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Missing West Side man located
A 61-year-old deaf man with dementia who was reported missing has been located, police said.   Taylor Games had last been seen Monday afternoon in the 2700 block of West Adams Street.   Police said early Tuesday that Games had been located in the 400 block of North Leamington about 12:30 a.m. Tuesday.
Man dies 2 days after being shot on West Side street
A man shot in the Austin neighborhood over the weekend died Monday, authorities said.   Christopher Johnson Jr., 18, was pronounced dead at 1:35 p.m. Monday at Mount Sinai Hospital after being shot in the 400 block of South Central Avenue, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.   Johnson,...
1 dead, 6 others including 14-year-old wounded in city shootings
One man was killed and six other other people, including a 14-year-old girl, have been wounded in shootings on the West and South sides since midmorning Monday, police said.   The 24-year-old man was fatally wounded in a drive-by shooting about 11:35 a.m. in the 4800 block of West Hubbard Street...
Rauner signs lead-testing law for schools, day care centers
Illinois elementary schools and day care centers must test drinking water sources for lead and notify parents of the results under legislation signed into law Monday by Gov. Bruce Rauner.  The plan, which requires one-time testing, takes effect immediately and applies to schools with students up...
1 hurt in high-rise apartment fire on South Side
One person was seriously injured in a fire in a high-rise apartment in the South Shore neighborhood Monday night.   The fire broke out about 7:20 p.m. at 7100 S. South Shore Drive, a high-rise apartment building, bringing fire crews and at least six ambulances to the scene.   One victim was taken to...
Possible suspects held after 1 killed, 1 wounded in Melrose Park shooting
An Aurora man was killed Sunday and another man wounded in a shooting in Melrose Park.   According to a news release, Melrose Park police received a complaint around 2:40 p.m. Sunday about drug dealing at 12th Avenue and Winston Drive; officers were led to a home in the 1200 block of Winston, where...
Goodman Theatre marquee to light up downtown once again
After sustaining damage due to an electrical fire, the marquee sign of the Goodman Theatre will once again shine brightly.  The marquee on Dearborn Street above the theater's entrance will be illuminated in a ceremony set for Thursday, months after flames shot out the top of the vertical sign. The...
1 dead, 7 wounded in city shootings
A man was killed in Ukrainian Village and seven other people were wounded in Chicago shootings from Sunday afternoon to early Monday, police said.   The fatal shooting was at 1:10 a.m. Monday, when a 36-year-old man was shot in the 2200 block of West Chicago Avenue. A shooter in a black SUV chased...
Man carrying pizza box robs restaurant, bar at gunpoint
A man carrying a pizza box robbed a restaurant in Chicago's Irving Park neighborhood last week after carrying out a similar robbery at a bar in the Lincoln Square area late last month, police said Monday.   In each of the robberies, the man entered the business carrying a pizza box, according to...
Pfleger calls Trump a 'bully' and 'anchor of fake news' at MLK event
The Rev. Michael Pfleger, the South Side pastor and social justice activist, lambasted President-elect Donald Trump as being a bully and an "anchor of fake news" in the keynote speech at the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s church in Atlanta in a service commemorating the 88th birthday of the slain...
Man dies almost 2 weeks after Southwest Side shooting
A Gage Park man has died almost two weeks after being shot while driving in his neighborhood early on New Year’s Eve, authorities said Monday.   Juan A. Vasquez, 35, was pronounced dead at 12:30 p.m. Wednesday at Mount Sinai Hospital, but an autopsy that determined he died from a gunshot wound to...
Obama welcomes Cubs to the White House: 'It took you long enough'
After being honored at the White House on Monday afternoon, the Cubs revealed the real reason why they desperately wanted to make the trip before President Barack Obama left office.   Touring the White House and being celebrated for their first championship since 1908 was certainly fun for the team,...
4 teens charged with beating, robbing woman after offering to help
Four boys in their teens have been charged with hitting and robbing a woman on the South Side after asking if she needed help with her bags, police said.The suspects -- a 13-year-old, a 14-year-old and two 16-year-olds -- approached the 23-year-old woman around 11:30 p.m. last Friday, Chicago police...
