Stories by Matt Masterson

A federal judge has denied a motion that sought to block a controversial new Illinois law that will allow terminally ill adults to take life-ending medication, just days before that law is set to take effect.

Chicago’s Office of Inspector General published a new report evaluating the CFD’s hiring and promotion processes, finding that while the initial firefighter and EMT applicant pool reflected the city’s racial and ethnic diversity, that representation shifted as applicants moved through the hiring process.

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s office has reached a settlement agreement with the Northern Illinois Gas Company to cut the natural gas utility’s requested rate increase by approximately $140 million.

According to the Chicago Police Department, 37 total people were shot in 30 separate shooting incidents between Friday and Monday evenings.

Chicago public safety officials are urging caution for boaters and anyone else planning to enjoy time on Lake Michigan during the extended Labor Day holiday weekend.

Chicago Public Schools is canceling all outdoor activities Thursday unless they can be moved inside amid another day of extreme heat across the city.

A federal judge has refused to toss out charges against a U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agent whom federal prosecutors allege operated in Chicago is a “serial rapist” after it was revealed those charges came from the same grand jury in the botched “Broadview Six” case.

The city of Chicago in August saw its fewest homicides across any such month in more than a decade as the city’s violence levels remain in line with last year’s historic lows.

The family of a man who was fatally stabbed on a Blue Line train early this year is suing the Chicago Transit Authority and a pair of private security firms, claiming the agencies failed to protect riders amid an uptick in violence.

The city of Chicago is suing the owners of the South Chicago Chapel, weeks after dozens of improperly stored, decomposing bodies were discovered at the facility in what city attorneys claim was an “immensely unsanitary” situation.

Anosh Ahmed, the former Loretto Hospital executive who allegedly fled the U.S. amid a federal investigation into his alleged fraud and money laundering schemes pleaded not guilty on more than a dozen charges Monday.

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul on Wednesday announced the lawsuit, arguing President Donald Trump’s executive order is unconstitutional and risks disenfranchising voters by preventing states from effectively administering their vote-by-mail programs.

Meta agreed to pay out more than $17 billion and must implement significant safety features to protect children on Instagram and Facebook as part of a new settlement with Illinois and dozens of other states announced Wednesday.

Local and state officials are reassuring Illinoisans about the safety of mail-in voting, while also encouraging them to return their ballots early after a new ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court could cause “chaos” ahead of the November election.

The Rev. Michael Pfleger has been reinstated at St. Sabina Catholic Church, more than a month after the longtime leader and vocal social justice was removed from the South Side parish amid new allegations of sexual abuse.

“Chicago Tonight” anchor Brandis Friedman will moderate a panel of Jessica Biggs, Jennifer Custer, Hilario Dominguez, Victor P. Henderson and Sendhil Revuluri before a live studio audience of Chicago residents for an hourlong forum on Sept. 15.

Hundreds of thousands of Chicago Public Schools students returned to their classrooms across the city Monday on the first day of school for the 2026-27 academic year as local officials continue pushing for more state funding to help prevent staffing layoffs.

For decades, Chicago has been the only city in Illinois with its board of education handpicked by its mayor. In the November general election, for the first time ever, all 21 seats on the board will be up for grabs, ending a reign of mayoral control that dates back to 1995 under Richard M. Daley.

Thousands of those affected by this month’s damaging downpours and ongoing power outages have joined a class action lawsuit targeting Indiana’s largest power utility, claiming it neglected “foreseeable and preventable” issues prior to the storms.

A federal judge this week sentenced Brian Metcalf, a former CPS network chief and principal at Gage Park High School, to a year and one day in prison after he entered a guilty plea on wire fraud charges.

The Illinois Tollway Board on Wednesday approved a massive 15-year, $26.5 billion capital spending plan that will raise vehicle tolls beginning next year.

Federal prosecutors have not yet decided if they’ll re-try ex-Commonwealth Edison CEO Anne Pramaggiore and longtime lobbyist Michael McClain on charges stemming from a bribery scandal targeting convicted former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan.

NASCAR won’t be returning to the streets of downtown Chicago next summer, as it announced plans to once again run three days of races at the Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet.

The Chicago Teachers Union is suing the Illinois Policy Institute, claiming the nonprofit think tank has defamed the union by framing it as “toxic” in an alleged effort to undermine its progressive policies.

Four Chicago Public Schools high schools have been ranked among the best in the country, according to a new list from U.S. News & World Report.

Tommy Schaefer, the man who allegedly conspired with his then-girlfriend Heather Mack to kill her mother at a luxury resort in Bali more than a decade ago, is asking a federal judge to release him from custody pending trial.