East St. Louis is a city that has struggled with just about every possible difficulty that a community can be subjected to. High crime rates, lack of job opportunities for its residents, and a plethora of other issues have resulted in the city losing over 75% of its population since peaking in the 1950s. At various points, the city has had the highest per-capita murder rate in the entire nation. With such a negative public perception, attracting businesses to invest in the area, despite being in a very desirable geographic location for shipping and transportation, has been extraordinarily difficult.

While the fight is still ongoing and the broader issues are far from solved, several efforts have made substantial progress in East St. Louis. In particular, the ISP’s Public Safety Enforcement Group (PSEG) has made great strides in facilitating effective collaboration between local and state agencies. In a partnership that was previously unprecedented, Illinois State Police officers have worked alongside and pooled resources with East St. Louis Police officers, resulting in more solved cases, more convictions, and an overall decline in the city’s crime rates during the program’s tenure.

In this episode our host, Illinois State Police Director Brendan Kelly, will be speaking with and hearing the story of Brittany Williams, a local woman who was unexpectedly caught in the crossfire of a shootout while at an East St. Louis gas station with her family, ultimately resulting in her nephew being killed and her son being hospitalized.

We will also be joined by several individuals involved in the ongoing fight to save East St. Louis and to enable it to build back stronger, from the perspectives of both law enforcement, with representatives from the local police department and the ISP, and from community outreach organizations from the area, such as the Community Lifeline Center.

After being the victim of a sexual assault in 2021, Northwestern University undergraduate student Kaylyn Ahn set out on a journey to close a legal loophole in Illinois, regarding alcohol and substance consumption, that prevented prosecutors from pursuing a case against her aggressor.

Ahn drafted a bill to close the loophole and update the definition of consent in the state’s sexual assault law. Introduced into the Illinois General Assembly by Rep. Mark Walker (D-Arlington Heights), the bill passed in 2022.

Since then, police departments across the state have been re-training officers in handling sexual assault cases, and thousands of previously unaddressed sexual assault cases are now eligible for prosecution.

Ahn has continued to be a vocal advocate for reforming sexual assault legislation, speaking at universities, fundraisers, and political events across the country.

In this episode, hosted once again by Illinois State Police Director Brendan Kelly, we also hear from several other experts representing law enforcement, forensics, and victim advocacy centers- all discussing the complicated nuance of sexual assault prosecution, and how to better seek justice and peace for victims while retaining accountability and due process.

Intro and Outro narrated by Bill Kurtis.

Original Theme music by David Huizenga.

In 2002, at the age of 13, Alicia Kozakiewicz became the first known victim of an Internet luring and child abduction that received widespread media attention. Kozakiewicz had corresponded online with someone she thought to be a girl named "Christine". In reality, "Christine" was actually a 31-year-old man named Scott Tyree. Over the course of nearly a year, Tyree groomed the 13-year-old Alicia, before eventually kidnapping and trapping her in his basement dungeon, where he abused her while broadcasting everything on a live internet stream. Alicia miraculously survived thanks to an anonymous online tip that allowed law enforcement officials to track down Tyree's IP address and rescue Alicia.

In the years since, Alicia has become one of the most influential advocates for improved internet safety for children. She has been featured on a multitude of media outlets, and travels the country speaking to schools and pushing for improved legislation.

In this episode, Alicia will be joining our host, Illinois State Police Director Brendan Kelly, where they will discuss the issues surrounding internet safety for children with several other expert guests, including Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul.

Intro and outro narrated by Bill Kurtis.

Original theme music composed by David Huizenga.

For more information about Alicia's efforts to educate children and parents about internet safety and advance legislation to help, visit her website at aliciakozak.com. Her new book "The Internet Safety Guidebook: Protecting Kids in the Digital Age" was released in February, 2025 and is available now.