Please select what you would like included for printing: Copy the text below and then paste that into your favorite email application longtime Iowa County Sheriff “48-1” died Saturday 2025.Jim was born in Iowa City on November 16 the son of Fred & Charlotte (Bidwell) Slockett he attended schools there and graduated from Mid Prairie High School in 1961 and then went on to run track at Northeast Missouri State University (now Truman State University) in Kirksville.Jim was drafted into the US Army and served his country in Vietnam from 1966-1970 where he was First Lieutenant platoon leader and reserve Captain earning numerous military awards and recognition that included the Silver Star multiple Bronze Stars including the Bronze Star with valor the Purple Heart and the Army commendation medal for heroism and meritorious achievement in ground combat.After his honorable discharge from the US Army Jim continued his years of service where he owned and operated Slockett’s Skelly gas station in Marengo was hired as a reserve police officer for the Marengo Police Dept was appointed Iowa County Civil Defense Director and then was elected Iowa County Sheriff in 1979 where he served for 24 years from 1980-2004 While with the department he and his staff were instrumental in the implementation of the county’s first 9-1-1 emergency system as well as securing the funds and passing of the new Iowa County law enforcement center and much more.Jim and former spouse Joanne had two children together-Missy & Luke and stoic Dad and could often be seen in his sheriff uniform standing by the exit of the gym field or track for a quick check of the score.Jim and partner Mary D Miller lived and made their home in Marengo A lifelong Iowa Hawkeye fan Jim also loved to fish the Iowa River and the Lac Seul Reservoir in Ontario Canada golf and play cards with his old cronies on “holy Tuesday,” proudly watch his kids and then grandkids sporting events serve in retirement as Honor Guard with the American Legion & he also enjoyed making batches of homemade tomato juice to compliment a cold beer.Jim is survived by his loving family: his partner Mary D Miller his children Missy (Jeff) Disterhoft & Luke (Shannon) Slockett; Brother Tom Slockett & Sister Terry Freese; Four Grandkids Ally & Nate Disterhoft; Brynlee & Bryar Slockett brother-in-law John Freese and many friends.A Celebration of Life Gathering will be held Tuesday There will be military honors and a sheriff recognition will be bestowed followed by a short message and prayer starting at 4:00 p.m Messages may be left at www.powellfuneralhomes.com Powell Funeral Home and Cremation Service in Marengo is caring for Jim and his family the family requests memorial donations be made in Jim’s memory to the American Legion Post #76 and that a drink be shared with good friends.The family would like to thank the staff at Essence of Life Hospice for their compassionate care given to Jim All text and images © Powell Funeral Homes Enter your phone number above to have directions sent via text This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply Service map data © OpenStreetMap contributors a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering novel approaches for precision immunotherapy today announced new clinical and translational data from the ongoing STARt-001 Phase 1/2 trial of invikafusp alfa (STAR0602) presented as a clinical plenary oral session at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2025 The presentation highlights strong evidence of meaningful clinical activity further supporting the momentum behind the ongoing Phase 2 study as well as the value proposition for developing invikafusp as monotherapy in PD1 resistant TMB-H cancers "Today's data represent a major step forward for Marengo and for the field of IO to advance a new class of cancer immunotherapy: Immune Activation Inducers (IAI)," said Zhen Su Chief Executive Officer of Marengo Therapeutics "Invikafusp alfa's ability to selectively activate and expand a key T cell subset to drive meaningful anti-tumor responses across a range of PD-1 resistant tumors gives us confidence in our precision T cell activation approach The emerging clinical signals in both colorectal and lung cancers further underscore invikafusp's pan-tumor potential and justify our focused expansion into these high-need indications." "Colorectal cancer is less sensitive to immunotherapy except in a very small percentage of MSI-H tumors immunotherapy agents achieve single-agent activity in PD-1 resistant colorectal cancer," said Josep Tabernero Director of Vall d'Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO) "The clinical signals observed with invikafusp alfa in both CRC and other tumor types are highly encouraging and warrant further clinical investigation to fully realize the clinical potential of this novel T cell agonist approach." Invikafusp alfa is Marengo's first-in-class dual T cell agonist designed with a bi-specific antibody format to selectively engage and activate the Vβ6 and Vβ10 subsets of T cells in vivo Updated Findings from the STARt-001 Clinical Plenary Presentation: Based on these early clinical and preclinical findings, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted Fast Track Designation to invikafusp alfa for the treatment of patients with TMB-high colorectal cancer The Phase 2 portion of the STARt-002 trial is actively enrolling patients across multiple tumor types including TMB-H metastatic colorectal cancer MSI-H and TMB-H tissue-agnostic solid tumors About Marengo TherapeuticsMarengo Therapeutics develops novel TCR-targeting antibodies that selectively modulate common and disease-specific T cell subsets of the germline TCR repertoire to provide lifelong protection against cancer and autoimmune diseases With a passionate team of dedicated scientists experienced in immunology and oncology and three proprietary platforms: Selective T Cell Activation Repertoire (STAR) Trispecific T Cell Engager (Tri-STAR) and T cell Depletor (MSTAR) Marengo is working to selectively target the right T cells in the right patients to create a world in which everyone's immune system can defeat cancer and autoimmune diseases About the STAR™ PlatformMarengo's STAR™ Platform is a multi-specific antibody-fusion platform derived from Marengo's proprietary library of antibodies targeting germline-encoded variable Vβ regions of the TCR fused to different T cell co-stimulatory moieties Combining a novel non-clonal mode of TCR activation with a T cell co-stimulator in the same molecule promotes a distinct mechanism of action that promotes durable anti-tumor Vβ T cell responses About Invikafusp alfa (STAR0602)Invikafusp alfa (STAR0602) is the lead candidate from Marengo's STAR™ platform It is designed to selectively activate a common Vβ T cell subset found in all cancers by combining a non-clonal mode of TCR activation with a T cell co-stimulatory signal in a single molecule This innovative approach promotes the expansion of clonally diverse enhancing anti-tumor immunity and enabling durable tumor clearance Extensive preclinical studies demonstrate STAR0602's potent anti-tumor activity in both mouse and human ex vivo models via a novel mechanism of action.  MediaPeg Rusconi | [email protected] InvestorsSvetlana Makhni | [email protected]  a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering novel approaches for precision immunotherapy in oncology and autoimmune .. Health Care & Hospitals Medical Pharmaceuticals Biotechnology Clinical Trials & Medical Discoveries Do not sell or share my personal information: SoftballMarengo 4, Huntley 2: At Marengo, Kylee Jensen blasted her area-leading 10th home run of the season with a two-run shot in the bottom of the fourth inning to help lift the Indians to a win in their own tournament championship. Starting pitcher Jozsa Christiansen held the Red Raiders to two runs on six hits over seven innings. Gabby Christopher went 2 for 3 with a double and an RBI. Ellie White and Gianna Iovinelli also drove in a run. The Indians celebrated coach Dwain Nance’s 600th career win on the field following the game after he reached the milestone Thursday with an 11-1 win against Woodstock. Nance now has 602 career wins, with 511 coming at Marengo. For Huntley, Aubrina Adamik drove in a run, Isabella Boskey was 3 for 4 and Sadie Svendsen had a triple. Layla Olson took the loss, allowing four runs in 3⅓ innings with three strikeouts. Gretchen Huber tossed 2⅔ scoreless innings and struck out two. Marengo 6, Joliet West 5: At Marengo, the Indians walked off a win in their tournament, scoring the tying run on a wild pitch and the game winner on a dropped third strike. Jensen (2 for 4) drove in two runs, and Christopher (2 for 4, double, triple), White (2 for 4, double) and Christiansen each had one RBI. Huntley 7, St. Charles East 6: At Marengo, the Raiders held off a Saints’ rally to earn a spot in the Marengo Tournament final. St. Charles East scored two runs in the fifth and three in the sixth after trailing 7-1. Grace Benson was 3 for 4 with a double, two runs scored and an RBI, while Svendsen (1 for 4, double, two runs), Adamik (2 for 4) and Taryn Rainey each knocked in a run. Joliet West 7, Cary-Grove 6: At Marengo, the Trojans came up short in a loss to the Tigers at the Marengo Tournament. Paityn Ahlquist had a double and two RBIs, while Grace Kaiser and Addison DeSomer each had two hits and drove in one. Dundee-Crown 14, Elk Grove 4 (5 inn.): At Carpentersville, the Chargers banged out 17 hits in a nonconference win. Alyssa Gale was 4 for 4 with two doubles, four runs scored and two RBIs, Jordyn Jeffs (3 for 4, double) had three RBIs and two runs, and Faith Dierwechter (1 for 4, double) and Josie Sheldon (3 for 4) had two RBIs and two runs apiece. Chloe Morrison allowed one earned run in five innings. Lake Zurich 12-2, Jacobs 5-7: At Algonquin, the Eagles split their nonconference doubleheader against the Bears. Molly Hoch was 2 for 3 with a double and four RBIs in the Game 1 loss, and Jianna Tanada had a triple and three runs scored. In the second game, Skylee Ferrante allowed one earned run in seven innings and struck out four. Hoch was 2 for 4 with a double, two RBIs and two runs and Talia Di Silvio was 2 for 4 with two RBIs. Olivia Fillipp had three hits and two runs and Audrey Wetzel had a double and and knocked in a run. Christian Liberty 16, Alden-Hebron 12: At Hebron, Olivia Klein (2 for 4), Madison Mayerck (2 for 4, double, two runs) and Hayden Smith (1 for 3, double, two runs) each had two RBIs for the Giants in a Northeastern Athletic Conference loss. Marissa Johnson had two hits, two runs scored and an RBI. Teagan Vanderstappen had six strikeouts in four innings. Olivia Klein had four strikeouts in three innings. Crystal Lake South 21, Chicago University 2 (6 inn.): At Chicago, the Gators scored 12 times in the sixth to run away with the nonconference contest. Michael Rathjen (3 for 6, double) drove in four runs, Liam Sullivan (2 for 3, triple), Dane Chock and Xander Shevchenko had three RBIs apiece, and Yandel Ramirez (2 for 4) and Nick Stowasser both had two RBIs. Stowasser earned the win, striking out six and allowing one unearned run in four innings. Cary-Grove 9, Niles North 1: At Cary, the Trojans rolled in the nonconference game. Luca Vivaldelli was 2 for 3 with two doubles and four RBIs, Peyton Seaburg was 2 for 4 with a double, triple and three RBIs, and Charlie Taczy (1 for 4, double) and Ricky Barnes (two runs) each had two RBIs. Preston Walsh tossed four scoreless