Did a local attorney speak with the two brothers allegedly hired by Jussie Smollett to carry out a hoax hate crime against him two years ago? The answer could determine who represents the former “Empire” star at his criminal trial.

Jury selection for a former Minneapolis police officer charged in George Floyd’s death was halted before it began Monday by the state’s effort to add a third-degree murder charge.

Attorneys for the five children of Daniel Prude, a Black man who died after being restrained by police during a mental health episode, announced a federal lawsuit Monday against the city of Rochester and at least six police officers, alleging wrongful death and civil rights violations.

Dozens of people gathered in front of the Minnesota governor’s mansion on Saturday to demand accountability for police officers, days before a former Minneapolis officer is scheduled to go on trial in the death of George Floyd. 

A Minneapolis police officer was swiftly fired and charged with murder after bystander video showed him pressing his knee into George Floyd’s neck, ignoring the Black man’s cries that he couldn’t breathe. But even with that powerful footage, legal experts say the case isn’t a slam dunk.

Amanda Gorman, the 22-year-old poet who captured hearts at the inauguration of President Joe Biden, posted to social media that she was followed home by a security guard who demanded to know where she lived because she “looked suspicious.”

Many in the community consider George Floyd Square, the place where former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck for about nine minutes, to be a sacred space, but it also has presented some headaches for the city.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot has introduced a series of changes to the way the Chicago Police Department serves search warrants in an effort to douse the continuing firestorm triggered by video of a mistaken raid that left Anjanette Young handcuffed and pleading for help in February 2019.

The 59-year-old man alleges in an affidavit shared late Tuesday with church officials that the Rev. Michael Pfleger once grabbed his crotch over his clothes in the priest’s bedroom area at St. Sabina Church in the summer of 1979 as the then 18-year-old accuser pretended to sleep.

According to a federal complaint, James Massey posted multiple videos and messages on Facebook calling for people to gather in downtown Chicago and engage in property damage and looting last summer.

Robert Smith spent decades in prison on a wrongful murder conviction. Now, he’s suing the city and several Chicago Police Department detectives who worked under notorious Area 2 Commander Jon Burge, claiming they beat a false confession out of him.

February saw fewer carjackings in Chicago compared to the previous month amid historic snowfall totals and increased policing efforts, while the number of shootings and homicides recorded last month remain on par with totals from February 2020.

Gov. J. B. Pritzker signed a criminal justice bill Monday that is massive both in its size – 764 pages – and scope. We discuss the the coming changes and what concerns the bill raises for opponents.

A federal judge on Friday approved a $650 million settlement of a privacy lawsuit against Facebook for allegedly using photo face-tagging and other biometric data without the permission of its users.

United Airlines will pay more than $49 million to avoid criminal prosecution and settle civil charges of defrauding the U.S. Postal Service in the delivery of international mail. 

The Archdiocese of Chicago said Wednesday it plans to publicly list the names of “credibly accused” priests belonging to religious orders after questions over the archdiocese’s transparency.