The Sheley Case: Alleged spree killer tops this year's stories

A 6-day murder spree that began in Whiteside County in late June was the biggest story to hit the Sauk Valley this year - and perhaps for decades past. When the body of a 93-year-old Sterling man was found in the trunk of his own car on June 26, a massive manhunt ensued for the chief suspect: Nicholas T. Sheley, a 29-year-old habitual criminal who had been in and out of jail his whole life. Sheley led police on a 6-day, two-state chase. Four days after Russell Reed's body was found, seven more bodies were found, all beaten to death, and all believed to have died at Sheley's hands, police say. In Galesburg, a 65-year-old man was found behind a local grocery store, and an Arkansas couple were found behind a gas station in Festus, Mo. The gris