Stories by Alex Ruppenthal

A key federal program responsible for protecting the Great Lakes is one step closer to being fully funded after it was targeted for massive cuts earlier this year in President Donald Trump’s proposed budget.

The new Silver Search program provides education and resources to help locate people who have Alzheimer’s disease or dementia when they go missing.

Watch the Nov. 20, 2017 full episode of "Chicago Tonight."

Reforms to Cook County’s bond system have led to a 15-percent decrease in the county’s jail population. “Our judges are in fact not setting bonds higher than people can afford,” said Chief Judge Tim Evans.

Records related to an April spill of a toxic metal into a Lake Michigan tributary have not been given to Chicago. The city is now threatening to sue U.S. Steel.

The field to take on Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle is growing. Todd Stroger, who formerly held the post, is announcing plans to run for his old office next year.

China’s most prominent environmental activist talks about the country’s pollution crisis.

The days when Americans fretted over an imminent U.S.-Soviet nuclear showdown might be over, but the consequences of a new nuclear age are still reverberating today.

A new mini power grid supplied by wind and solar helps the Illinois Institute of Technology meet its 21st century power needs.

Illinois Republican Congressman Peter Roskam says that criticisms of the recently passed House GOP tax cut bill are “hyperbole.”

Inspired by the song “My Shot,” from the blockbuster musical, actor Miguel Cervantes is challenging the public to take their “shot” and help raise awareness and funds to find a cure for epilepsy. 

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle can expect easy passage of a revised spending plan, though Commissioner Jesus “Chuy” Garcia said he hasn’t made up his mind about how he’ll vote.

A new $960,000 grant will improve 2.5 miles of streams for nearly 20 species of fish and create 10 acres of neighborhood green space in the Chicago-Calumet region. 

A mass exoneration in Cook County clears 15 men. Proposed layoffs in the wake of the failed soda tax. And controversy over playmaking decisions by Bears coach John Fox.

The civil rights advocate announced Friday that he was diagnosed with the progressive degenerative disorder in 2015. 

Watch the Nov. 16, 2017 full episode of "Chicago Tonight."

Illinois U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrez on Wednesday was one of six House Democrats who formally moved to impeach President Donald Trump by filing articles of impeachment.

Imagine learning your father was prison pals with notorious murderer Nathan Leopold. That’s the true story told in a new graphic novel.  

A Mexican wolf pup born this spring at Brookfield Zoo and released into the wild as part of a species recovery program was tracked down in New Mexico and is healthy, the zoo announced this week.

The new documentary “Making a New American Nutcracker” premieres on WTTW. We speak with the Joffrey Ballet’s artistic director and the film’s producer.

How can citizens avoid trouble when getting pulled over by the police? We speak with Dwayne Bryant, the author of a manual that explains how to safely handle a traffic stop.

More than 50 organizations are urging the Illinois congressional delegation to reauthorize funding for programs that provide health insurance to children and support for low-income and at-risk families, before it becomes a crisis in the state.

“It’s a brand new beginning for me,” said Leonard Gipson, one of 15 men who had drug convictions vacated by a judge Thursday. The convictions stemmed from arrests made more than a decade ago by disgraced former Chicago Police Sgt. Ronald Watts.

Watch the Nov. 15, 2017 full episode of "Chicago Tonight."

As evidence mounts that Russia did meddle in the 2016 election, we speak with a Russia expert about what Vladimir Putin’s strategic goals might be.

Carol Marin discusses a court appearance by attorneys for Cook County public defenders who filed suit over detainees exposing themselves.