Nation IN BRIEF : ILLINOIS : Court Gives City Hall Back to East St. Louis

An appeals court has returned City Hall to East St. Louis, 19 months after a judge awarded it to a man to settle a $3.4-million lawsuit. City Hall cannot be taken to repay a city debt because it is crucial to the operation of local government, U.S. 5th District Appellate Court Justice Phillip Rarick said in a ruling. Walter DeBow won his suit against the city in 1985 after suffering permanent brain damage following a beating by a fellow prisoner at the city jail. The city was unable to pay, so a St. Clair County Circuit judge awarded City Hall to DeBow in 1990.