Stories by Nicole Cardos

“Chicago’s Fabulous Fountains” details the history and curiosities behind some of the city’s aquatic art, from politically induced mischief to true crime stories.

Geoffrey Baer drops the curtain on an opera house mystery in this week’s edition of Ask Geoffrey.

Former gang members cited a lack of recreational activities and the rush of adrenaline they got from participating in gang violence as reasons for joining gangs, according to a new study.

As museum director, the Yale graduate will lead the design, development and operation of the Obama Presidential Center’s museum, according to the Obama Foundation. 

Visitors to Shedd Aquarium’s seasonal exhibit can dip their hands into a pool and discover the texture of this unique sea creature. 

Often when criminal court defendants are placed on probation, they’re sent back to jail if caught using drugs. But in one Cook County courtroom, they’re given a second chance – and sometimes a third or fourth. 

In a speech Tuesday on the city’s South Side, gubernatorial candidate Chris Kennedy called for abolishing the current property tax system, calling it a “racket” and likening it to extortion. 

Alan Paul and Claude McKnight join us in discussion.

Watch the May 30, 2017 full episode of "Chicago Tonight."

A look at the cases to watch as U.S. Supreme Court decisions start rolling in.

In a class-action lawsuit filed this month in Cook County, a suburban family argues that estimates on the real estate website are inaccurate and illegal under Illinois law because they’re not licensed appraisals.

Is monogamy the gold standard for romantic relationships, or is more better?

Illinois legislators are edging closer to their adjournment Wednesday at midnight, but as of Tuesday evening no agreed plan had surfaced.

If signed by the governor, a Senate-approved bill would leave authority over charter closures with local school boards.

The striped “forest giraffe” is the 28th okapi to be born at the suburban zoo since 1959, when it became the first zoo in North America to have a birth of the species.

MK Czerwiec began writing comics as a way to cope with the challenges of being an AIDS nurse during the height of the epidemic. Now, she’s hoping to use comics as a way to begin conversations around caregiving. 

When asked to describe the late artist Ed Paschke, Vesna Stelcer, the director at the Jefferson Park art center that bears his name, chooses one word: timeless.

A farmhouse built in 1856 may have ties to the Underground Railroad. This summer, the homeowners and a Lake Forest archaeologist will begin work to uncover the mystery.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson on Monday commended the Illinois House for passing a long sought-after measure cracking down on people caught multiple times for illegal gun possession, but perhaps they were too quick with their praise.

Illinois legislators are under the gun to pass Illinois’ first complete budget since July 2015. The spring session ends Wednesday, though with time running short it seems more likely that the deadline will be put off until the end of June.

Lawmakers heard tales of woe Sunday as the Illinois House resumed what’s supposed to be the swan song of the annual spring session. There is, increasingly, a prevailing sentiment that the Democratic-led General Assembly will fail to pass a budget by May 31.

A new round of finger-pointing played out as Illinois lawmakers left the capitol Friday for a mini Memorial Day weekend break.

The same day the U.S. Census Bureau released data outlining Chicago’s record population loss, moving equipment company U-Haul offered a different, sunnier take on things.

A program targeting vacant homes and crime in a 20-block section of Chicago’s Southwest Side is expanding after a four-year pilot – and a noticeable change in the neighborhood.

Using an analysis of Chicago Police Department data, the district says crime along Safe passage routes has fallen by 32 percent since the 2012-13 school year. 

Officials in Whiting, Indiana, think their city is about to become a whole lot more popular.