innings with four strikeouts. Drew Salus struck out five in three innings, allowing one run. Jacobs 2, Lake Zurich 1: At Algonquin, Luke Flaskamp (2 for 3, double) and Andrew Robertson each drove in a run as the Golden Eagles scored one in the fifth and sixth innings to come back and win the nonconference game. Spencer Drummond started and allowed one unearned run with five strikeouts in four innings. Kyle Wayda, Ethan Faith and George Donze held Lake Zurich scoreless the rest of the way. Prairie Ridge 4, Buffalo Grove 3: At Crystal Lake, the Wolves jumped out to a 4-0 lead and held on for a nonconference win. Maddon McKim knocked in two runs and Gabe Winkelman was 2 for 4 with a double and one RBI. Connor Innis earned the win, giving up three runs in 5⅓ innings. Sean Sherwood picked up the save with four strikeouts in 1⅔ innings. Rolling Meadows 2, Dundee-Crown 0: At Carpentersville, the Chargers were held to three hits in a nonconference loss. Jacob Gillette allowed a pair of unearned runs in seven innings. Deerfield 6, Crystal Lake Central 5: At Deerfield, the Warriors earned a walk-off win on a wild pitch to hand the Tigers a nonconference loss. James Dreher (1 for 2, double) and Wade Ozment (2 for 3) both drove in two runs for Central. Rhett Ozment had a double and one RBI. McHenry 4, Johnsburg 3: At Johnsburg, Kaden Wasniewski drove in the game-winning run on a sacrifice fly in the seventh inning as the Warriors beat the Skyhawks in a nonconference game. Carver Cohn had a double, three runs scored and an RBI, and Kyle Maness also drove in one. Scott Cole picked up the win, striking out seven in six innings. He allowed two earned runs on six hits and two walks. Donovan Christman struck out three for the save. Landon Johnson was 2 for 2 with a triple, two runs and one RBI for Johnsburg. Dom Vallone also had an RBI. Deegan Turner gave up a run in five innings of relief, striking out seven and walking two. Burlington Central 10, Coal City 1: At Coal City, Sam Maglares was 3 for 4 with a double, two runs scored and two RBIs in a nonconference win for the Rockets. Jake Johnson had two hits and three RBIs and Tyler Kotwica drove in two. Trevor Raap had a double, two runs and one RBI. Jack Person earned the win, tossing two scoreless innings with three strikeouts. Tolono Unity 5, Burlington Central 0: At Coal City, Gavin Bramer had two of the Rockets’ three hits in a nonconference loss. Maglares allowed a pair of unearned runs in 3⅔ innings with three strikeouts. Northridge Prep 14, Alden-Hebron 4 (5 inn.): At Hebron, Adam Chavera drove in two runs and Christian Nunez added one RBI in the Giants’ nonconference loss. Burlington Central 3, Belvidere North 1: At Burlington, Elsa Carlson and Annie Magan each had a goal and an assist as the Rockets beat the Blue Thunder in a nonconference game. Kendall Grigg also scored. Sycamore 7, Crystal Lake South 1: At Crystal Lake, the Gators fell to the Spartans in nonconference action. Jacobs 2, Larkin 1: At Algonquin, the Golden Eagles squeezed out a nonconference win against the Royals. South Elgin 1, Hampshire 0: At Hampshire, the Whip-Purs were shut out by the Storm. Alex KanteckiSports editor for the Northwest Herald. Local prep sports coverage of McHenry County. Kylee Jensen has certainly been a mainstay behind the plate for Marengo for four years Her presence behind the plate and at the plate was evident Saturday in the championship game of the Marengo Tournament smashed a 2-run homer in the fourth inning to help propel Marengo to a 4-2 win over Huntley It was Marengo’s first title in its own tournament since 2011 "I am not sure what the pitch was that I hit for the homer," said Jensen “I think it was a rise ball.This was a huge win for us." Christansen gave up 2 runs on 6 hits in seven innings to register the win She struck out 1 with 4 walks with 2 walks in the seventh inning "Huntley is a super aggressive team," said Christiansen “I wanted to keep them off balance and be effective Marengo coach Dwain Nance won his 603rd career game She could have played for me in sixth grade Huntley is a super aggressive team and Jo did a great job of throwing strikes and keeping them off balance." Marengo (19-7) scored an unearned run in the second and added a run in the third on a sacrifice fly by Elle White Gabby Christopher collected 2 hits for the winners Huntley scored a run in the third on a run-scoring single by Aubrina Adamik which scored Sadie Svendsen who had tripled The Red Raiders (16-9) tallied a run in the seventh on an RBI single from Isabella Boskey "The story of our season all season long is that we battle until the end," said Huntley coach Marc Petrynec There wasn't any type of power outage for St Charles East Saturday at the Marengo Tournament The Saints (14-12) defeated Kaneland 8-2 and lost to Huntley 7-6 before capping the day with a 13-12 win over Joliet West in the third-place game "It was a grind today," said Saints coach Jared Gutesha The focus wasn't there at the beginning of the day came up the game-winning RBI single in the seventh against Joliet West "They were pitching me outside and I was able to take the ball to right field," said Sujack also got 3 hits from Addison Wolf (3 runs scored) and Caylee Higgins (2-run homer View of Lake Michigan shore and Chicago skyline / iStock, Sean Pavone The American Association for Cancer Research’s annual conference is in full swing Roche and more presenting new data for oncology cornerstones and investigational candidates Meanwhile, on Sunday, AACR CEO Margaret Foti closed the event’s opening ceremony with a rare condemnation of the Trump administration’s science and health policy moves since January, STAT News reported Stay tuned to BioSpace as we keep you updated on all of the biggest data and news as the conference continues this week BriaCell Therapeutics, a Philadelphia and Vancouver-based biotech, supported its lead immunotherapy candidate, BRIA-IMT, with new data from a Phase III trial in metastatic breast cancer In a poster presentation at AACR 2025, the company showed that in a trial of 62 patients BRIA-IMT gained patients a progression-free survival rate of 3.67 months The presentation focused mostly on positive biomarkers associated with the treatment including changes in circulating tumor cells which were associated with better survival numbers (3.8 months versus 2.4 in patients with higher tumor cell counts) and a favorable neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio BRIA-IMT is a genetically engineered human breast cancer cell line, altered to have features of an immune cell. BRIA-IMT’s mechanism of action isn’t known, according to the biotech’s website but it’s hypothesized that the drug might stimulate the body’s immune system to destroy a growing breast cancer cell population Marengo Therapeutics’ investigational bispecific T cell activator invikafusp alfa elicited a 30% objective response rate across all three major subtypes of colorectal cancer (CRC) in an early-stage trial, according to a readout presented Tuesday at AACR 2025 Marengo’s Phase I/II STARt-001 trial tested invikafusp alfa as a single-agent therapy in certain patients with antigen-rich solid tumors including those that are refractory to PD-1 therapies Tuesday’s data come from 10 patients with high tumor mutational burden treated at the effective dose range of invikafusp alfa Disease control rate in these patients was 61% tumor regression rate hit 52% across various tumor types Marengo’s documented side effects were consistent with drugs that work via selective T cell activation Toxicities were temporary and manageable with clinical care STARt-001 also validated invikafusp alfa’s mechanism of action demonstrating strong and selective expansion of a subset of CD8-positive cells that can activate specific T cells in turn promoting their anti-cancer activity Treatment with invikafusp alfa in the study also led to the expansion of these particular anti-cancer T cells in tumor tissues more than a third of patients treated with Artios Pharma’s investigational ATR inhibitor ART0380 plus low-dose irinotecan presented during an oral session at AACR 2025 come from 38 patients with advanced or metastatic solid tumors who had no other satisfactory treatment options available to them These study participants were treated with 200-mg ART0380—its recommended Phase II dose—and 60-mg/m2 irinotecan at specified intervals These patients were also deficient for the ataxia-telangiectasia mutated (ATM) protein a key marker for replication stress that is present in up to a quarter of high–unmet need solid tumors Tuesday’s data showed the ART0380 regimen resulted in a 37% confirmed overall response rate (cORR) in these patients In the subgroup of patients negative for the ATM marker with a median response duration of 5.7 months In those whose tumors tested positive for ATM but who showed low levels of the protein while median duration of response had not yet been reached at the time of readout Artios noted that ART0380 could elicit treatment responses against eight tumor types including pancreatic and colorectal cancer When Roche announced that its anti-TIGIT therapy tiragolumab failed the SKYSCRAPER-01 trial in non-small cell lung cancer in November 2024 leaving the industry guessing at how bad the miss was That changed on Monday, when the pharma unveiled its detailed analysis of the study showing that tiragolumab combined with the PD-1 blocker Tecentriq lowered the risk of disease progression or death by 28% versus Tecentriq alone This effect fell short of statistical significance Median overall survival in the tiragolumab group was 23.1 months This translated to a 13% drop in the risk of death from any cause an effect that also failed to reach significance Roche reported a higher occurrence of toxicities in tiragolumab-treated patients including immune-mediated side effects such as rashes the pharma nevertheless emphasized tiragolumab’s “numerical improvements” in progression-free and overall survival which it claimed “suggest potential antitumor activity of combination PD-L1/TIGIT targeting in NSCLC.” On Monday, Agenus unveiled data from the Phase II NEOASIS trial, touting encouraging response rates for its investigational PD-1/CTLA-4 therapy BOT/BAL in early-stage solid tumors Willaim Blair analysts called these data “promising,” noting that pathological response data in the mismatch repair-proficient/microsatellite stable (MSS) cohort is “impressive.” BOT/BAL is a combination therapy composed of two drugs: the anti-CTLA-4 antibody botensilimab and the PD-1 blocker balstilimab NEOASIS is testing this investigational combo in the neoadjuvant setting for patients with non-metastatic solid tumors Data presented at AACR showed that in the subgroup of patients with mismatch repair-deficient/microsatellite instability-high tumors—nine had colorectal cancer and one had duodenal cancer—BOT/BAL elicited a 90% pathological response rate and a 70% pathological complete response rate (pCR) pathological response was 80% while pCR was 20% This subgroup included six patients with triple-negative breast cancer one with merkel cell carcinoma and another with sarcoma In July 2024, the FDA discouraged an accelerated approval pathway for BOT/BAL noting that objective response rates in this context may not translate to survival outcomes William Blair is currently awaiting word from Agenus regarding the candidate’s path forward including a potential partnership to support its further development Merck bolstered its case for Keytruda in head