TCF bank branch robbed in Franklin Park
A TCF bank branch in Franklin Park was robbed Monday afternoon, according to the FBI.The robber entered the bank in the 10200 block of Grand Avenue around 1:30 p.m., the FBI said. he fled with an unknown amount of cash.He was described as black, about 6 feet tall, thin build and wearing black clothing...
Barrington boy dies after falling off bicycle
A 12-year-old Barrington boy died Saturday after falling off a bicycle while at Citizens Park in the village, authorities said.   Barrington police and fire departments responded initially at 3:40 p.m. Saturday to the 300 block of Sharon Drive in Barrington to a report of an unresponsive male, Barrington...
Man pleads guilty to stealing tree tops from Chippewa National Forest
A Grand Rapids man has pleaded guilty to cutting thousands of tree tops from black spruce in the Chippewa National Forest.   Seventy-year-old Joseph Edminster pleaded guilty Friday in U.S. District Court to one count of theft of government property.   Prosecutors say he admitted to cutting more than...
Under the Gun (25) More
Man dies after hit by Metra train near Woodstock station
A man was struck and killed by a Metra train near the Woodstock station Sunday evening, officials said.   The Union Pacific-Northwest Line train hit the pedestrian near the station sometime around 6 p.m., said Metra spokesman Michael Gillis.   Woodstock police and firefighters were called a few minutes...
SUV strikes CTA bus after running red light, police say
Several people were taken to hospitals after an SUV ran a red light and struck a CTA bus on the South Side on Monday morning, officials said.The bus was headed north on Kedzie Street around 9:45 a.m. when the SUV ran the light at 79th Street, police said.  The bus swerved and hit another vehicle.The...
Man at center of video, excessive force lawsuit should have been 'allowed to go on his way': attorney
A lawsuit filed by a man whose arrest was captured on video is asking the city of Evanston and the arresting police officers to pay $50,000 for "compensatory and punitive damages, fees, costs and such other relief." That's according to a lawsuit filed Oct. 11 in Cook County circuit court, almost...
Police: Off-duty sergeant shot person while returning fire at car on Northwest Side
An off-duty Chicago police sergeant shot and wounded a person while returning fire at a car on the Northwest Side Sunday evening, authorities said.   It was the second shooting by a Chicago police officer in less than 20 hours. Early Sunday, an on-duty officer fatally shot a man suspected of being...
Ari Emanuel is liberal bug in Trump's ear, Hollywood director says
Don't knock Ari Emanuel for his tight relationship with President-elect Donald Trump, filmmaker Peter Berg says.  The brother of Mayor Rahm Emanuel is using his influence to bend Trump's ear about progressive causes, Berg told The Hollywood Reporter. "I heard a phone call between Ari and Trump where...
Man suffers severe burns during domestic dispute
An 18-year-old man was severely burned during a domestic dispute in the West Pullman neighborhood early Monday, police said.   The man was in the 11500 block of South Lafayette Avenue about 2:30 a.m. when he got involved in a fight, police said.   Someone threw gasoline on him and he was burned, law...
Ken Burns teases new 'Baseball' doc pegged to Cubs World Series win
With his new documentary "The Vietnam War" scheduled to premiere on PBS in September and multiple other films in the works, Ken Burns has a full plate. But he's looking to add another project: an addendum to his 1994 series "Baseball," pegged to the Chicago Cubs' 2016 World Series victory. "I'm...
Chicago aldermen want federal investigation of city Law Department
As the U.S. Justice Department asks Chicago to address deep flaws in police officers' use of force, a group of aldermen is accusing Mayor Rahm Emanuel's Law Department of enabling the misconduct and is asking federal authorities to investigate.   The City Council's Progressive Caucus sent a letter...
Chicago officer fatally shoots man suspected of being involved in shooting
A Chicago police officer early Sunday fatally shot a man who was suspected of being involved in a shooting that wounded three people, according to officials.  Just before 12:25 a.m. Sunday, patrol officers in the area heard gunshots and responded to the intersection of Homan Avenue and Madison...
