

For a thorough overview, click here.

For the U.S. Supreme Court decision, click here.

For an intriguing defense attorney’s take, click here.

George Buss of Freeport returned to Quincy Friday to do his Abraham Lincoln impersonation.

It was awesome.

Buss was in Quincy last fall for the Lincoln-Douglas debate ceremonies. On Friday, he was a guest of the Adams County Bar Association for the annual Law Day luncheon at Tony’s Old Place.

Buss gave a short but riveting performance. Wearing the garb of the day and taking off his stove pipe hat, he talked in a plain tone about being an attorney in Quincy, and his reference to “knowing all the facts but drawing the wrong conclusion” was both funny and accurate.

Buss also praised Lincoln’s longtime rival, Stephen Douglas, for opening the door to national discussion about slavery. He said Douglas indeed may be overshadowed by Lincoln, but the man who walked the very same streets we walk should be recognized in his own right.

Rev. Cecil Fletcher, pastor of Union Missionary Baptist Church, was so impressed Buss that he claimed he might even draw inspiration for a Sunday message.

“Amen!” Buss said.

Kudos to the ACBA for getting Buss back to Quincy, and should he ever return again, make sure you catch him.