and neck cancer with data from a Phase III trial showing the blockbuster PD-1 inhibitor could elicit “significant survival benefits” in the perioperative setting as part of a perioperative treatment regimen also containing adjuvant standard of care (SOC) radiotherapy with or without cisplatin improved event-free survival (EFS) by 27% in the study’s intention-to-treat population besting a perioperative radiotherapy regimen alone The trial is the first “in more than two decades for patients with resected locally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma,” according to Merck’s Sunday press release Merck filed a supplemental Biologics License Application with the FDA for Keytruda in this indication and is anticipating a decision by June 23 For more details, please read the article Phase II results presented Sunday showed that GSK’s PD-1 inhibitor Jemperli can trigger complete tumor clearance in patients with locally advanced These data, published simultaneously in the New England Journal of Medicine suggest that Jemperli could eliminate the need for surgery in these patients Sunday’s findings come from 103 patients with stage II-III resectable dMMR cancers: 49 with rectal cancer and 54 with nonrectal solid tumors such as gastroesophageal and genitourinary cancers all 49 patients with rectal cancer showed a clinical complete response and decided to forego surgical operation 37 sustained their response levels through 12 months of follow-up 35 patients with other cancer types reached clinical complete response 84 patients across both cohorts achieved complete response Boehringer Ingelheim’s investigational HER2 tyrosine kinase blocker zongertinib elicited a 71% objective response rate in certain patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in the Phase III Beamion LUNG-1 trial The study focused on patients with advanced disease harboring HER2 mutations Results showed that 7% of patients achieved complete treatment response Median progression-free survival was 12.4 months zongertinib also demonstrated intracranial activity in 27 previously-treated patients with brain metastasis the candidate hit a response rate of 41% and a disease control rate of 81% Zongertinib was also safe overall in Beamion LUNG-1 with no drug-related instances of interstitial lung disease Adverse events grade 3 or higher were infrequent and the most common side effect was diarrhea Boehringer Ingelheim filed its drug application for zongertinib in February winning the FDA’s Priority Review designation A decision is expected in the third quarter A Tuscaloosa woman has died after a serious two-vehicle crash in Marengo County which also injured two other people a spokesperson for the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency State Troopers in our region said their Highway Patrol Division was called to the scene of a crash around 2:45 p.m Highway 80 when her car collided head-on with a 2011 Ford Edge being driven by a young man from Demopolis King said the Tuscaloosa woman was not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash and was critically injured She was taken to Whitfield Regional Hospitalm but Troopers say she succumbed to her injuries there and died The driver of the Ford was injured and taken to the same hospital and a passenger in Myers' Camry was hurt and hospitalized at DCH Regional Medical Center in Northport The crash happened about a mile west of Uniontown in Marengo County and no other details were available on Monday afternoon Gallery Credit: (Stephen Dethrage | Tuscaloosa Thread) A Tuscaloosa woman has died after a serious two-vehicle crash in Marengo County which also injured two other people.\nRead More ExpandFILE - Marengo Community High School District 154 has been ordered to pay back more than $350,000 to taxpayers Marengo High School District 154 has been ordered by the court to pay back nearly $364,000 to taxpayers who filed a lawsuit claiming the district levied an “excessive” amount in 2022 More than 400 plaintiffs – including residents, homeowners associations and businesses – filed a tax rate objection lawsuit against the school district in 2023 in McHenry County court The complaint claimed the district excessively accumulated money in its operations and maintenance fund resulting in an unnecessary maximum levy in 2022 Judge Joel Berg took the taxpayers’ side after a bench trial that was held last month District 154 was ordered to pay back a total of $363,869.97 District 154 had more than $4.5 million in its operations and maintenance fund and levied for almmost $2.4 million in 2022 was $1,421,127,” plaintiffs’ attorney Timothy Dwyer said in the complaint A state law states an institution cannot have an accumulation of more than twice what is spent in a year, the co-counsel for the plaintiffs, attorney Jack Franks said Franks – a former longtime state legislator who then served four years as McHenry County Board chair – called the state law “very generous,” noting that “not many families have two times their budget sitting in their bank accounts.” Berg said the school district did not have justification to levy for the maximum amount for the operations fund and $2.5 million transfer from the education fund to the operations and maintenance fund was “unlawful.” Homeowners associations and business owners sued the local school districts over their tax levies and won more than $1 million back “Those were levied monies,” Berg said in the decision “You can’t then take them and put them into a fund because of an accounting trick Nothing in the administrative code allows that.” The group of taxpayers also filed a lawsuit against Riley Community Consolidated School District 18 an elementary district that feeds into Marengo Community High School The district agreed to pay the plaintiffs an even larger rebate of $1.2 million in a settlement last year A count claiming there were similar excessive funds in District 154’s education fund was dismissed by Berg The lawsuit against both districts named McHenry County Treasurer Donna Kurtz as a defendant under the Illinois Property Code, because she is the one who distributes property taxes to the taxing agencies. Kurtz will issue the payment once the state’s attorney gives further direction, she said. “It’s disappointing to see money taken away from schools,” Kurtz said. However she added that the “taxpayer still gets the short end of the stick.” The district will not have to go back and recalculate for the following tax levy years because “the 2023 levy requested was already lower than an allowable rate based on the 2022 levy and so was the 2024 levy,” District 154 Superintendent David Engelbrecht said in an email to the Northwest Herald. The judgment will not have a direct impact on District 154’s education fund, but “every financial impact on a school district has to be considered on how it impacts the overall budget and the students it serves,” Engelbrecht said. Franks said he didn’t think the school district “did this on purpose. I think they received poor advice. It wasn’t something nefarious.” Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Marengo Therapeutics a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering novel approaches for precision immunotherapy in oncology and autoimmune diseases will present updated clinical and translational results for its lead selective T cell activator in a clinical plenary oral presentation at the American Association of Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting taking place April 26-30 Extensive preclinical studies demonstrate STAR0602's potent anti-tumor activity in both mouse and human ex vivo models via a novel mechanism of action MediaPeg Rusconi I [email protected]  InvestorsSvetlana Makhni | [email protected]  today announced an upcoming clinical plenary oral presentation at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2025 The presentation will report updated clinical and translational findings from the ongoing Phase 1/2 trial (STARt-001) evaluating invikafusp alfa (STAR0602) in patients with anti-PD(L)1-resistant The results highlight clinical pharmacology and RP2D selection in addition to demonstrating clinically meaningful anti-tumor activity and a well-characterized safety profile The data also further support the advancement of the lead asset into Phase 2 development and confirm clinical efficacy "These encouraging data represent the first clinical proof of our precision T cell agonist approach to overcome anti-PD(L)1-resistant cancer a therapeutic area with significant unmet need invikafusp monotherapy not only selectively engaged and expanded a key T cell subset in immunotherapy-resistant tumors, but also reinvigorated anti-tumor responses," said Ke Liu Chief Development Officer of Marengo Therapeutics "Based on the initial disease control and tumor regression rates observed invikafusp has the potential to offer a promising new class of immunotherapy for patients who have exhausted checkpoint inhibitor therapy options." "The initial clinical activity of invikafusp monotherapy in PD-1 resistant tumors is novel and important as a new approach to immunotherapy," said Bruce A Clinical Director Emeritus at Massachusetts General Hospital "The ability of invikafusp to activate a specific subset of T cells in heavily pretreated cancer patients and achieve objective responses in tumors that have failed PD-1 inhibitors is clinically meaningful These results may mark the beginning of a new class of novel T cell agonists in treating checkpoint resistant cancers with precision immune activation." Invikafusp alfa is Marengo's first-in-class dual T cell agonist with a bi-specific antibody design to selectively activate the Vβ6 and Vβ10 subsets of T cells in vivo Based on initial clinical and preclinical results, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted Fast Track Designation to invikafusp alfa for the treatment of patients with TMB-high colorectal cancer The STARt-001 Phase 2 portion of the trial is ongoing and actively enrolling focused on expanding into other antigen-rich tumors including MSI-H and TMB-H tissue agnostic solid tumors MediaPeg Rusconi | [email protected] InvestorsSvetlana Makhni | [email protected]  ExpandRichmond-Burton’s Hailey Holtz delivers against Marengo in varsity softball on Tuesday at Marengo High School in Marengo (Patrick Kunzer for Shaw Local/Patrick Kunzer for Shaw Local) MARENGO – It’s go-time for Richmond-Burton senior pitcher Hailey Holst The Rockets’ ace was up to the task again Tuesday against Marengo, striking out 12, including the last five batters, in a 5-2 win over the two-time defending Kishwaukee River Conference champions. “Her demeanor this year, it’s something different,” Rockets fourth-year coach Tylar Stanton said of the NCAA Division-I Iowa State recruit. “She’s not letting little things get to her. She understands that she’s the best one out there. There is nobody better in the circle when she’s in go mode.” Richmond-Burton’s Rebecca Lanz gets revved up after landing safely at second base against Marengo in varsity softball on Tuesday, April 22, 2025, at Marengo High School in Marengo. (Patrick Kunzer for Shaw Local/Patrick Kunzer for Shaw Local) Holtz settled down after allowing a leadoff home run to Marengo senior catcher Kylee Jensen, a Northwestern commit, and back-to-back walks to the Indians’ No. 2 and 3 hitters. Holtz struck out the next two batters and got a fly out for the last out of the first. Holtz and Jensen, former travel teammates, have had many battles throughout their