Civil rights activist remembers MLK at St. Sabina: 'We found that if you love, you win'
Sitting in the front row of St. Sabina Catholic Church, Angelia Kinard gazed over at a framed black and white portrait of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. resting near the altar. "It brings back a lot of memories," she said. "I was in Chicago when he was killed. It was devastating. It was heartbreaking."...
Bond set at $75K for Chicago police officer charged with sex assault
A Chicago police officer accused of having sexual contact with an underage girl has been charged with felony criminal sexual assault, according to police and Cook County state's attorney officials.  Officer Eugene Ciardullo, 51, was arrested by fellow officers at his home Saturday afternoon, department...
Woman dies 7 months after Memorial Day weekend shooting
A woman who was one of 71 people shot over last Memorial Day weekend in Chicago has died, authorities said.   Precious Land, 27, was shot just before 8:05 p.m. May 28, 2016, while driving in a block from her home, authorities said. Land was pronounced dead at 9:24 p.m. on Friday at Mount Sinai Hospital,...
One killed in Carpentersville crash
One person was killed Sunday in a crash on Route 25 (Kennedy Drive) near Fir Street, Carpentersville Police Chief Michael Kilbourne said.   The two-vehicle accident occurred at 10:30 a.m. One of the two drivers involved was killed in the crash, and the second driver was taken to an area hospital...
SUV wanted in fatal hit-and-run is found; no word on driver
An SUV sought in connection with a fatal hit-and-run on Monday in the Englewood neighborhood has been found, but police did not immediately release information on whether the driver of the vehicle has been located.   Shortly after 10 p.m. on Monday, a 21-year-old pedestrian was crossing at 69th Street...
St. Charles police officer injured in chase
A St. Charles patrol officer was injured in a car pursuit of a Rochelle woman at speeds that reached 90 mph on Route 38 near St. Charles, authorities said.   At 4:26 a.m. Sunday, Kane County Sheriff's Office deputies were notified that Elburn police were pursuing a Dodge Avenger east on Route 38...
Dog tracks fleeing domestic violence suspect on Interstate 94
A dog named Dax successfully chased down an alleged domestic violence offender who fled from a vehicle on Interstate 94 early Sunday morning, according to the Lake County Sheriff's Office.   Deputies received a 911 call about 12:40 a.m. reporting a domestic battery in a vehicle on the side of the...
Hebron man killed in crash
A man killed in a single-car crash on Ind. 2 near Union Street Saturday morning has been identified as William L. Rayner, 58, of Hebron, according to a press release from the Lake County Coroner's Office.   The Coroner's Office was called to the crash at 6529 East 181st Street at 9:22 a.m. Rainer...
Woman critically injured in drive-by shooting
A 21-year old Montgomery woman was critically injured and an 11-year old Aurora boy was hurt from flying glass in a drive-by-shooting in North Aurora Saturday night.   North Aurora police are investigating the drive-by-shooting at 8:43 p.m. in a convenience store parking lot in the 1000 block of...
4 dead, 11 wounded in city shootings
Four men were killed and 11 other people were wounded, including a man shot by police, in shootings from Saturday morning to Sunday on the South and West sides.   All four of the fatal shootings and six other nonfatal shootings took place on the city's West Side.  In addition, a man was shot by police...
Women's March on Chicago rally relocated, set for day after inauguration
The gathering and rallying point for the Women's March on Chicago has been relocated slightly.   Set for Jan. 21 — the day after President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration — the march is now scheduled to kick off from Jackson and Lake Shore drives, just south of the Petrillo Music Shell in Grant...
$1 million bond for man accused of home invasion
A Lakeview teenager was ordered held on $1 million bail Saturday for a suburban home invasion late last year where he and another male posing as a utility worker to rob the home of a flea market business owner.   Caleb Cates, 18, appeared to smirk in disbelief after receiving the order from Cook...
Chicago immigration rally has message for Trump: We're here to stay
Student Cindy Agustin fears her parents will be deported and she'll never see them again.   Nareman Taha worries the government will create a Muslim registry to track people of her faith.   Teacher Jaime Serrano is concerned about his second-grade students, some of whom are anxious they will be separated...
