A vaguely worded decree signed by Putin did not say if troops were on the move, and it cast the order as an effort to “maintain peace.” But it appeared to dash the slim remaining hopes of averting a major conflict in Europe that could cause massive casualties, energy shortages on the continent and economic chaos around the globe.

While Chicago has been without a permanent inspector general, former 11th Ward Ald. Patrick Daley Thompson became the 37th alderperson to be convicted of a crime since 1969. Alds. Ed Burke (14th Ward) and Carrie Austin (34th Ward) are awaiting trial after pleading not guilty to bribery and corruption charges.

The U.S. has written to the top United Nations human rights official that it has “credible information” that Russian forces are identifying Ukrainians “to be killed or sent to camps” if it further invades Ukraine and occupies it.

Russia extended military drills near Ukraine’s northern borders Sunday amid increased fears that two days of sustained shelling along the contact line between soldiers and Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine could spark an invasion.

Tensions and frustrations are running high in the Woodlawn neighborhood as residents feel the effects of the incoming Obama Presidential Center. 

Appeals court rules against Pritzker’s school mask mandate. A mask melee in the general assembly. Lightfoot’s gang ordinance moves forward. And another Chicago alderman found guilty in federal court.

Russian misinformation is building up to a false justification for Putin to move against Ukraine, Biden said, accusing Russia of ceasefire violations in the “rapidly escalating crisis.”

Officials with the Chicago Department of Public Health rejected the permit because of the “potential adverse changes in air quality and quality of life that would be caused by operations, and health vulnerabilities in the surrounding communities.” 

Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday heralded NATO unity during the escalating Ukraine crisis and warned Russia that the U.S. and Western allies stood ready to respond with tough sanctions if President Vladimir Putin moves forward with an invasion of Ukraine.

The ruling declared the governor’s appeal moot because a General Assembly committee declined on Tuesday to reissue rules from the Illinois Department of Health requiring masks to be worn in school buildings. 

A proposal from Mayor Lori Lightfoot to fight crime by going after the profits earned by Chicago’s gangs advanced Thursday over the objections of progressive alderpeople and civil rights groups. The 10-4 vote by the Chicago City Council’s Public Safety Committee tees up a showdown over the controversial measure at Wednesday’s full City Council. 

The Chicago City Council’s Finance Committee voted 13-7 to send the recommendation from city attorneys to the full City Council for a final vote on Wednesday. 

The Chicago Park District’s state-of-the art track and field center at Gately Park in Pullman, which opened in 2021, owes its existence to decades of pushing and prodding by the late Conrad Worrill. Now it’s named for him.

The Chicago City Council is set to pay $1.4 million to the family of a toddler who was struck and killed by a car driven by a man being chased by police.

The infusion from the bipartisan measure enacted in November, combined with annual funding through an ongoing recovery program, will enable agencies by 2030 to finish work on 22 sites designated a quarter-century ago as among the region's most degraded. 

White’s endorsement puts his powerful political machine behind Valencia in the contest against former State Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias and Ald. David Moore (17th Ward).