BENTON — After what was scheduled to be his final pretrial before a March trial, Brian Pheasant, the Christopher man accused of killing his wife on Halloween 2016, will be tried for the crime in May.

Pheasant, 43, is charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the shooting death of his wife, Beth Pheasant, 37.

Pheasant appeared in court Friday with defense attorney Paula Newcomb and Franklin County State’s Attorney Evan Owens to hash out any last-minute motions and details for his scheduled court date on March 6.

Please click on the link for the full story from Isaac Smith of the Southern Illinoisan.

http://thesouthern.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/christopher-man-charged-in-his-wife-s-shooting-death-has/article_27487aa8-440f-5bec-acd3-f757bed74aa5.html

by Steve Dunford

There is a line of Thunderstorms that are crossing the Mississippi as we speak.  They are slow moving in front of an advancing cold front toward the area.  Small hail and wind gust up to 40 mph have been reported with these storms.  They are below severe limits.

The first round this morning brought some much needed relief to the dry conditions.  Radar generated rain totals from around the county go from .3″ near Zeigler and Royalton, .6″ around Christopher one inch around Benton Sesser and West Frankfort, pockets of 1.5″ around Thompsonville, to over 2″ northeast of Ewing.

The Storm Prediction Center still has us placed under a moderate risk (level 1 or 5) for the risk of damaging thunderstorm winds.   The SPC was eying Southern Illinois for the possibility of issuing a Severe Thunderstorm Watch.

I look for a few significant weather advisories to be issued and maybe one or two Severe Thunderstorm Warnings to be issued.

I will be monitoring the storms as they approach.   I will try to post statements on the website.  However, I will keep the Facebook page updated frequently during any severe weather event.

I am trying to tweak how I do things.  I have only posted the forecast here lately if there is a change.  I am going to go back to doing it on a daily basis again.   The Hazardous Weather Outlook and the seven day forecast are posted below.

Hazardous Weather Outlook

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of southern
Illinois, southwest Indiana, western Kentucky, and southeast
Missouri.

.DAY ONE…Today and Tonight

The Storm Prediction Center continues to outlook a marginal risk
of severe thunderstorms this afternoon and evening, particularly
from 3 to 8 p.m. Damaging wind is the primary severe weather
concern, with a limited risk for large hail. Storm hazards will
also include lightning and heavy rain.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN…Wednesday through Monday

A chance of thunderstorms is forecast for all or a portion of the
region late Saturday night through Sunday night. Locally heavy
rainfall and lightning will be the primary concerns.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT…

Spotter activation is possible this afternoon and evening,
especially across southeast Missouri and southern Illinois.

Seven Day Forecast

This Afternoon
Showers and thunderstorms likely. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 81. South southeast wind around 6 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%.
Tonight
Showers and thunderstorms likely, mainly before 10pm. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 52. South southwest wind 5 to 9 mph becoming west in the evening. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
Wednesday
Partly sunny, with a high near 68. West wind around 8 mph.
Wednesday Night
Mostly cloudy, with a low around 54. Northwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the evening.
Thursday
Partly sunny, with a high near 73. Light and variable wind.
Thursday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 54. Light south southeast wind.
Friday
Sunny, with a high near 81. Calm wind becoming south 5 to 7 mph in the morning.
Friday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 59. South wind around 5 mph.
Saturday
Mostly sunny, with a high near 86. South wind 5 to 8 mph.
Saturday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 65. South wind around 8 mph.
Sunday
A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 78. South southwest wind 9 to 11 mph becoming west northwest in the afternoon.
Sunday Night
A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 48. Northwest wind 6 to 8 mph.
Monday
Sunny, with a high near 69. North northwest wind around 7 mph.

 

by Steve Dunford

I know people are getting bits and pieces of the story on social media. I am still learning the ropes as a journalist.
One thing that I have learned in this situation is to keep things in ONE story and pass updates along. Our website has been down since Wednesday night. Social Media is all that I have at my disposal. Here is a timeline. The times are approximate.
I will share information that I hear from a house fire or an accident immediately so people can avoid the area. In this situation I was waiting for law enforcement to share.

Friday Night

6:30 PM. I knew something was going down at McDonalds. I did not know what it was at the time. I knew surveillance cameras were being checked around all the area businesses.

7:30 PM. The rumors began to circulate on social media what was going on. I was waiting to get the OK from law enforcement to share. I called WSIL-TV. They told me they had a reporter on the way.
In times of emergency, media sources put their information together. They told me they would contact me. I told them I would check their website for any information that needs to be passed along, and don’t worry about getting a hold of me.

9:00 P.M. Channel 3 broke the story. All the rumors that have been floating around, I confirmed.

9:30 P.M. I was told of the story the Crittenden County KY, paper ran, in which it was not discovered the inmates escaped until the van arrived at their jail. They were federal inmates being transported by a private company.

10:15 P.M. There was an attempted break-in in the Whittington Area, in which the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office and the Illinois State Police was handling the case.

11:00 P.M. This is when mugshots were being shared of the escapees.

When I woke up this morning, I discovered that Charles Kelly was caught last night behind the Crittenden County Press office at 11:15 p.m.
When I contacted the West City Police Department this morning, they said there was nothing new on the investigation.
I have also been in contact with Crittenden County authorities, and they still are investigating.
One question that I have in this case is whether the inmates were being transported to a federal facility and they were being housed overnight, or whether Crittenden County houses federal inmates in an agreement similar to what Jefferson County has here at home.
I will post any new information and will update this timeline when I find out anything additional.

by Steve Dunford

Dry conditions still continue. Here in West Frankfort yesterday, we just got enough rain to settle the dust.  The southeast side of the county received a half-inch of rain in places, around Sesser to the northwest, there was about a quarter of an inch.  This information is from the National Weather Service in Paducah.

Earlier in the week, it looked like that showers and thunderstorms would possibly hamper the Friday Night Lights.  That is not the case now.  Going into week seven, there has not been any weather interruptions this season.

There is a tropical depression that is forming in the Gulf of Mexico at this time.  If it intensifies, we will share information as there are a lot of people that vacation there in this area.

Seven Day Forecast

This Afternoon
Mostly cloudy, with a high near 83. Southwest wind 5 to 7 mph.
Tonight
Mostly cloudy, with a low around 63. Calm wind.
Thursday
Partly sunny, with a high near 85. Calm wind becoming south southwest around 6 mph in the morning.
Thursday Night
Mostly cloudy, with a low around 62. Light south wind.
Friday
Partly sunny, with a high near 85. Calm wind becoming south southwest 5 to 9 mph in the morning.
Friday Night
Mostly cloudy, with a low around 64. South wind 6 to 8 mph.
Saturday
A 30 percent chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 84. South wind 9 to 11 mph, with gusts as high as 18 mph.
Saturday Night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 59. West wind around 6 mph becoming calm in the evening.
Sunday
Mostly sunny, with a high near 86. Calm wind becoming south around 6 mph in the morning.
Sunday Night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 62. South southeast wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the evening.
Columbus Day
A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 85. Calm wind becoming south around 6 mph in the morning.
Monday Night
A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 56. Light and variable wind becoming southwest around 5 mph after midnight.
Tuesday
A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 72. Northwest wind 6 to 8 mph.