Elderly man accused of assaulting paramedic held on $250K bail
A 72-year-old man from the Chatham neighborhood was ordered held on $250,000 bail Saturday for allegedly attacking and attempted to sexually assault a female paramedic as she and her partner took the man to an area hospital following a traffic crash earlier this week.  Dressed in a long grey wool...
Representative's slain aide called 'devoted and adoring mother'
Marianne Viverito was described Saturday as someone who "touched many, many lives," as family and friends gathered for her funeral Mass at a Burbank church and her adult son is accused of her murder.   The 55-year-old daughter of Stickney Township supervisor and former state Sen. Louis Viverito had...
SUV crashes into building, sending 5 people inside to hospitals in hit-and-run
Five people inside a building were injured when a speeding SUV plowed into the structure Saturday morning on the West Side.   It happened in the 5600 block of West North Avenue in the city's North Austin neighborhood about 10:45 a.m. as the Kia SUV was eastbound on North Avenue and was trying to...
Cops seek driver in fatal hit-and-run on South Side
Police are asking for the public's help identifying the driver of a SUV that fatally struck a woman Monday on the South Side.   Shortly after 10 p.m. Monday, a 21-year-old pedestrian was crossing at 69th Street and Wentworth Avenue when she was struck by a white four-door SUV that kept going, police...
Prosecutors charge man in beating death of Saudi student at Wisconsin university
A Minnesota man with a string of domestic violence convictions was charged in the death of a Saudi Arabian college student stemming from a confrontation in northwestern Wisconsin last year, prosecutors said Friday. Cullen Osburn, 27, of Minneapolis, was charged with felony murder and aggravated...
Boy, 11, who went missing on South Side found
An 11-year-old boy who went missing Friday on the South Side has been found, police said.   Jalen Stuckey was last seen near the 7100 block of South Halsted Street in the Englewood neighborhood on the South Side, police said. He was wearing a blue shirt, dark blue pants and black dress shoes.  Police...
3 dead, 6 wounded in city shootings
Three men were killed and six other people, including a 17-year-old boy, were wounded in shootings from Friday to early Saturday.   The most recent attack happened about 3:30 a.m. in the Englewood neighborhood. A man was killed and a 26-year-old woman was critically wounded after five to six men...
Landmark investigation says Chicago police conduct harms residents, endangers officers
The problems start at the training academy, where Chicago police recruits are shown a decades-old video teaching them outdated tactics on when and how to use deadly force.   On the street, many officers are told to keep a "code of silence" and back up the stories of officers who fire at unarmed fleeing...
Court records: Arrest warrant issued for slain congressional aide's son
A murder warrant has been issued for the son of a congressional aide for Rep. Dan Lipinski who was found dead in her Oak Lawn home early Tuesday morning.   Steven Chmela, 27, allegedly stabbed his mother Marianne Viverito in the torso with a bladed object inside the home they shared on the 5100 block...
When mothers kill kids, twisted altruism may be factor, experts say
With the slaying of her two young children followed by her own suicide, Carla Lopez-Mejia joined a dark sisterhood.   The Lake in the Hills woman, 27, allegedly strangled her son, Ezequiel Garcia, 11, and her daughter, Ariana Garcia, 8, before hanging herself. The bodies were discovered in the family's...
Investigation of mom who killed kids, self continues amid outpouring of grief
Amid an outpouring of support for grieving relatives and classmates, police continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of a mother and her two children in an apparent murder-suicide.   Authorities said that Carla Lopez-Mejia strangled her son Ezequiel Garcia, 11, and daughter...
CPS orders 4 unpaid furlough days for all employees
Chicago Public Schools on Friday ordered four unpaid furlough days for its employees as a cost-cutting measure the district said is necessary because of Gov. Bruce Rauner's veto of legislation that would have provided $215 million in state aid.   The furlough days won't interrupt classes because...
No unauthorized immigrants? Manufacturing, hospitality workforces would struggle
Abigail Alvarado has spent most of her 5½ years in the U.S. on assembly lines preparing the frozen pizzas and packaged sandwiches shoppers find in their grocery stores.   Until recently, the 26-year-old hadn't feared being sent back to her native Veracruz, Mexico.   But the incoming Trump administration...
