About Us

CU-CitizenAccess is an online newsroom devoted to community and watchdog reporting by journalism students at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign.

The newsroom focuses mostly on Champaign County and central Illinois, but produces occasional regional, national and international stories.

NEW TOOL: Click here to search Champaign County property by owner name — a feature removed by county officials

Neighborhoods

Top property owners in Champaign County include University of Illinois, Mormon church and web of landlords

In 2023, 13 property owners in Champaign County owned over 100 properties each. The largest property owner, by far, is the University of Illinois Board of Trustees, with at least 400 properties...

Causes of many fires in Champaign and Urbana go undetermined; Campustown is a hot spot

A cigarette butt flicked out of an open window.  A late-night pizza sitting in the oven for too long.  A hair curler left on during a night out.       These scenarios are...

Champaign County suffers chronically high number of domestic violence calls and cases

In the first two months of this year, there were around 10 calls per day to emergency services regarding domestic violence and disputes in Champaign County. It is the leading statistic for...

Neighborhoods

Top property owners in Champaign County include University of Illinois, Mormon church and web of landlords

In 2023, 13 property owners in Champaign County owned over 100 properties each. The largest property owner, by far, is the University of Illinois Board of Trustees, with at least 400 properties...

Causes of many fires in Champaign and Urbana go undetermined; Campustown is a hot spot

A cigarette butt flicked out of an open window.  A late-night pizza sitting in the oven for too long.  A hair curler left on during a night out.       These scenarios are...

Champaign County suffers chronically high number of domestic violence calls and cases

In the first two months of this year, there were around 10 calls per day to emergency services regarding domestic violence and disputes in Champaign County. It is the leading statistic for...

Recent News

Top property owners in Champaign County include University of Illinois, Mormon church and web of landlords

In 2023, 13 property owners in Champaign County owned over 100 properties each. The largest property owner, by far, is the University of Illinois Board of Trustees, with...

Fentanyl-driven overdose deaths dropped in Illinois after 2022 peak

Deaths from opioid overdoses in Illinois are on the decline in 2024, showing a reversal after the record-high numbers seen in 2022.  Drug prevention experts point to the...

Dumpster, waste fires in Champaign more common this year; Campustown remains hot spot

A multiple-alarm fire — a fire severe enough to necessitate additional resources — is rare for the Champaign Fire Department to encounter. But last spring, the department responded...

Pretrial investigations mount in Champaign as public defender caseloads rise in first year of Pretrial Fairness Act

One year after the passage of the Pretrial Fairness Act, state data shows the Sixth Judicial Circuit Court, which includes Champaign, recorded one of the highest numbers of...

Academic integrity violations increase nearly 20% at University of Illinois

Last academic year, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign saw nearly 1,200 cases of academic integrity violations, a 19.4% increase from the previous school year’s 1,000 cases.  Of...

Kitchens reopen at Champaign assisted living facility seven weeks after failed health inspection

Kitchens at the assisted living facility Bickford of Champaign have reopened about seven weeks after receiving a red placard and failing its health inspection on Sept. 5. Last...

Justice

Central Illinois county jails continue to lack respiratory illness isolation cells, but Champaign jail renovations add two

Six of nine central Illinois county jails fail to meet state standards for a respiratory illness isolation cell, state records show.  A review of 2023 inspection reports for Illinois county...

Racial disparities persist in Champaign County jail bookings

From 2012 to 2023, for every 10 white people booked at the Champaign County jail, 17 nonwhite people were booked.   CU-CitizenAccess.org obtained years of jail booking data from the Champaign...

Pretrial investigations mount in Champaign as public defender caseloads rise in first year of Pretrial Fairness Act

One year after the passage of the Pretrial Fairness Act, state data shows the Sixth Judicial Circuit Court, which includes Champaign, recorded one of the highest numbers of pretrial investigations...

Deputy accused of killing Sonya Massey in Springfield was discharged from Army for serious misconduct

This article was originally published by IPM Newsroom on July 24, 2024. This article was updated with additional reporting about Grayson’s claims to have been discharged honorably and the circumstances...