varsity careers. Jensen had solo home runs in two of her three at-bats against Holtz on Tuesday, both times pulling the ball over the fence in left field. “I was a little nervous coming in, but I really just took a deep breath,” Holtz said after allowing the first three Indians’ batters to reach base. “Kylee is my old [Illinois] Chill teammate. I love her to death, I knew she was going to be a tough hitter. I took a few deep breaths after that, after those two walks, and I dialed in from there.” Holtz allowed two runs on four hits over seven innings. She walked two and retired six of the last seven batters she faced by strikeout. “It’s always fun, we text and joke around with each other,” Holtz said of facing Jensen. “I love facing her. It’s always a tough at-bat, but it makes me better, and it’s always good to face good hitters.” Richmond-Burton scored all five of its runs with two outs, scoring three runs on four consecutive hits in the third inning and adding two runs in the fourth. All five runs charged against Marengo senior pitcher Jozsa Christiansen were unearned. She gave up eight hits in seven innings with four strikeouts and three walks. Marengo’s Kylee Jensen celebrates the first of her two home runs against Richmond-Burton in varsity softball on Tuesday, April 22, 2025, at Marengo High School in Marengo. (Patrick Kunzer for Shaw Local/Patrick Kunzer for Shaw Local) Gabby Hird, Madison Kunzer and Lilly Kwapniewski had RBI hits in the third with two outs after Marengo committed a fielding error. Rebecca Lanz had a two-run double in the fourth after Marengo again committed an error. “We didn’t show much of a fight to come back,” Indians coach Dwain Nance said. “We’re going to get down, we’ve got to learn how to fight back. That’s what really good athletes do, they find a way to come back, and we just didn’t do that.” Stanton said he is still tinkering with the Rockets’ starting lineup, but that hasn’t stopped them from succeeding with a 13-5-1 record overall (4-1 in KRC). Lanz, a junior, said the Rockets will continue to fight not matter how many outs. “When girls head up in hard situations and they just put the ball in play, good things happen,” Lanz said. “Stay confident in yourself but know if two people get out, there’s a person that’s going to pick you up and score those runs.” Marengo (14-6, 4-1) has won the past two KRC championships, while R-B won the previous three in 2022, 2021 and 2019 (no 2020 season because of the COVID-19 pandemic). Stanton said the Rockets, who have taken third in the past two years, are hungry for more. “In four years, these seniors have had to work their butts off,” Stanton said of playing Marengo. “We’ve had some tight games with them, run-ins where conference was in jeopardy. Today I felt like when we got off the bus, we had the mentality to go take care of business.” “She can really zip the ball and she probably felt pretty loose and relaxed after getting those five runs – she can start mowing you down,“ Nance said. ”She was carefree, pitched hard and they played good defense behind her." Marengo’s Gabrielle Geiseke is safe at first as Richmond-Burton’s Chase Cooper, left, looks for the wide throw in varsity softball on Tuesday, April 22, 2025, at Marengo High School in Marengo. (Patrick Kunzer for Shaw Local/Patrick Kunzer for Shaw Local) today announced that Ipsen (Euronext: IPN; ADR: IPSEY) has nominated a second drug candidate (DC) under its multi-year strategic oncology collaboration with Marengo This nomination marks the successful advancement of the second STAR bispecific T cell activator program included in the partnership between Ipsen and Marengo since it began in August 2022 The first DC nomination under the collaboration was announced in April 2024 "This second DC nomination is a testament to our strong collaboration with Ipsen and once again underscores the dedication and ingenuity of Marengo's research team in advancing innovative immunotherapy candidates to clinical trials," said Andrew Bayliffe Ph.D. first in class TCRVβ-targeted dual T cell agonists drive the revitalization of anti-tumor T cell responses in immunotherapy refractory tumor models and we look forward to working with Ipsen as we translate this potential into people living with cancer."   Marengo will receive a milestone payment for this pre-defined pre-clinical milestone Marengo has led research and preclinical development efforts in partnership with Ipsen Ipsen will assume responsibilities for IND filing clinical development and commercialization Selective T Cell Activation Repertoire (STAR) Trispecific T Cell Engager (Tri-STAR) and T cell Depletor (M-STAR) leverage our unique ability to selectively target the right T cell in the right patient to create a world in which everyone's immune system can defeat cancer and autoimmune diseases Combining a novel non-clonal mode of TCR activation with a T cell co-stimulator in the same molecule promotes a distinct mechanism of action that promotes durable anti-tumor Vβ T cell responses MediaPeg Rusconi I [email protected] InvestorsSvetlana Makhni | [email protected] ExpandJohnsburg's Evan Pohl celebrates the game winning run after the infield umpire calls Marengo's Alexander Johnson for a bulk in the seven inning that allowed Pohl to score during a Kishwaukee River Conference baseball game on Monday JOHNSBURG – Johnsburg’s flair for winning baseball games on walk-off balks trumped Marengo senior Alten Bergbreiter’s knack for late-inning heroics at the plate Both made for fitting drama considering first place in the Kishwaukee River Conference was at stake A balk was called, allowing Evan Pohl, whose one-out single started the rally, to trot home from third base with the winning run. Marengo coach Nick Naranjo said the umpire made the correct call on the balk. “We had our defense not set up in the right way,” said Naranjo, whose Indians hosted Johnsburg in a rematch Wednesday. “Our outfielders were playing a little bit too shallow, so we wanted to get them back to default depth, and then we told [Johnson] to step off and, unfortunately, he went to deliver and stepped off at the wrong time.” It was the second time this season that first-place Johnsburg (14-4, 7-0) won a KRC game at home on a balk, as it also happened against Richmond-Burton on a snowy April 9. It’s been that kind of season for the Skyhawks, who had a 12-game winning streak snapped last week after having won only six games all of last season. “All of the kids are characters,” first-year Skyhawks coach Eric Toussaint said with a smile. “There’s something about them. They’re just goofy and fun, and battle, and love to be here. I guess I expect the weird endings with the kind of kids that we have.” Bergbreiter’s two-out, two-run single tied the score in the top of the seventh and kept Pohl from getting the win after Johnsburg’s lefty starter dominated for six innings. Pohl struck out 12, including seven in a row, walked three and allowed only two hits and no earned runs. He struck out 18 batters against Woodstock North on April 14. “Fastball, changeup, keeping it outside and letting the wind take it a little,” the 5-foot-9, 160-pound Pohl said of what was working against Marengo. “I like the corners.” Trailing 2-0, Marengo (13-5, 6-2) started its seventh-inning rally against Pohl thanks to an error and walk to Max Broughton. Toussaint then went to closer Deegan Turner. David Lopez’s sacrifice bunt moved the runners to second and third. Turner got a called third strike for the second out, before the lefty-hitting Bergbreiter singled into center field, tying the score. As a sophomore two years ago, Bergbreiter hit a walk-off single in the regional final. Marengo walked off with a win against Woodstock on April 12 this season when Bergbreiter smacked a two-run single in the seventh. “I just go up there and have the approach that I work on every time, and it seems like when it matters, it works,” Bergbreiter said. “I’ve got nothing to lose.” Pohl, who plans to play for McHenry County College next year, had two of Johnsburg’s seven hits (all singles). Batting in the No. 3 spot, he went 2 for 3 with a first-inning sacrifice bunt that led to Dom Vallone and Landon Johnson scoring the game’s first two runs. “The coaches are keeping us in a better mindset,” Pohl said. “They’re getting us to think about approaches at the plate, not just swinging to swing, having an idea of what to do.” Marengo starting pitcher Michael Kirchhoff struck out nine, walked two and hit two in five innings. He allowed one earned run and four hits. Kirchhoff also had one of the Indians’ three hits (all singles). a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering novel discovery of reprogramming T cell repertoire for precision immunotherapy in oncology and autoimmune diseases today announced a multi-year research collaboration in oncology and autoimmune diseases with E John Wherry Director of the Institute for Immunology and Immune Health (I3H) at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine (Penn) Wherry and his laboratory will provide deeper insights into the mechanism of action of Marengo's selective dual T cell agonists in oncology while also accelerating the development of its novel precision T cell depletion platform (M-STAR) through translational research investigating the use of germline TCR regions in autoimmune diseases "By targeting germline-encoded regions of the TCR Marengo's foundational platform enables the generation of new classes of selectively targeted T cell therapeutics that we believe will reprogram the T cell repertoire and unlock new therapeutic applications across a range of disease areas," said Andrew Bayliffe "Partnering with the Wherry lab will improve our understanding of our selective T cell agonists in oncology and expand our pipeline of game-changing precision T cell depleters for autoimmune diseases." the Richard and Barbara Schiffrin President's Distinguished Professor and chair of Systems Pharmacology and Translational Therapeutics at Penn As demonstrated by his seminal work in characterizing mechanisms of T cell exhaustion and T cell checkpoint inhibition in oncology Wherry's research focuses on high-dimensional immune profiling to identify targets that harness the immune system's ability to fight diverse immunological diseases "My team is dedicated to advancing innovative T cell therapies," said Professor Wherry "The ability to selectively promote activation or depletion of T cell subsets has great potential in oncology and autoimmune diseases Further understanding the disease association of these germline TCR regions compared to in healthy populations is relatively understudied and can identify valuable opportunities for precision immunology therapies in a range of diseases." About Marengo TherapeuticsMarengo Therapeutics About the MSTAR PlatformMarengo's MSTAR Platform is a first-in-class selective T cell depletion platform derived from Marengo's proprietary library of antibodies targeting a germline-encoded TCR variable region of the TCR. Combining novel T cell-depleting functionality and germline TCR-targeting Marengo's MSTAR multi-specific constructs achieve precision depletion of subsets of T cells that encompass pathogenic T cells (e.g. MediaPeg Rusconi I [email protected]  InvestorsSvetlana Makhni | [email protected]  Penn Contacts:Eric Horvath I [email protected]  Licensing a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering novel approaches for precision T cell activation Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Fast