As food allergies spread, a push to raise awareness among students
Teachers and school staff members usually know what to do when they have students with food allergies, but Ruchi Gupta is hoping that a series of videos will help educate students about them too.   On Friday, she showed one of the videos to a group of fifth-graders at the Latin School of Chicago....
Woman, ex-boyfriend accused of fatally shooting dog, staging home invasion
A woman and her ex-boyfriend are accused of staging a home invasion, fatally shooting a dog and planting a gun and drugs all because the woman was apparently unhappy in her marriage, authorities said.   The woman, Mehwish Memon, 30, and her ex-boyfriend, Syed Hassan, 38, are charged with home invasion,...
Zion man guilty of drug-induced homicide in woman's heroin overdose
A McHenry County jury swiftly convicted a Zion man Friday who authorities said sold the heroin taken by a young woman who died of an apparent overdose.  The guilty verdict of drug-induced homicide against James Linder in the 2015 death of Danielle Barzyk, of Algonquin, was announced a little more...
Justice report rips Chicago police for excessive force, lax discipline, bad training
In perhaps the most damning, sweeping critique ever of the Chicago Police Department, the U.S. Department of Justice concluded Friday that the city's police officers are poorly trained and quick to turn to excessive and even deadly force, most often against blacks and Latino residents, without...
Prosecutors: Man tries to solicit murders of girl, 15, and mom who accused him of sex abuse
A man who was already in jail on a criminal sexual abuse case is accused of trying to arrange the murders of the 15-year-old victim and her mother, prosecutors said.   Ivan Flores appeared before Judge James Brown at the Leighton Criminal Court Building on Friday where a $500,000 bail was set on...
2 denied bail in 2015 fatal shooting on West Side
Two men were denied bail Friday afternoon in a 2015 shooting on the West Side that left a 24-year-old man dead.  Miguel Wilson, 26, and Jarell Miller, 22, were both charged with first-degree murder in the Aug. 24 death of William Carter, officials said.   About 6 p.m. that day, Carter and several...
Rail union rejects agreement on Second Chance jobs program for felons: CTA
The union representing CTA rail workers voted against an extension of a jobs program for felons, which could result in the loss of jobs for 63 people, CTA officials said Friday.   The Second Chance program provides felons and other hard-to-place workers with temporary jobs cleaning buses and trains,...
Obama Foundation reports increase in donors
In the final fundraising report before President Barack Obama leaves office and begins to personally raise money for his library on the South Side, his foundation showed an uptick in donors.  The report, which was released Friday and lists donors and a range of their donations for the fourth quarter...
Illinois' biggest state worker union schedules strike-authorization vote
Illinois' largest public employee union moved one step closer to a confrontation with Gov. Bruce Rauner, scheduling votes that could authorize a state worker strike if the union and the Republican governor are unable to reach a deal on new contract terms.  The American Federation of State, County...
Baxter unit to pay $18 million over alleged drug manufacturing violation
A subsidiary of Deerfield-based Baxter International has agreed to pay the federal government more than $18 million to resolve allegations that it violated federal drug manufacturing standards.   The government alleged that between 2011 and 2012, Baxter Healthcare Corp. manufactured sterile intravenous...
Man injured during robbery of computer he planned to sell at Glen Ellyn coffee shop
Two people suffered minor injuries during an armed robbery Thursday at a Starbucks in Glen Ellyn, police said.   One of the people injured was a 22-year-old man who was robbed of a computer he had intended to sell to another man at the coffee shop at 691 Roosevelt Road, police said.   The man had advertised...
Man robs Oak Lawn bank, officials say
The Oak Lawn branch of the Huntington Bank was robbed Friday morning, according to the FBI.   A male suspect, wearing black clothing and black sunglasses, robbed the bank at 10:50 a.m. at 10240 S. Cicero Ave. He is described as between 5-foot-7 and 5-foot-11 feet tall, the FBI said.   He fled south...
