Capitol Notebook for weekend of July 5-6.

Gov. ROD BLAGOJEVICH has called the General Assembly back to Springfield Wednesday and Thursday, ostensibly so the House can pass some bills that would help fill what Blagojevich says is a $2 billion budget hole. For drama, this will be a four-star yawn.

A man suspected in a killing spree that left eight people dead will return to a Knox County Court on July 21 after waiving his right to a public defender Thursday afternoon.

With 28,000 acres of farmland under water from flooding at the broken levee in Gulfport, Henderson County officials plan to cut holes in the levee to allow water back into the receding Mississippi River.

Farm life was peaceful in Wayne County - until Ben and Agnes Shelton's boys grew up. Second of two parts.

Son of Brutality. Havoc. Newsense. Problem Child. These names are the sort favored by Dayton Bodine, proprietor of Killinois Kennels headquartered on North 11th Street in Springfield. And he makes no apologies for the monikers or for owning more than a dozen pit bulls.

State transportation officials have prepared a two-inch-thick report to justify transferring more than 100 traffic-safety employees from Springfield to the far southeastern town of Harrisburg.

State Briefs 7/2/08

In the end, Bernie Shelton learned that fast fists and a tough reputation can't stop the determination of a bullet - or long-boiling revenge. First of two parts.

They scream, jump around on stage and encourage their fans to “destroy everything” in the mosh pit. Oh, and if you didn’t realize, they’re Christian.

The Blagojevich administration has halted work on 39 construction projects across the state, saying the newly passed budget for the fiscal year that began Tuesday contains language prohibiting them from moving forward.

For the second time in less than a year, a state panel rejected a proposal to build a 128-bed nursing home in East Peoria that would be called Liberty Village.

Friends gathered outside Ronald A. Randall's home Tuesday afternoon swapping stories about the gentle 65-year-old man who was murdered Saturday. Randall's body was discovered behind the East Main Street Hy-Vee Food Store around noon Monday.

War on Terror veterans will get the same benefits as their World War II predecessors under the new Montgomery GI Bill which will now guarantee a four-year college education.

State Briefs 7/1/08