AP Wire News en-us Tue, 09 Feb 2010 15:10:10 GMT Tue, 09 Feb 2010 15:10:10 GMT 5 iNEWS AP Wire Story Listing Generator http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/39d99341-www.wicd15.com.shtml BELLEVILLE, Ill. (AP) -- Hundreds of schools are closed in southern Illinois as the region deals with the fallout of a winter storm that blanketed the area in several inches of snow. AP News www.wicd15.com-39d99341 http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/2ed992b7-www.wicd15.com.shtml CHICAGO (AP) -- Hundreds of flights have been canceled at Chicago's airports as a winter storm moves across Illinois, with up to a foot of snow forecast for the region. AP News www.wicd15.com-2ed992b7 http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/33d98d9e-www.wicd15.com.shtml CHICAGO (AP) -- Aging research at the University of Illinois at Chicago is getting a healthy boost from the National Institutes of Health. AP News www.wicd15.com-33d98d9e http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/38d98d85-www.wicd15.com.shtml CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) -- The University of Illinois is bugging out. AP News www.wicd15.com-38d98d85 http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/2fd98d9e-www.wicd15.com.shtml URBANA, Ill. (AP) -- Illinois 4-H recently launched two new programs for young people in Illinois. AP News www.wicd15.com-2fd98d9e http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/2bd98d83-www.wicd15.com.shtml EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) -- Northwestern University is switching the way it offers federal student loans starting this fall, allowing students and parents to borrow directly from the government. AP News www.wicd15.com-2bd98d83 http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/33d98d80-www.wicd15.com.shtml JOLIET, Ill. (AP) -- Attorneys say more than two dozen witnesses are yet to be called in the hearing to determine what hearsay evidence will be allowed when Drew Peterson stands trial in the 2004 slaying of his third wife. AP News www.wicd15.com-33d98d80 http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/31d98aaa-www.wicd15.com.shtml LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A nature conservation group says it has reached a deal that would protect a huge swath of land above the world-famous Hollywood sign from being developed into luxury homes. AP News www.wicd15.com-31d98aaa http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/2dd98a70-www.wicd15.com.shtml CHICAGO (AP) -- The National Weather Service has issued a winter storm warning for northern Illinois, and is forecasting accumulations of from 12 to 14 inches of snow by Wednesday morning. AP News www.wicd15.com-2dd98a70 http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/3ad98a1b-www.wicd15.com.shtml CHICAGO (AP) -- The Chicago Transit Authority and its unions have agreed to possible meetings later this week to try to end service cuts that are forcing riders to wait longer in freezing temperatures. AP News www.wicd15.com-3ad98a1b http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/32d989dc-www.wicd15.com.shtml BELLEVILLE, Ill. (AP) -- A former St. Clair County teacher and pro wrestler who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for trying to kill a teenager in 2006 won't face additional time for assaulting police and paramedics who aided him after a suicide attempt. AP News www.wicd15.com-32d989dc http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/2bd98506-www.wicd15.com.shtml CHICAGO (AP) -- A federal judge has ruled attorneys for former Gov. Rod Blagojevich can't have an early look at government plans for conducting his corruption trial. AP News www.wicd15.com-2bd98506 http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/3dd9841b-www.wicd15.com.shtml CHICAGO (AP) -- Chicago's mayor wants to expand the powers of the city's inspector general by giving him oversight over the city's hiring and the power to investigate aldermen. AP News www.wicd15.com-3dd9841b http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/33d98315-www.wicd15.com.shtml CHICAGO (AP) -- The state of Illinois is planning a pilot project to enroll Medicaid recipients in six counties in managed care, an effort being criticized by advocates for the developmentally disabled. AP News www.wicd15.com-33d98315 http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/2dd982ac-www.wicd15.com.shtml JOLIET, Ill. (AP) -- An attorney has testified that the fourth wife of former suburban Chicago police officer Drew Peterson talked about extorting money from her husband just days before she vanished in 2007. AP News www.wicd15.com-2dd982ac http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/3bd9820a-www.wicd15.com.shtml EVERETT, Wash. (AP) -- The biggest plane Boeing Co. has ever built takes off on its first flight. AP News www.wicd15.com-3bd9820a http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/2ed981d7-www.wicd15.com.shtml CHICAGO (AP) -- The head of the American Medical Association says he thinks Washington's big snowstorm could help break the ice on healthcare reform. AP News www.wicd15.com-2ed981d7 http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/22d98168-www.wicd15.com.shtml WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Obama administration says it will spend $78.5 million to halt the giant Asian carp, which officials fear could spread and possibly endanger the Great Lakes region's $7 billion fishing industry. AP News www.wicd15.com-22d98168 http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/32d98111-www.wicd15.com.shtml MATTOON, Ill. (AP) -- Backers of the planned experimental clean-coal power plant called FutureGen say the public-private venture envisioned for eastern Illinois has landed another corporate partner. AP News www.wicd15.com-32d98111 http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/30d9801e-www.wicd15.com.shtml JOLIET, Ill. (AP) -- A divorce attorney for Drew Peterson's third wife says the former suburban Chicago police officer's fourth wife called him days before she disappeared in 2007. AP News www.wicd15.com-30d9801e http://www.wicd15.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.il/33d97f95-www.wicd15.com.shtml CHICAGO (AP) -- Illinois regulators are visiting a Chicago nursing home following the federal government's decision to kick the facility out of the Medicaid program. AP News www.wicd15.com-33d97f95 http://www.wicd15.com/