The cyberextortion attempt that has forced the shutdown of a vital U.S. pipeline was carried out by a criminal gang known as DarkSide that cultivates a Robin Hood image of stealing from corporations and giving a cut to charity, a person close to the investigation said Sunday.

Joyous reunions among vaccinated parents and children across the country marked this year’s Mother’s Day, the second one celebrated during the coronavirus pandemic.

Helmut Jahn, a prominent German architect who designed an Illinois state government building and worked on the design of the FBI headquarters in Washington, was killed when two vehicles struck the bicycle he was riding outside Chicago.

The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a toll on everyone, but one group in particular has had an especially heavy lift: mothers, who have taken on the majority of caregiving responsibilities over the last year.

Four families separated under former President Donald Trump’s immigration policy were this week the first to be reunited by organizations working with the Biden administration’s Family Reunification Task Force.

U.S. census figures are out — do Illinois Latinos warrant more representation in Congress? Reuniting migrant parents and children at the border. Plus, the gifts of motherhood.

With a Democratic governor and supermajorities in the state Senate and House, Democrats are in the driver’s seat to redraw the state’s political boundaries. Do Illinois Latinos now warrant more representation in Congress than they currently have?

Singer-songwriter Lloyd Price, an early rock ’n roll star and enduring maverick whose hits included such up-tempo favorites as “Lawdy Miss Clawdy,” “Personality” and the semi-forbidden “Stagger Lee,” has died. 

The Justice Department is sending a strong message about its priorities these days. In just over the past two weeks, it has opened investigations of police in Louisville, Kentucky and Minneapolis.

Even as restrictions relax across much of the United States, colleges and universities have taken new steps to police campus life as the virus spreads through students who are among the last adults to get access to vaccines.

Tawny Kitaen, the sultry red-haired actress who appeared in rock music videos during the heyday of MTV and starred opposite Tom Hanks in the 1984 comedy “Bachelor Party,” has died. She was 59.

Illinois is on track to open fully in June. Cultural institutions prepare for their return. High-profile political corruption cases heat up in court. And bombshell resignations both at CPS and COPA.

City officials agreed Friday to conduct an environmental justice assessment of the proposed shredding operation before issuing the final permit the facility needs to start operating. 

Specially trained “turtle dogs” took part in a field study of threatened ornate box turtles at Nachusa Grasslands, one of the species last homes in Illinois.

In all, 3,168 cases involving the variant, known as B.1.1.7, have been found in samples of COVID-19 positive tests from Illinois since Jan. 15, officials said.