Track designation (FTD) to invikafusp alfa (STAR0602) Marengo's first-in-class selective dual T cell agonist being studied as a potential new treatment for advanced colorectal cancer with TMB-H Fast Track designation is designed to facilitate the development and expedite the review of therapies intended to treat serious or life-threatening conditions with unmet medical needs "The FDA's Fast Track designation is an important milestone for the STAR0602 program and further positions our unique selective dual T cell agonist platform as a promising solution to address key challenges that perpetuate significant unmet needs in oncology," said Zhen Su "This recognition specifically validates the promise of STAR0602 as a novel treatment option for patients with TMB-H metastatic colorectal cancer The data reinforce invikafusp alfa's anti-tumor activity and favorable safety profile "Marengo's selective Vβ T cell activation approach targeting specific T cell subsets enriched in Tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes to enhance anti-tumor activity is unique and highly promising," said Bruce Chabner Clinical Director Emeritus for the Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center and Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. "The Phase 2 clinical investigation of invikafusp alfa is ongoing and this novel treatment could lead to a new class of therapeutics for tumor types that are PD-1 insensitive or resistant especially in colorectal cancer where current treatment options remain limited." Marengo is committed to advancing STAR0602 – the asset entered Phase 2 clinical trials at the end of 2024 and the company expects to report additional efficacy results later this year develops novel TCR-targeting antibodies that selectively modulate common and disease-specific T cell subsets of the germline TCR repertoire to provide lifelong protection against cancer and other diseases Marengo's proprietary Selective T Cell Activation Repertoire (STAR) platform leverages an extensive biological understanding of T cell function and receptor signaling to create a world in which everyone's immune system can defeat cancer About invikafusp alfa (STAR0602)Invikafusp alfa (STAR0602) is Marengo's lead program and the first T cell activator generated from Marengo's STAR platform; a library of antibodies targeting non-clonal variable Vβ regions of the TCR fused to different co-stimulatory moieties STAR0602 selectively targets a common Vβ T cell subset present in all cancers and by combining a novel non-clonal mode of TCR activation with a T cell co-stimulator in the same molecule promotes expansion of a new population of clonally enriched effector memory Vβ T cells that turbo-charge tumor immune responses and promote durable clearance of tumors STAR0602 has undergone extensive preclinical testing and is currently being studied in a Phase 1/2 clinical trial About the STARt-001 trialClinical Study STARt-001 is a Phase 1/2 clinical trial evaluating the safety and preliminary clinical activity of invikafusp alfa (STAR0602) as a single agent in biomarker selected patients with advanced antigen-rich solid tumors including PD-1 refractory and rare tumors multi-center trial consists 2 of two parts: Phase 1 dose escalation and Phase 2 dose expansion please visit clinicaltrials.gov (trial identifier: NCT05592626) MediaPeg Rusconi | [email protected] InvestorsSvetlana Makhni | [email protected] ExpandSean Fitzpatrick (Photo Provided by McHenry County Sheriff's Office) A warrant was issued for the arrest of a Poplar Grove man after he failed to show up for his trial on charges that he stole vehicles from a Marengo home A jury trial for Sean Fitzpatrick, 49, was scheduled to begin April 14. But after he failed to appear, McHenry County Judge Mark Gerhardt issued a warrant for Fitzpatrick’s arrest Charges against Fitzpatrick include residential burglary, theft, aggravated possession of a stolen vehicle, unlawful possession of three or more vehicles within a year and possession of a stolen firearm, according to the indictment against him in McHenry County court The most serious of the charges are Class 1 felonies is punishable by four to 15 years in prison He was charged along with a co-defendant, Scott Henrie, 36, also of Poplar Grove Henrie pleaded guilty last year to one count of residential burglary and was sentenced to four years in prison Both men were accused of stealing a 2022 Lexus LS 500 sedan, 2015 Ford F-250 pickup truck and a John Deere Gator 4x2 from a home on Kishwaukee Valley Road in Marengo between March 28 and 29, 2023, according to criminal complaints and indictments filed in the McHenry County courthouse. On April 10, Henrie was taken to the McHenry County jail to testify in Fitzpatrick’s trial, according to the jail log and an order in his file. As of Wednesday, Henrie still was in the jail, and Fitzpatrick was not, according to the jail log. An attempt to reach Fitzpatrick’s attorney was not immediately successful. ExpandMarengo's Kylee Jensen reacts to a scoreless inning after Jozsa Christiansen pitched out of a jam against Antioch in March 2025 in Marengo Why she was selected: Jensen, a senior catcher, helped the Indians to a 5-0 week, going 13 for 19 (.684 batting average) with seven RBIs, 11 runs scored and seven extra-base hits, including two homers. The Northwestern commit has moved up to the leadoff spot this year for the two-time defending Kishwaukee River Conference champions. For her performance, Jensen was selected as the Northwest Herald Athlete of the Week in an online vote. McHenry baseball’s Carver Cohn, Woodstock’s baseball Noah Rodriguez and Huntley girls lacrosse’s Leah Holmberg also were nominated. Jensen answered a few questions from the Northwest Herald. Kylee Jensen, Marengo (Photo provided by Marengo High School) What has been the key to your team’s fast start? Jensen: The keys to the team’s rapid success is the chemistry we have together. We all are very close to one another and come together and play like a family. Every day we get together and have fun which allows us to perform better on the field. Does your approach change batting leadoff? Jensen: My approach definitely has changed becoming the lead-off hitter this year. Past years, I would always come up to bat with runners on base and would have to move them. Now this year I have to start the rally and get on base for our other great hitters. Jensen: My favorite athlete is for sure my brother (Jayden) who is playing college hockey right now. He is a great mentor and has taught me many things growing up on how to be successful. Jensen: A dream job for me is becoming a lawyer. I have always wanted to become an attorney. You just won a million dollars. What is the first thing you would buy? Jensen: If I won a million dollars, I would probably give some to my elementary and high schools, some charities. I would invest some but also definitely give some back to my parents because they have allowed me to follow my dreams in softball. Jensen: One of my biggest pet peeves is probably when people are running late. My dad always pushes me to be prepared and arrive early. It drives me crazy when people are late. Jensen: One sport I believe I am bad at is water polo. I don’t think I would be able to stay afloat the entire time and definitely would struggle. Jensen: My best sports fashion tip is nobody truly cares what you are wearing. As long as you feel confident in yourself, that’s all that matters. If you could have a sandwich named after you, what would be on it and what would you call it? Jensen: I guess my sandwich would be peanut butter, jelly and cheese. I love cheese, and I eat a peanut butter and jelly before every game, so why not combine them? It’s kind of weird, but I don’t know a name. ... Maybe the Kylee Special? What is something most people wouldn’t know about you? Jensen: I do not have any hidden talents. I can juggle. An interesting fact is I’m kind of a nerd and like to study and excel in school. will present an overview of its novel platform and pipeline progress at the 43rd Annual J.P The presentation will take place on Thursday at 10:00 AM PT as part of the private company track "With the recent SITC plenary oral presentation of Phase I clinical results of our lead asset we are excited to showcase the significant progress Marengo has achieved on the J.P "The clinical validation of our TCR Vβ targeted precision dual T cell agonist approach has unlocked the significant potential of the T-cell repertoire in vivo paving the way for transformative therapies across oncology With encouraging single agent anti-tumor activity of Invikafusp alfa in PD-1 resistant 'cold' tumor and the regulatory validation of the development path we are confident to advance the program rapidly with our Phase 2 clinical study and we look forward to sharing these exciting updates with the healthcare community later this year." MediaPeg Rusconi | [email protected]  InvestorsSvetlana Makhni | [email protected]  Trade Show News today announced encouraging initial Phase 1 clinical data from its lead program during a late-breaking oral presentation at the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC) 39th Annual Meeting taking place in Houston This is the first public disclosure of results from the ongoing STARt-001 Phase 1/2 trial (NCT05592626) evaluating invikafusp alfa as monotherapy in biomarker-enriched (TMB-H MSI-H/dMMR or virally associated) patients with advanced anti-PD-1 resistant Phase 1 data from STARt-001 trial demonstrate early anti-tumor activity including initial signals of clinical benefit in heavily pre-treated Invikafusp alfa also showed a manageable safety profile consistent with its novel mechanism of action further supporting its potential as a treatment option across a range of high tumor mutational burden (TMB-H) cancers or virally associated malignancies "Having completed Phase 1 and commenced the Phase 2 dose expansion cohorts of STARt-001, Marengo is thrilled to share initial clinical findings that validate our novel selective dual T cell agonist platform," said Zhen Su "The single agent activity observed in Phase 1 especially in PD-1 resistant cold tumors such as colorectal cancer is a critical milestone and we look forward to further exploring the potential of STAR0602 to become a next-generation backbone IO therapy across a range of tumor types." Additional highlights from the Phase 1 findings include: "The first-in-human data suggest that this novel approach to selectively activate and expand Vβ T cell subsets may hold promise for treating patients with advanced solid tumors," said Dr Co-Director of the Center for Immuno-Oncology and Clinical Director of the National Cancer Institute "The observed unique Vβ T cell biology in humans and selective expansion of Vβ6/Vβ10 across a range of solid tumors combined with the initial anti-tumor activity particularly in heavily pre-treated anti-PD-1 resistant cancer patients with TMB-H colorectal cancer The differentiated clinical profile supports further investigation of this unique mechanism of action in the next phase of clinical trials for high unmet medical needs in anti-PD-1 resistant tumors." the data presented from the STARt-001 study underscore invikafusp alfa's potential as a novel therapeutic option for patients with advanced Marengo has initiated the Phase 2 dose expansion and expects to share initial results in 2H 2025 About STAR™ PlatformMarengo's STAR™ Platform is a multi-specific antibody-fusion platform derived from Marengo's