The lawsuit is the latest effort to force the government to ban menthols, which are disproportionately used by Black smokers and young people. It comes amid growing concerns from advocates that the federal plan could be derailed by election-year politics.

“Like many cities, we are in the process of recovering from the impact of the pandemic, resulting in vacancies, particularly our storefronts and offices,” Mayor Brandon Johnson said. “We have to respond to these changes. As a city, we have to do it in a creative and collaborative way.”

In an unusual order, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon had asked prosecutors and defense lawyers to formulate proposed jury instructions for most of the charges even though it remains unclear when the case might reach trial.

The killing of 11-year-old Jayden Perkins is drawing attention to a small state board responsible for deciding when prisoners can be released on parole.

Since Mayor Brandon Johnson took office, Cristina Pacione-Zayas has served as his first deputy chief of staff, charged with overseeing the city’s response to the arrival of nearly 38,500 migrants from the southern border.

Challenger Sharon Waller has bested incumbent Daniel “Pogo” Pogorzelski in the Democratic race to claim a seat on the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District’s board of commissioners, according to unofficial results from the Chicago Board of Elections released Tuesday evening.

“The City is Up for Grabs: How Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot Led and Lost a City in Crisis” by Chicago Tribune reporter Gregory Pratt offers an in-depth, behind-the-scenes look into Lightfoot's tumultuous tenure in office.

The Chicago City Council voted 16-29 Monday to reject an effort to punish Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez for speaking at a protest in front of City Hall where an American flag was burned. 

The measure now set for a final vote by the full City Council on April 17 would require the Johnson administration to provide alderpeople with a host of data generated by the ShotSpotter system before the city’s contract with SoundThinking expires on Nov. 22. 

University of Chicago lecturer Clayton Harris conceded about an hour after Eileen O’Neill Burke declared victory Friday afternoon after the latest vote count showed her leading by 1,566 votes in a race where more than 527,000 votes were cast.

The CTA issued a correction to years worth of data on worker overtime provided to WTTW News, after the transit agency discovered the records did not accurately reflect actual hours worked. The issue also highlights the agency’s slow response on public records requests. 

Iowa has the most poor bridges, followed by Pennsylvania, Illinois and Missouri, according to an Associated Press analysis.

Eileen O’Neill Burke declares victory in the tight Cook County state’s attorney race. Chicago City Council wants migrant evictions oversight. And Johnson supports public money to develop a lakefront stadium.

Eileen O’Neill Burke declared victory Friday afternoon after the latest vote count showed her leading by 1,566 votes in a race where more than 527,000 votes were cast. O’Neill Burke said she had a “mathematically insurmountable lead.”

According to a poll by The New York Times and Siena College, Hispanic voters could be favoring former President Donald J. Trump over President Joe Biden in the upcoming presidential election, but sample size limits exact conclusions about the support. 

A panel of federal judges seemed skeptical of legal arguments made on behalf of Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Bost, who claims Illinois’ law allowing counting of mail-in ballots for two weeks after an election is in violation of federal law.