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Monday, October 9, 2017 - Vol. 118 Issue 21
MPD finds Meth and shotgun from K-9 search
JESSIE MATIAS/PRODUCTION MANAGER
By Isaiah Herard news editor The decision by a jury back in March to grant over $4 million to a family involved in a fatal accident with a county sheriff’s deputy was overturned by Ninth District Judge Richard Gambrell. According to appellate court records, the origin of the incident happened on Sept. 3, 2004, at 11:30 p.m. The report states that Deputy Thomas Pledge responded to a dispatch about an unstable driver in an SUV. Pledge found the SUV and after seeing the SUV swerve habitually, turned on his squad video and initiated the traffic stop. Before Pledge could approach
the vehicle, the driver sped off, and Pledge pursued the vehicle south on U.S. Highway 67 toward Macomb. Pledge’s patrol vehicle reached speeds of 110 mph before reaching the intersection of University Drive. As the assailing SUV and Pledge’s squad car approached the intersection, a minivan driven by Amanda Dayton, 16, was driving north on U.S. 67 and entered the center turn lane to turn left onto University Drive. The SUV sped through the intersection, but Dayton turned in front of Pledge causing a collision on the front passenger side of the minivan. Dayton and rear passenger Mark Lorenz received inju-
ries as a result of the collision. Dayton’s mother, Jill, died as a result of her injuries. Pledge also received injuries. In March the jury awarded $3,660,968 to Brian Dayton, the surviving husband of Jill Dayton, and $468,065 to Amanda Dayton-Nehring. The case goes to the Third Circuit Appellate Court to see if the appellate judges will uphold Judge Gambrel’s ruling. VanBrooker said Spesia and the Daytons can take the matter to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals for a review by the justices of Gambrell’s ruling. The next step for legal counsel Matthew Booker, according to Gambrell, is to present orders to the court to establish retrial.
MCDONOUGH COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE
Travis L. Emmer (above) was arrested for unlawful use of a weapon, possession of methamphetamine under 5 grams, possession of drug paraphernalia and driving while license suspended.
By Isaiah Herard news editor
On October 4 at 11:30 p.m. a McDonough County Night Patrol Deputy conducted a traffic stop on Travis L. Emmer, 28, of Columbia Missouri, just north of Macomb on Highway 67 for a traffic violation. After making contact with Emmer the deputy requested a canine. The Macomb Police canine ‘hit’
on the vehicle. A search led to the seizure of 2 grams of Methamphetamine (Ice), digital scales with Methamphetamine residue and a 20 gauge sawed off shotgun. Emmers was lodged into the McDonough County Jail charged with Unlawful Use of a Weapon, Possession of Methamphetamine under 5 grams, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and Driving under a suspended license.
JESSIE MATIAS/PRODUCTION MANAGER
By Tabi Jozwick courier staff
For three consecutive years, The American Institute of Physics (AIP) has ranked Western Illinois University second in the nation among institutions offering a master’s degree in physics as the highest degree. “AIP collects data on all programs in the nation on their bachelors, masters and PhD programs and put out a booklet each year based on the data of the previous year,” said Kishor Kapale, professor of physics and physics graduate coordinator. “There are 56 masters-only programs in the nation and in the terms of graduates, we
been ranked second and we been doing that for the last three years, third year in a row.” The AIP ranks degree-granting institutions nationwide and reports statistics on all U.S. physics program, following the demographics and trends of the physical sciences community. “We are very thankful for the hard work and continual efforts of our faculty in mentoring our graduate students in their graduate research projects, which makes our program very attractive to potential students,” said WIU Physics Chair Mark Boley. According to the AIP, Western had 29 graduate students and concurred 16 Masters of Science in
physics degrees during the 20152016 school year. “Our numbers within the last two or three years have stayed about the same,” Kapale said. “It’s one or two institutions with similar programs matching with us or a little above us.” Kapale said that the master degree in physics had three options: internship, thesis or coursework. “All we require our students to do is to get that research experience and get that hands-on experience of how it is to do physics in a real-life scenario,” Kapale said. “Through that, they get that specialization, they get that flavor of the area that
interests them.” Kapale said that graduate students can take courses in several specializations of physics that included experimental, theoretical, observational astrophysics and quantum physics. “We have an observational astronomer, meaning with the help of radio telescopes that exists around the world, you can access them through the computer and looks at certain objects in the sky,” Kapale said. “Once they get that data, they download it here and analyzes it and that’s how astronomy works.” According to Kapale, the development of the physics department is important from a technological
standpoint based on his experience in the quantum physics sub-genre. “For my area of research, which is quantum physics, a more technical name for that is quantum optics, which deals with how light interacts with matter,” Kapale said. “It allows us to develop new tools for measuring small quantities of physical fields like electrical fields, magnetic fields, gravitational fields. It also allows us to develop new kinds of computers, so I work in quantum computing as well, which would be a lot exponentially faster than our traditional computers.”
Physics
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