Jamie Hicks | Hicks Investigative News

                                     Jamie Hicks is officially breaking his silence on the controversial workplace protection order filed against him by the City of LaSalle under the Illinois Workplace Violence Protection Act—a law designed to protect employees from threats at their place of work. However, the alleged incident occurred in a courtroom, not at any city workplace.

The claim? That Hicks made a threatening statement toward Finance Director John Duncan during a legal hearing. Despite the serious nature of the accusation, no criminal charges were filed. No courtroom sheriffs intervened. No judge called for removal. Instead, the city pursued a civil workplace protection order—an unprecedented move in LaSalle.

It all sounded good at first. The City of LaSalle promised to bring new life to downtown using a tool called TIF—Tax Increment Financing. It's supposed to help cities fix up older buildings, attract new businesses, and boost the local economy using property taxes that are set aside for these special projects.

But instead of boosting our economy, the City of LaSalle used those TIF dollars on projects that never got finished—or never even got off the ground. Now, according to city records, just one of those TIF funds (TIF District V) is nearly $90 million in the hole (2024 TIF Records, p. 11). And the biggest chunk of that is tied to a hotel that still hasn't reopened.

What LaSalle Taxpayers Were Promised—And How Two TIFs Were Quietly Emptied 

By Jamie Hicks | Hicks News | April 2025

In the months following the February 8, 2023 alarm incident at Carus Chemical’s Apollo Building, LaSalle Police Chief Michael Smudzinski did something that should raise alarms of its own:
He quietly altered his official police report — half a year after the fact — to frame a local activist as a potential terrorist.

Let that sink in....

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  MAYOR JEFF GROVE FAILED US: 20 Years of Power, $17 M 

LaSalle, IL — March 21, 2025

A detailed review of the City of LaSalle's Finance Committee meeting held on June 18, 2024, reveals a troubling pattern of budgeting tactics, legal gray areas, and structural financial instability that could spell long-term trouble for the city and its residents.

LaSalle's $2.7 Million Budget Mirage Revealed Ahead of April 2025 Election

LaSalle, IL — March 21, 2025 In a bombshell discovery with major implications for transparency and fiscal accountability, the City of LaSalle's FY2024 audit reveals that over $2.1 million was quietly transferred into the General Fund from a patchwork of TIF districts, utility accounts, and even library and playground funds. These inter-fund transfers effectively masked a real operating deficit of approximately $2.7 million just ahead of the city's critical mayoral election on April 1, 2025.

The true deficit 

March 4, 2025

Written by J.Hicks

LaSalle, Illinois - A thorough review of city audits, financial reports, and meeting minutes reveals significant discrepancies in Mayor Jeff Grove's February 2025 campaign letter. The mayor's claims of financial responsibility, pension funding, and infrastructure improvements fail under closer examination. Documents indicate inconsistencies in debt reduction, TIF allocations, pension liabilities, and transparency practices.

Fact-Check and Response to Mayor Jeff Grove's February 2025 Campaign Letter