Stories by Heather Cherone

Nearly half of the more than 8,700 verbal orders issued by Chicago police to enforce stay-at-home orders designed to slow the spread of COVID-19 took place on the West Side, according to data from the Chicago Police Department.

Illinois’ ability to withstand financial hits was anemic even before the global pandemic hit, but the novel coronavirus has led the state to craft a novel budget strategy. We talk COVID-19, unemployment and police reform with Illinois’ senior U.S. senator.

Chicago rapper Matt Muse helped lead a march Sunday from Lincoln Park to Wicker Park to bring attention to to the role of Black musicians and creators in the city’s entertainment and music spaces.

John Bolton’s memoir officially comes out Tuesday after surviving a security review and a legal challenge from the Justice Department. But over the weekend, it was available in ways even his publisher is hoping to prevent.

What’s all this talk about a “second wave” of U.S. coronavirus cases? Scientists generally agree the nation is still in its first wave of infections, albeit one that’s dipping in some parts of the country while rising in others.

An outbreak of an intestinal illness linked to packaged salads has sickened more than 20 people across the state, according to health officials.

President Donald Trump said Saturday he’s asked his administration to slow down coronavirus testing because robust testing turns up too many cases of COVID-19.

Small businesses struggling to stay afloat during the coronavirus pandemic and recover from unrest touched off by police brutality protests can apply for grants starting Saturday, city officials announced.

Aldermen who want Chicago to cut ties with Commonwealth Edison and form its own electric utility acknowledged this week that the pandemic and the economic crisis it triggered has dimmed the effort’s chances of success.

Hours before the evening rally, the Trump campaign said six staff members who were helping setting up for the event had tested positive for the virus. 

The nation’s largest movie theater chain changed its position on mask-wearing less than a day after the company became a target on social media for saying it would defer to local governments on the issue.

A former Chicago businessman imprisoned for aiding terrorist groups has been arrested in Los Angeles to face murder charges in India for the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks that killed more than 160 people, U.S. prosecutors said Friday.

The Chicago Police Department missed 70% of reform deadlines set out in a consent decree. A landmark week at the U.S. Supreme Court and the Chicago City Council recognizes Juneteenth.

City officials confirmed Friday afternoon that Hilco Global is now allowed to move forward with construction.

Officials are telling people to keep their distance from the bear. People aren’t listening.

In addition to the traditional cookouts and readings of the Emancipation Proclamation — the Civil War-era order that declared all slaves free in Confederate territory — Americans were marching, holding sit-ins or car caravan protests. 

President Donald Trump said Friday he will renew his effort to end legal protections for hundreds of thousands of immigrants brought to the United States as children.

The CTA has outlined the steps it’s taking to keep riders safe, but passengers say the agency is dropping the ball on the biggest precaution: forcing riders to wear masks.

Chicago bars and restaurants will be allowed to serve a limited number of indoor diners for the first time in three months starting June 26, city officials announced Friday.

A Transportation Security Administration official is accusing the agency of failing to adequately protect airport screeners from the new coronavirus, endangering both the officers and the traveling public.

A pair of endangered piping plovers, nicknamed Monty and Rose, nested once again at Montrose Beach, where their new chicks just hatched. Plover monitors are on the scene to make sure excited visitors don't inadvertently harm the birds.

U.S. health regulators are cracking down on three companies for selling at-home blood tests for coronavirus, warning that the products have not been shown to safely and accurately screen for COVID-19.

“This is a critical time in history and for law enforcement,” independent monitor Maggie Hickey said in a statement. “It is my hope that the current momentum around police accountability will inspire the City and the CPD to accelerate its efforts.”

The 2020 census of the region’s trees — the largest undertaking of its kind in the country — will build on the inaugural 2010 count and help municipalities set priorities for creating healthier green infrastructure, particularly in underserved communities.

Like many other commercial corridors across the city, Milwaukee Avenue suffered extensive damage just as businesses were about to start welcoming shoppers inside once again.

When the Emancipation Proclamation was read in Galveston, Texas, on June 19, 1865, my great-great-great-great-grandparents were there.