Stories by Blake Thor

Canada has announced $20 billion in tariffs on more than 700 U.S. goods, including steel, aluminum and dairy products. The retaliatory tariffs will take effect Sept. 8 and are a response to U.S. tariffs imposed Aug. 22 on Canadian wine, cement and hockey sticks, among other products.

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 first death from West Nile virus in Illinois this year was reported in Chicago, the Chicago Department of Public Health announced Tuesday. CDPH also reported the first two human cases of West Nile virus in the city.

The last beluga whales remaining at a defunct marine park in Canada are now on their way to new homes in the U.S. A pair arrived at Shedd Aquarium on Tuesday morning.

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.

What is a TIF district and why are some researchers calling it a runaway tool? Plus, mosquitoes and ticks are breaking records this year — what you should know.

A growing population of invasive Asian tiger mosquitoes is leaving millions of people with itchy, painful bites. And severe summer storms have created more standing water, which is where mosquitos breed.

Tax Increment Financing Districts “reinforced the city’s historic economic inequities instead of reducing them — and all of this happened with little transparency or accountability from city planning officials,” according to the Great Cities Institute at the University of Illinois Chicago.

The Department of Homeland Security is planning a surge in its efforts to investigate voter fraud in select states starting Tuesday, according to internal federal guidance reviewed by CNN.

The Presidents Cup will be held at Medinah Country Club in the northwest suburbs on Sept. 22-27. It will be President Donald Trump’s first public appearance in the Chicago area since he was elected to a second term.

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.

Incarcerated Illinoisans admitted to solitary confinement appear to no longer have access to outside communication, legal materials and educational programming through tablets, according to advocates.

It’s back to school for CPS students, but not without threat of midyear layoffs for teachers. And a look at the planned route for the so-called O’Hare Flyer express train.

Starting Saturday, thrill-seeking bike riders will get to test their skills on the newest additions to Big Marsh Park’s complex of BMX and mountain biking trails.

“Your war and your tariffs are squeezing Illinois farmers with higher costs they cannot control and never asked for,” Gov. JB Pritzker wrote. “They should not be forced to pick up the tab for your decisions.”

A local team works to get a 15-minute express train from the Loop to O’Hare off the ground. And we get to know Chicago mayoral candidate Toni Brooks.

Chicago’s race for mayor is on as candidates gather signatures for a spot on February’s ballot. Chicago-born Toni Brooks was one of the first to announce she’d be looking to lead the city. The U.S. Army National Guard veteran said she is the right person to rebuild Chicago, one block at a time.

For Chicago State University, the first game will be about more than football. The university is hoping the new program can help build a new sports identity on Chicago’s South Side.

A Chicago-based team is working to get the so-called O’Hare Flyer off the ground in the next five years. The proposed express train would run from downtown Chicago to Terminal 2 at O’Hare International Airport in just 15 minutes.

This August, Chicago police discovered more than 50 decomposing bodies stored improperly at a South Side funeral home.

New rules governing who can use electric bikes and scooters, including where and how fast they go, will go into effect next year following Gov. JB Pritzker’s signature on Wednesday.

When the temperature heats up, so do emergency rooms, according to a massive study of Chicago hospital and urgent care records.

The Vietnamese Association of Illinois has served as an anchor for the Vietnamese community in the Chicago area for the last 50 years. The organization will hold a 50th anniversary concert celebration Saturday featuring New Orleans–based musical group Saigon Jazz Revival and Vietnamese singer Carol Kim.

Every Thursday, WTTW News newsletter producer Josh Terry highlights his picks for the week’s must-see cultural events.

Illinois sues the U.S. Postal Service in the latest fight over mail-in voting. And what’s being done about a smell on Chicago’s Southeast Side.

For years, Southeast Side residents have complained of foul odors plaguing their neighborhood. The smell is allegedly coming from Pullman Innovations, a vegetable oil plant in South Deering. Neighbors said the smell resembles everything from sewage, to rotting meat, to corpses.