proprietary library of antibodies targeting germline-encoded variable Vβ regions of the TCR fused to different T cell co-stimulatory moieties About invikafusp alfa (STAR0602)Invikafusp alfa (STAR0602) is Marengo's lead program the first T cell activator generated from Marengo's STAR platform; a library of antibodies targeting non-clonal variable Vβ regions of the TCR fused to different co-stimulatory moieties About the STARt-001STARt-001 is a Phase 1/2 clinical trial evaluating the safety MediaPeg Rusconi I [email protected]  InvestorsSvetlana Makhni | [email protected]  This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page Marengo's Phase II trial is assessing T cell activator invikafusp alfa in the treatment of advanced PD-1 resistant solid tumours Clinical-stage biotechnology company Marengo Therapeutics has announced that it has dosed the first patient in Phase II of its STARt-001 trial (NCT05592626) multi-centre trial study has expanded beyond the original North American sites to include oncology clinical research centres in Europe including the initial activation of sites in France and Spain Buy the report The trial is evaluating T cell activator invikafusp alfa (STAR0602) as an intravenously administered monotherapy in biomarker-enriched patients with advanced PD-1 resistant solid tumours Phase I of the trial assessed dose escalation while Phase II will examine dose expansion The launch of Phase II follows promising Phase I data shared at the SITC Annual Meeting and during a presentation at the 2024 ESMO Immuno-Oncology Congress Marengo announced that in Phase I of the STARt-001 trial invikafusp alfa had demonstrated a 25% overall response rate (ORR) and a 50% disease control rate (DCR) in patients with PD-1 resistant tumours with high tumour mutation burden The results included confirmed responses in microsatellite-stable colorectal cancer “The single-agent anti-tumour activity observed in Phase I particularly in PD-1-resistant ‘cold’ tumours like colorectal cancer gives us confidence in our approach and fuels our hope to reach as many patients as possible,” said Marengo chief development officer Ke Liu Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis The company considers the T cell activator to have potential as a treatment option for high tumour mutation burden (TMB-H) cancers or virally associated malignancies Marengo’s Phase II clinical trial will treat patients with the recommended Phase II dose (RP2D) – 0.08mg/kg It is currently enrolling patients in Europe at leading oncology centres Liu commented: “The addition of renowned European institutions expands our geographical footprint and enhances our ability to enrol more PD-1 resistant patient populations we aim to deepen our understanding of invikafusp alfa’s mechanism of action across diverse tumour types.” Invikafusp alfa was generated from Marengo’s STAR platform The platform is a library of antibodies that target non-clonal variable Vβ regions of the T cell receptor fused to different co-stimulatory moieties Marengo reported that it has done extensive preclinical testing on invikafusp alfa ahead of the Phase I/II trial It saw anti-tumour activity in both mouse and human ex vivo tumour models but the Phase I STARt-001 trial was the first-in-human (FIH) testing there are 1,540 ongoing FIH clinical trials in oncology across 3,359 sites at the time of writing GlobalData is the parent company of Clinical Trials Arena Buy the report Give your business an edge with our leading industry insights View all newsletters from across the GlobalData Media network the daughter of Clarence LeRoy and Ruby Jean (Coberly) Mollenhauer She graduated from Center Point Consolidated High School in 1981 and then later went on to get her bachelor’s degree from Kaplan University in 2014 Lori was united in marriage to Sam Sykes on June 27,1981 Lori then found her best friend James Gorsch on October 10 She enjoyed traveling and spending time with family at her home in Marengo at the age of 61 years Lori is survived by her best friend Jim Gorsch; her children Brittany (Dustin) York of Belle Plaine Logan (Shyanna) Gorsch of Marengo and Travis Gorsch of Des Moines; her grandchild Colter James Gorsch; Father Clarence L WA and Marsha (Eric) Reihmann of High Amana; and several nieces and nephews She was preceded in death by her mother Ruby sister Darlene Mollenhauer and sister-in-law Jeanie Mollenhauer Celebration of Life Service will be 10:30 am Saturday at First United Methodist Church in Marengo Visitation will be held 4:00 to 7:00 pm Friday a memorial fund has been established for Safe Haven of Iowa County Messages and tributes may be left at www.powellfuneralhomes.com Powell Funeral Home and Cremation Service in Marengo is caring for Lori and her Family MARENGO \u2014 A Venezuelan man was arrested in Marengo after helping scam a woman out of $24,000 Home / Hometown Current Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread MARENGO — A Venezuelan man was arrested in Marengo after helping scam a woman out of $24,000 According to court documents filed March 11 in Iowa County District Court a woman who identified herself as Melissa Solyoak convinced a Marengo woman that she was an agent of the Federal Government the woman gave $24,000 to Armando Jose Guedez Daher who was posing as an undercover federal agent Solyoak instructed the Marengo woman to give Daher Daher picked up the money at Smith’s house and was arrested as he drove away according to court documents filed by the Iowa County Sheriff’s Department Daher was charged March 11 with theft in the first degree against an older person (someone 60 or older) a Class B felony; theft in the first degree a Class C felony; and conspiracy to commit non-forceable felony Iowa County Chief Deputy Todd Sauerbrei said he’s been in touch with the FBI and that Immigration and Customs Enforcement has a detainer on Daher The victim didn’t report the scam until after she delivered the money they want some more out of them,” said Sauerbrei “We decided to set up a sting to see if these people would come back for more money “It’s a very organized criminal network We don’t know where the scammer really is … but they have to have folks like the one we arrested.” There are a lot of ways people can lie to victims The computer locks up and a phone number appears on the screen “If your computer’s locked up and you don’t know how to fix it a person pretends to be a federal agent who will put the victim in touch with someone who can fix the computer “You think it’s a regular business,” said Sauerbrei “It’s a very sophisticated network of people out to steal your money.” Sometimes victims are asked to send the money by bitcoin or gift cards “These particular groups of scammers they’re going around picking up cash from folks “We have a lot of people fall for bitcoin,” said Sauerbrei Money in a bitcoin can go anywhere in the world Though investigators attempt to find out where the money ends up Scammers use different stories to convince people to send them money and to convince people not to tell anyone about it They might say a relative has been arrested and needs a bond agent or that the victim is accused of embezzling money and needs to pay to get the charges dropped The scammer may even promise to send the money back after everything is set right They tell these folks they can’t tell anyone,” said Sauerbrei They might tell victims they’ll be criminally prosecuted people don’t want to be embarrassed,” Sauerbrei said many people don’t report falling for scams “We don’t want people to be afraid to call us,” said Sauerbrei “No one’s out of their reach with technology,” said Sauerbrei and they’ve become more realistic with AI “It’s frustrating and its complicated.” Sauerbrei suggests verifying independently what people say And if an offer sounds too good to be true By WIFR NewsroomPublished: Apr 2025 at 2:13 PM CDTEmail This LinkShare on FacebookShare on X (formerly Twitter)Share on PinterestShare on LinkedInMARENGO (WIFR) - The business was open at the time of the crash Marengo Fire and Rescue District was called to the 100 block of E for a car that crashed into the storefront of a business Officials say the building has moderate damage The City of Marengo Building Department has been requested to assess the damage The single occupant of the vehicle was evaluated by paramedics but declined further medical treatment The crash is under investigation by the Marengo Police Department ExpandOpponents of a proposed ready-mix plant near Marengo listen during the McHenry County Board meeting Tuesday A farm field near Marengo could soon be home to a gravel mine and ready-mix plant But many of the neighbors who live near the property are upset about the possibility of the field being converted to that use McHenry County officials are reviewing a proposal to renew a conditional use permit for Maple Valley Materials to operate a gravel pit with the addition of a ready mix facility on the property which is immediately west of Maple Street near Marengo and south of the Maple Street-Coral Road intersection The property is near an existing Ozinga operation off Route 23 south of Marengo toward Interstate 90 The plant is visible in the distance from Maple Street and some of the residents who oppose the Maple Street enterprise have said Route 23 is a better spot for such operations said his operation will be nothing like the Ozinga one “We’re a small family company,” Gavers said The property has had the conditional use permit since 2003 for earth extraction The permit is up for renewal and the Gavers is seeking to also build a ready-mix plant on the site Gavers serves on the Woodstock Plan Commission and is also the founder of the Gavers Community Cancer Foundation’s Barndance Gavers is listed as the applicant on the application but other family members or their trusts are listed as the managers for the company The Gavers family has another operating gravel pit near Woodstock, just off Rose Farm Road. That operation raised opposition from residents as well back in 2016, the Northwest Herald reported at the time who said they have owned the Marengo property since the late 1990s said there’s never been any complaints or problems at the Woodstock site neighbors have mobilized against the plan and spoke at a county meeting Tuesday Those who came out to express their opposition to the gravel operation made up most of the crowd and they filled most of the audience space in the County Board room A Change.org petition calling on the County Board to reject the petition garnered over 350 signatures as of Wednesday Environmental and noise impacts are among the issues residents raised Tuesday evening told the board Tuesday evening his house was built in 2004; he and his family moved in in 2016 “after immediately falling in love with it on first sight.” McHenry County officials are reviewing a proposal to renew a conditional use permit for Maple Valley Materials to operate a gravel pit and a ready-mix facility at a farm field near Marengo the area “has shifted towards a more residential focus.” McGrath said approving the gravel pit would impact the character of the community This great neighborhood will turn into an industrial corridor,” McGrath said Jacqui Mitzelfelt said her family has been part of the Marengo-Riley community since the 1950s She moved out to the rural area to give her children a healthy and safe environment Mitzelfelt said the plant would generate silica dust and she said silica dust can cause respiratory issues in animals especially