Illinois quick hits: Mine manager pleads guilty; Johnson issues food executive order

Illinois quick hits: Mine manager pleads guilty; Johnson issues food executive order

August 29, 2025/
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By Jim Talamonti | The Center Square
The Center Square

Mine manager pleads guilty

A former Franklin County mine manager has pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration in relation to an underground fire in August 2021.

Prosecutors say Timothy Brandon Parsons, 38, of Louisa, Kentucky, and co-conspirators agreed not to evacuate miners over the course of three shifts or notify MSHA, even though gas detectors alarmed for the presence of more than 10 parts per million of carbon monoxide. Sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 18.

Johnson issues food executive order

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has signed an executive order establishing nutrition standards for foods and beverages sold or served on city-owned property.

The order aims to ensure that low fat, low sugar, culturally-appropriate food options are available in city facilities.

Johnson said all city agencies will be subject to mandatory purchasing guidelines for any food sold or served on city property.

Bluegrass music at Lincoln’s New Salem

The Traditional Music Festival and Bluegrass Concerts are coming to Lincoln’s New Salem State Historic Site in Menard County.

The annual event takes place Sept. 5 through Sept. 7.

Performers from all over the Midwest play music with instruments like mountain and hammer dulcimers, autoharps, fiddles, banjos and more.

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