Stories by Matt Masterson

In a letter to parents, Chicago Public Schools CEO Janice Jackson said the district has “no choice but to ask parents to keep your children home” after the teachers union instructed its members not to report for in-person work Wednesday ahead of a possible strike.

Akeem Kosoko is facing federal charges after he allegedly conspired with a local postal carrier and others in a scheme to steal and sell coronavirus relief checks.

The district on Tuesday announced it had entered into partnerships with five community organizations to “reimagine” school safety strategies as new alternatives to the existing school resource officer program.

Illinois is poised to become one of the first states to eliminate cash bail after the state legislature passed a sweeping criminal justice reform bill earlier this month. Now proponents who pushed for that change hope the measure can be used to reform pretrial services elsewhere.

Chicago Public Schools said 60% of the 5,352 pre-kindergarten and special education cluster program students who opted for in-person learning showed up at their school last week. That amounts to about 3,200 students.

The state of Illinois is expanding vaccine eligibility beginning Monday, meaning school-based staff and other front-line employees will be able to start getting inoculated

In just the first three weeks of 2021, there have already been 144 carjackings across Chicago, according to police, continuing the spike seen throughout last year.

During a hearing Thursday, U.S. District Court Judge Gabriel Fuentes pointed to the “very explicit and concerning” voicemails allegedly left by Louis Capriotti in ordering the Chicago Heights man held without bond during his case.

Voting members of the Chicago Teachers Union approved a resolution Wednesday night which could mark the first step toward a potential strike if the union can’t reach a deal with Chicago Public Schools on a safe reopening plan amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The judge handling Jussie Smollett’s case wants to keep a potential trial focused on the events that occurred the night the former “Empire” star allegedly filed a false police report, rather than the controversy surrounding his initial charges and their subsequent dismissal.

A Chicago police lieutenant is suing the city, claiming a new safety team designed to address neighborhood concerns and improve community relationships has instead focused on making baseless traffic stops in order to meet illegal self-imposed quotas.

CPS CEO Janice Jackson said the school district is still having conversations with the Chicago Teachers Union on in-person staffing levels, and she believes “we’ll get to a resolution on that.” But she said the conversation can no longer be about whether or not to reopen schools.

The head of Chicago Public Schools said the district is “willing to compromise” on an agreement with the Chicago Teachers Union to safely reopen schools as the first week of in-person learning since last spring comes to a close.

Just over a week after he was taken into custody on a bond violation, former Chicago Ald. Proco “Joe” Moreno will be released from the Cook County Jail on condition he begin alcohol treatment following his arrest on drunk driving charges.

Denroy Garcia, 16, was charged as an adult after he allegedly shot and killed 33-year-old Shuai Guan during an attempted carjacking last month.

Both the Illinois Senate and House of Representatives approved the sweeping measure Wednesday, which could end the practice of cash bail in Illinois and make it easier to decertify officers who commit misconduct.

Chicago teachers who’ve been locked out of their education accounts after refusing to show up for in-person learning showed up outside the home of Board of Education President Miguel del Valle to call for a safer school reopening plan.

A suburban Chicago Heights man who allegedly pledged in a voicemail to “kill any m-----f---ing Democrat that steps on the m-----f---ing lawn” at President-elect Joe Biden’s upcoming inauguration is now facing a criminal charge.

Chicago Public Schools has warned nearly 150 of its educators and employees that if they don’t show up for work beginning Tuesday, they would not be paid and will be locked out of their Google Classroom accounts.

A victory for the Chicago Teachers Union in Springfield on Monday could mark a change in the way the union is able to bargain with Chicago Public Schools over plans to reopen schools and other issues.

Some Chicago Public Schools students returned Monday to their classrooms for the first time in 10 months as the school district resumed in-person learning despite fervent pushback from many educators.

Less than 60% of Chicago Public Schools teachers returned as expected for in-person learning prep this week. School district officials said those who don't show up beginning Monday will not be eligible for pay.

John Catanzara, head of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 7, said his comments earlier this week were in "no way condoning the violence in" Washington D.C.

A Cook County judge has ordered former Chicago Ald. Proco “Joe” Moreno to be held without bail and report to jail, calling him “a danger to the community” after he allegedly drove drunk last month and damaged more than a half dozen vehicles.

The Chicago Public Schools watchdog unit tasked with investigating reports of sexual abuse opened more than 400 new cases last year, including allegations of a teacher who sexually assaulted a student and a registered sex offender who was able to work as a volunteer.

CPS CEO Janice Jackson said 49.7% of teachers returned Monday, one week before in-person learning is set to resume for some 17,000 students. Chicago Teachers Union Vice President Stacy Davis Gates weighs in on “Chicago Tonight.”