our children and elders and the thought of it contaminating our air is terrifying,” Mitzelfelt said She said her husband handles concrete daily and he comes home many nights “coughing and blowing his nose Gavers said there will be a recovery system to capture the cement dust Theresa Kyriazes spoke about the noise that could arise from the potential plant “This isn’t just about occasional noise disturbance injurious noise that will fundamentally change our lives,” Kyriazes said mentioning findings from a noise study included in zoning board materials The damage to the community if the permit is approved could never be undone Those hours are a condition on the current permit and county staff is recommending that condition be continued but having the ready-mix plant on site cuts the truck traffic down by about two-thirds County documents indicate the site is located in a sensitive aquifer recharging area and there is a potential for contamination Dwight MacKinney speaks against the proposed ready-mix plant near Marengo during the McHenry County Board meeting Tuesday “The applicants are required to install monitoring wells on the site which will be actively monitored by McHenry County,” according to county documents Among the conditions county staff has proposed for the operation include “no earth extraction and/or mining operation(s) is permitted to operate in such a manner that the groundwater table of surrounding properties is adversely impacted.” It’s a condition that Gavers said during a zoning board hearing The proposal is before the McHenry County Board with a negative recommendation from the Zoning Board of Appeals Most of the County Board hasn’t weighed in during public meetings about the topic, but after about half a dozen residents had expressed their opposition Tuesday, board member Brian Sager, R-Woodstock, responded to the comments. Sager said his comments weren’t meant to indicate how he’ll vote on the matter but he thanked the members of the public for speaking up and speaking out, noting it’s often hard for people to speak before public bodies. He noted the research the residents embarked on and how they used it justify their position. “It’s very obvious that you all have worked together as a community to identify how you were going to present tonight and I think you did so in a very effective manner to express your individual and collective opposition so I want to commend and to thank you for that,” Sager said. County Board rules state for a conditional use permit to get the thumbs-up, it needs a “simple majority” of the board to vote yes on it. The rules are silent on any potential override conditions. Some of the neighbors have noted in public comment, however, that no backyard should have a gravel pit. “This is not a ‘not in my backyard’ issue. This does not belong in anybody’s backyard,” Joel Kyriazes said at a county meeting last week. You are using an outdated browser. Please upgrade your browser or activate Google Chrome Frame to improve your experience A two-vehicle crash that occurred at approximately 2:50 p.m has claimed the life of a Tuscaloosa woman according to the Alabama Law Enforcement agency was critically injured when the 2009 Toyota Camry she was driving collided head-on with the 2011 Ford Edge driven by Adam Hernandez The report indicted that Myers was not using a seat belt at the time of the crash and was transported to Whitfield Regional Hospital “where she succumbed to injuries and was pronounced deceased.” Hernandez was injured and transported to Whitfield Regional Hospital for treatment was injured and transported to DCH Regional Medical Center in Tuscaloosa for treatment ALEA’s Highway Patrol Division continue to investigate The Memphis Grizzlies (38-22) hit the court against the Atlanta Hawks (27-33) as 8.5-point favorites on Monday The Brooklyn Nets (21-39) clash with the Atlanta Hawks (27-33) at 6 p.m The SWAC college basketball lineup on Monday which includes the Southern Jaguars versus the Florida A&M Rattlers There are several strong matchups on Monday in college basketball action including the McNeese Cowboys playing the Stephen… Top-25 teams will be in action across two games on Monday’s college basketball schedule Kay Ivey has awarded just over $240,000 to provide services to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault along with training for law enforcement and prosecutors in 11 west Alabama counties Two agencies serving Marengo County received some of that funding has received $54,610 to provide forensic exams therapy and support groups to victims of sexual violence in Bibb has received grants of $29,110 and $39,610 for a range of services including a 24-hour crisis line “These grants will help bring perpetrators to justice and provide victims with a safe haven and a path to recovery,” Gov “I commend these local agencies in west Alabama for working to build safer communities by fighting these horrific crimes.” The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs is administering the grants with funds made available by the U.S “The programs funded by these grants are vital for victims seeking justice shelter and healing,” ADECA Director Kenneth Boswell said Ivey in support of these organizations and the important work they do on behalf of victims.” The Marion County Commission has received $59,217 for the 25th Judicial Circuit’s Services centralized prosecution and law enforcement training to increase reporting and decrease overall incidents of domestic violence The Pickens County Commission will use its $59,217 grant to support the 24th Judicial Circuit’s Domestic Violence/Sexual Assault Unit investigative services and statistical coordination for cases in Fayette — Two dogs were rescued from a structure fire in Marengo Township on Saturday the Calhoun County Sheriff's Office (CCSO) responded to a structure fire on H Drive North in Marengo Township The call came in from a concerned caller who reported visible flames from the residence's window Deputies observed heavy smoke and flames from the home upon arrival leading deputies to believe the home may have been occupied The deputies quickly entered the house to search for occupants They rescued two dogs from the home before evacuating Marengo Township Fire Department personnel arrived shortly after and searched the residence to ensure no other individuals were present Anyone with information on the fire is asked to contact contact Lieutenant Hess at the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office at (269) 781-0880 or Calhoun County Consolidated Dispatch at (269) 781-0911 The Sweet Water softball team swept rival Marengo 23-0 and 20-0 last week to earn a pair of area wins Anna Westbrook led the Lady Bulldogs in Game 1 with a 4-for-4 day Whitney Harrington was also 3-for-3 with three runs and an RBI Maylie Broussard was 3-for-4 with a double Addison Griffith had a pair of singles with two runs and an RBI Reese Ashcroft also doubled while Piper Gray and Willisha Bouler singled Bouler had the only hit for Marengo in that game A Copleland got the win with three strikeouts in two innings Broussard also had three strikeouts in one inning of work Raegan Averette led the Lady Bulldogs in game two with a home run Marley Miller and Reese Ashcraft had a pair of hits each in the win Whitney Harrington had a three-run home run while Addison Griffith had a two-run triple Anna Westbrook had three RBIs and a double Ashcraft got the win with seven strikeouts in three innings of work a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering novel approaches for precision immunotherapy in Oncology today announced the appointment of Elena Garralda Ph.D., to its Scientific Advisory Board (SAB).  Director of Early Drug Development at Vall d'Hebron University Hospital (VHIO) and Director of the Phase I Unit at NEXT Oncology Barcelona, is  an internationally renowned leader in early-phase clinical trials and translational cancer research "Her extraordinary contributions and exceptional leadership in translational oncology research align perfectly with our mission to advance novel biology into impactful treatments She joins an exceptional team of advisors on the SAB who play a pivotal role in helping us accelerate the development of transformative immunotherapies grounded in novel biology." under the guidance of its highly accomplished members plays a pivotal role in shaping the company's scientific and clinical strategy the team is further empowered to drive innovation and advance the company's pipeline to benefit cancer patients worldwide "It is an honor to join this distinguished team of scientific and clinical experts who are shaping the future of immuno-oncology," said Dr Garralda. "Marengo's innovative approach to harnessing the immune system holds great promise for advancing new therapies and I am excited to contribute to supporting the advancement of these groundbreaking programs." MediaPeg Rusconi I [email protected]  InvestorsSvetlana Makhni | [email protected] Personnel Announcements at the University of Iowa Hospital and Clinic in Iowa City He graduated from Guernsey High School in 1959 Larry was united in marriage to Shirlee Darland on July 20 Together they lived in Brooklyn until 1972 and then moved to Marengo Larry worked at Amana Refrigeration for 38 years and as a consultant for Mills Products After retiring he bowled on the Senior PBA Tour for approximately 3 years Larry loved buckskinning; he was a very talented artist in his own right making and gifting his creations to people He had a collection of around 3,500 beer cans and had just recently sold them to another collector.Larry is survived by his wife Shirlee of 61 years; son Jay (Rhonda) Hall; five grandchildren Cael (Emilee Miller) Hall and Callie Hall; 3 great granddaughters Adley and Avalynn Disterhoft and Willow Knapp; and his sister Linda (Larry) Hansen Missy.A Celebration of Life Gathering will be held Saturday 2025 at the Marengo Golf Club from 1:00-4:00 p.m A private family burial will be held at the Bishop Cemetery Powell Funeral Home & Crematory in Marengo is caring for Larry and his family Memorials may be directed to Safe Haven of Iowa County in his honor of his love of all animals Messages and tributes may be left at www.powellfuneralhomes.com  2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Marengo Therapeutics a clinical-stage biotech company pioneering a new way to activate T cells targeting the Vβ chain of the T cell receptor to select the optimal T cell subsets against cancer today announced that it has entered into a clinical study collaboration and supply agreement with Gilead Sciences to study the combination of STAR0602 (Invikafusp alfa) with Trodelvy® (sacituzumab govitecan-hziy) a Trop-2-directed antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) as a potential treatment for adult patients with metastatic hormone receptor-positive (HR+) human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative (HER2-) breast cancer and metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and preliminary efficacy of STAR0602 (Invikafusp alfa) in combination with Trodelvy in patients with metastatic TNBC or metastatic HR+/HER2- breast cancer aiming to explore a novel therapeutic strategy that could offer new treatment options for patients "We are excited about the clinical potential of combining our novel selective dual T cell activator with Gilead's antibody-drug conjugate Chief Medical Officer of Marengo Therapeutics "This innovative approach leverages the strengths of two unique