Local Crime Report

NORMAL, Ill. – Illinois State University is now in the third week of the fall semester, and the year is officially underway. Local police are doing a great job keeping the streets of Normal safe. 

“Other than the storms during the move-in, it’s been a rather unremarkable start to the year for us,” University Police Chief Aaron Woodruff said. “That is always subject to change without notice, so we are thankful for relative peace and calm.  We’ve primarily dealt with thefts, mental health calls and vehicle accidents.” 

Those storms, Woodruff mentioned, happened the week before classes began. There was damage to the town. Many houses received some unexpected water, and trees came crashing down. 

Woodruff said A lot of the criminal activity over the first couple of weeks has been pretty standard offenses. There have been multiple counts of theft, a couple of false ID charges and many mental health cases. 

The more serious activity has been rare, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t happened. For example, on August 27, police responded to an incident at Cardinal Court. There was unlawful use of a weapon during a domestic dispute. The perpetrator(s) were arrested. 

Another incident worth noting was handled by the Normal Police Department in collaboration with U.S. Marshals. 

Daveon Smith, a 21-year-old male, was arrested for charges of grooming, exploitation of a minor on two counts and child sexual abuse material/solicitation. 

Normal PD Detectives were able to positively identify the suspect. The case was subsequently presented to a McLean County Grand Jury, which returned a bill of indictment, and an arrest warrant was issued for the suspect.

For more updates on crime and news in Bloomington/Normal, follow along on wznd.com.