Skokie man charged in March 2016 killing of his young son's mother
A Skokie man has been charged with murder and aggravated domestic battery in connection with the March 2016 slaying of a 31-year-old Skokie woman — who was the the mother of his child — inside her home, authorities said.   Jermaine Powell, 38, of the 8200 block of Keating Avenue, Skokie, was charged...
Laquan McDonald timeline: The shooting, the video and the fallout
More than two years after the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald by Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke, the fallout continues to spread. Van Dyke faces murder charges, sustained protests have taken place across the city after a dashcam video shows Van Dyke shooting McDonald 16 times,...
UPDATE: Girl, 15, found after going missing on the Southwest Side
A 15-year-old girl who went missing from the Southwest Side has been reunited with her family, Chicago police said.   Brenda Lechuga was located Saturday and she is safe, police said.   Lechuga was last seen Monday in the 6000 block of South Kilpatrick Avenue, in the West Lawn neighborhood, police...
Bolingbrook village trustee in court next week on DUI charges
A Bolingbrook village trustee is scheduled to appear in Will County court next week on charges that he was driving drunk last month in Romeoville.   Michael Lawler, a member of the Bolingbrook Village Board since 1995, was arrested early Dec. 23 after police responded to a report of a one-vehicle...
Fateful balloon connects 2 mothers, 1 killing
Tammy Hnatiuk stood on her porch deck to let her dog outside when something fluttered down from the sky. "It scared the crap out of me," the Portage mother of five told me.   Precisely at 9:34 p.m. on Jan. 6, a bitterly cold Friday night, a helium-filled turquoise balloon landed at her feet. She...
Four shot over two hours Thursday in Chicago
One man was killed and three other people were wounded over a two-hour period on Chicago's West and South sides Thursday, according to police.In an attack in Little Village just before 9:25 p.m., a 34-year-old man was killed and a 36-year-old man was wounded, police said. They were standing together...
Housing protesters arrested at breakfast honoring Martin Luther King Jr.
Several people were arrested Friday morning after about three dozen housing advocates attempted to disrupt Chicago's annual interfaith breakfast in honor of Martin Luther King Jr.   The protesters interrupted Mayor Rahm Emanuel's remarks at the Hilton Hotel, 720 S. Michigan Ave., after earlier blocking...
Chicago Housing Authority stockpiles cash, pays debts as families languish on waiting list
While tens of thousands of families languished on a waiting list for assistance, the Chicago Housing Authority paid off practically all of its debt and overfunded its pension plan, according to a report released Friday by the bipartisan Center for Tax and Budget Accountability.   The agency also...
Half-brother: Beatings, starvation and isolation preceded Waukegan girl's death
Nicholette Lawrence alternately cried and buried her face in her hands as her sentencing hearing for the murder of her 11-year-old daughter unfolded Thursday in an audio- and video-assisted depiction of cruelty and brutality.   Lawrence, 34, of Waukegan, previously pleaded guilty to one count of...
Man charged with trying to sexually assault paramedic on way to hospital
A 72-year-old man has been charged with trying to sexually assault a Chicago Fire Department paramedic who was taking him to a hospital after he crashed his car Wednesday night on the South Side, officials said.Roy U. Hall struck a pole in the 3300 block of South King Drive about 9:30 p.m. and...
Landmark moment for Chicago police as Justice report to be released today
As a victim of torture by Chicago police decades ago, Darrell Cannon has heard promises of reform before.   With the U.S. Justice Department expected to release its report Friday on a long-standing pattern of civil rights violations by Chicago police, Cannon, who spent decades in prison for a murder...
Rauner to name former CPS chief Paul Vallas to board of troubled Chicago State
Hoping to bring better stewardship to a troubled institution, Gov. Bruce Rauner plans to name Paul Vallas as one of four new trustees to the Chicago State University board, an unexpected arrangement between former political rivals.   The appointment of Vallas, who ran Chicago Public Schools from...
A May trial date is set for Hinsdale man in the killing of former pro athlete
A Hinsdale businessman is scheduled to stand trial this spring in the killing of a former professional basketball player who authorities allege was shot to death in a crime motivated by jealousy.  Jeffrey Keller, 53, will be tried on first-degree murder charges beginning May 16 in the DuPage County...