modalities to target and potentially eradicate cancer cells more effectively With the possibility to deliver target cytotoxic agents directly to tumors which release more tumor antigens for selectively activated and expanded Vβ6/10 T cells to recognize and build long-term immune memory we believe this combination may have the potential to improve cancer patient outcomes." Under the clinical study collaboration and supply agreement who will conduct and sponsor the combination study Marengo and Gilead will retain all development and commercial rights to their respective compounds including as monotherapy or as combination therapies The combination of invikafusp alfa and sacituzumab govitecan-hziy is investigational and not approved by any health authority globally The safety and efficacy of this combination has not been established About STAR™ PlatformMarengo's STAR™ Platform is a multi-specific antibody-fusion platform derived from Marengo's proprietary library of antibodies targeting germline-encoded variable (V)β regions of the TCR fused to different T cell co-stimulatory moieties About STAR0602 STAR0602 is Marengo's lead program the first T cell activator generated from Marengo's STAR platform; a library of antibodies targeting non-clonal variable (V)β regions of the TCR fused to different co-stimulatory moieties STAR0602 has undergone extensive preclinical testing which demonstrates potent anti-tumor activity in both mouse and human ex vivo tumor models attributed to a distinct mechanism of action from existing cancer immunotherapies About the START-001Clinical Study START-001 is a Phase 1/2 clinical trial evaluating the safety and preliminary clinical activity of STAR0602 as a single agent in biomarker selected patients with advanced antigen-rich solid tumors including PD-1 refractory and rare tumors — Results further validate company's novel and proprietary STAR bi-specific antibody platform for selective T cell activation in vivo — a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering novel approaches to precision T cell activation announced today that Chief Executive Officer presented a clinical update highlighting the STARt-001 trial at the ESMO Immuno-Oncology Congress 2024 taking place in Geneva demonstrated initial anti-tumor activity and a favorable safety profile in heavily pre-treated biomarker-enriched patients who are resistant to prior PD-1 therapy "We are honored to share this exciting clinical advancement with the global oncology community at ESMO IO," said Dr "The insights gained from the STARt-001 trial underscore the potential of invikafusp alfa to address the unmet needs of patients with PD-1-resistant tumors They also validate the precision immunology approach underlying our STAR platform which drives the design of Marengo's selective dual T cell agonist antibodies We look forward to advancing invikafusp alfa into a Phase 2 study in the near term." About the STARt-001Clinical Study STARt-001 is a Phase 1/2 clinical trial evaluating the safety MediaPeg Rusconi | [email protected]  InvestorsSvetlana Makhni | [email protected]  ExpandSergio Esquivel (Photo Provided by McHenry County Sheriff's Office) A Marengo man who was charged in 2021 with driving drunk and causing a crash that killed his wife was sentenced Wednesday to five years in prison Sergio Esquivel, 48, pleaded guilty to aggravated driving under the influence, a Class 2 felony, according to a judgment order in McHenry County court He is required to serve 85% of his prison term followed by 12 months of mandatory supervised release reckless homicide and aggravated reckless homicide were dismissed Police said that on the evening of Sept. 22, 2021, Esquivel was drunk when driving with his wife, Mabel Esquivel, west on Route 176. He was just west of Sunnyside Road when he crossed the center line and crashed into an oncoming vehicle driven by a 27-year-old Union woman She was traveling with a 4-year-old passenger and two dogs Mabel Esquivel was ejected from the vehicle and died at the scene, the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office said at the time Sergio Esquivel was taken to a hospital and treated for serious injuries The two dogs in the Mazda died The driver was hospitalized and treated for injuries including a broken nose The child suffered a broken right arm and pelvis In January, he filed a motion to postpone a planned Feb. 5 hearing at which he was to enter into a plea deal, citing the fact that his son was about to come home. He needed to ensure his home was “compliant with the medical needs of his son,” his attorney William Bligh wrote in the motion. Family members also needed time for training on how to care for his son, and Esquivel needed time to arrange for guardianship of his son while he is in prison, Bligh said. ExpandA fast-moving brush fire burned about four acres on Tuesday according to the Marengo Fire & Rescue Districts (Photo provided by the Marengo Fire & Rescue Districts ) Dry ground conditions and dormant vegetation elevates the risk that outdoor fires can spreading rapidly, a Marengo Fire & Rescue Districts spokesman warned residents after firefighters battled a brush fire Tuesday Firefighters were called by an adjacent homeowner at 10:46 a.m to the 20400 block of Delks Drive in unincorporated Marengo Crews arriving on scene shortly after found a fast-moving brush fire spreading through a retention pond and cattails Union Fire Protection District also responded with additional resources The fire burned about four acres of land but was contained within 30 minutes No surrounding homes or structures were damaged and no injuries were reported Area residents are urged to use extreme caution if planning any outdoor burning and reminded them to comply with local burn regulations and dry fuels can cause fires to spread quickly increasing the potential for property damage and safety hazards,” Vucha said A fast-moving brush fire burned about four acres on Tuesday according to the Marengo Fire & Rescue Districts (Photo provided by the Marengo Fire & Rescue Districts ) Marengo City Administrator Karla Marck and City Attorney Gabe Kinsler MARENGO \u2014 The Marengo City Council approved the final reading … MARENGO — The Marengo City Council approved the final reading this month of changes to its animal protection and control ordinance The change is meant to clean up code sections 55.23 and 55.24 following a dog-bite case in Marengo last summer not guilty of allowing an animal to run after the Court finds Defendant not guilty and orders that this case is dismissed,” Smolik wrote in an Order of Dismissal July 8 didn’t deny that her dog bit a three-year-old girl in her home but argued that the dog was in its own home and the girl and her father had entered the house before Gotsis could secure the dog Smolik gave no details in her decision to dismiss and the City of Marengo filed a Notice of Appeal July 26 The court was unable to determine what grounds the magistrate relied on in her decision or what if any evidence the magistrate found credible or not because the magistrate’s order doesn’t indicate what specifically she relied upon in making this determination so the court was left with no specific findings to review The city argued in a brief that the underlying facts of the case were undisputed the ordinance’s language is clear and the defendant’s dog was responsible for the child’s injuries argued for Gotsis that Smolik properly found that the city ordinance only applies to public spaces that the victim deprived the defendant the opportunity to restrain her dog and that the defendant had no duty of care to someone entering her house unexpectedly 7 court filing that the ordinance applies to private and public spaces and that the victim was invited to the defendant’s house and was not trespassing Fisher agreed with the defendant that Marengo Municipal Code Section 55.24 contains limiting language “while latter is on public property.” But Fisher also said the defendant was cited under the wrong ordinance Ordinance 55.23 describes the offense of allowing a dog to run after The citation names only the penalty provision (55.24) In response to the appeals court’s decision clarified 55.23 and changed some fines in section 4.01 ExpandNorthern Illinois quarterback Josh Holst delivers a pass during the first spring football practice DeKALB – Last spring, Josh Holst was embroiled in a three-way competition for the starting quarterback job at Northern Illinois University Holst said he’s not taking anything for granted “It’s always been a competition,” Holst said So you always have to go out there and perform I’d come out the same way if I was a backup I’d come out the same way if I was a guaranteed starter He finished the season with 593 passing yards in seven games. He threw two touchdowns and two interceptions while completing 58.6% of his passes. The former track athlete was the team’s fourth-leading rusher, averaging 4.7 yards per carry. He ran for 230 yards and a touchdown. “Holst ended the year as the starter. It’s his job to hold on to it,” NIU coach Thomas Hammock said. “He’s got competitors coming for him, he has guys that want reps. But he has every opportunity to go out there and establish himself day in and day out.” With new offensive coordinator Quinn Sanders’ offense, Holst said there’s more run-pass option (RPO) opportunities this year. He said it’s much more similar to the offense he ran at Marengo, and he’s looking forward to the quarterback-friendly offense. “We’re moving fast, we’re signaling, we’re getting the plays in,” Holst said. “Everybody’s bought in. Everybody loves it again. It’s just great for everybody. It’s a good offense for everybody. We can run the ball, we can throw the ball, we can RPO. Everybody is really bought in, which is great.” Holst said he’s been impressed with how the team is picking up the new offense. “For having a new scheme we’re doing really good in my opinion,” Holst said. “As practices keep going we’ll keep getting better and better with the scheme. But we’ve been in this offense for two months, and we’re going against this defense that’s really good and has the same scheme pretty much. It’s really good to see really good progress being made.” Hammock said one of the main focal points for the quarterbacks this year is getting the ball to a spot where the receiver can get more yards after the catch, something that’s been lacking from the team. He pointed to a play Justin Lynch made in a scrimmage, turning a short pass into a big play because the ball was about six inches in front of him as opposed to six inches behind. “His accuracy and anticipation is top-notch,” Hammock said. “His arm has gotten a lot stronger. I thought that was one of the things that held him back earlier in his career, but he’s gotten a lot stronger in the weight room and a lot bigger. And the anticipation and accuracy is still there. He’s going against a really good defense every day, which is going to allow him to get better.” Hammock said Holst has gotten better every year in the program, from handling compete-team quarterback duties as a freshman to filling in when needed last season. This year is no exception to that progression. “The one thing about Holst, he’s an alpha. He’s a competitor. He can take what he learns in the classroom and apply it on the field,“ Hammock said. ”He’s going to go out there and play well. A lot of people are going to notice who he is and what he’s about. ... “Now we have to figure out how to keep him in our program for his whole time.”