Stories by Associated Press

A judge who last month ruled that R. Kelly could only enter the Chicago warehouse he uses as a recording studio between 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. now says he can stay until 9 p.m.

A bankruptcy judge has blessed a $5.2 billion plan by Sears chairman and biggest shareholder Eddie Lampert to keep the iconic business going. The approval means roughly 425 stores and 45,000 jobs will be preserved.

The Illinois Senate voted Thursday to hike the statewide minimum wage to $15 an hour within six years, quickly advancing a top campaign promise of newly elected Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker.

Prosecutors are building a case, partly on a bloody handprint and the responses of a cadaver-sniffing dog, that a former University of Illinois physics student killed a 26-year-old Chinese scholar in 2017 at his off-campus apartment.

“Empire” actor Jussie Smollett told Chicago police that his attackers seemed to know who he was before they beat him and tied a rope around his neck.

The patriarch of the family behind the Chicago Cubs has apologized after an online media outlet published emails in which he took part in racist comments and conspiracy theories.

O’Hare International Airport had more than 903,000 arrivals and departures during 2018, according to data released Monday by the Federal Aviation Administration. Atlanta’s airport came in second.

Forecasts say temperatures will climb as much as 80 degrees. Experts say the rapid thaw is unprecedented, and it could create problems of its own — bursting pipes, flooding rivers and crumbling roads. 

Boeing reported annual revenue of more than $100 billion for the first time and shares soared after the company easily beat Wall Street’s profit and sales expectations for the fourth quarter.

The world’s biggest hamburger chain said sales rose 4.4 percent at established locations in the fourth quarter and 4.5 percent for the year.  

A deadly arctic deep freeze enveloped the Midwest with record-breaking temperatures on Wednesday, triggering widespread closures of schools and businesses, and the canceling of more than 1,500 flights from Chicago's airports. 

Chicago Public Schools announced that Wednesday’s classes have been canceled. The University of Chicago, DePaul and Northwestern Universities will close their campuses from Tuesday until Thursday morning.

Caterpillar fell well short of fourth-quarter profit expectations and the machine maker said that sales have begun to slow in China. Shares tumbled 10 percent at the opening bell Monday, the worst sell-off in more than seven years.

The National Weather Service says northern and central Illinois will see record-breaking low temperatures of 18 or 19 degrees below zero or colder on Tuesday and Wednesday.

A Manteno veterans’ home resident who contracted Legionnaires’ disease has died, state officials said Friday, becoming the 15th resident of a state veterans’ facility killed by the flu-like illness.

The National Weather Service says Friday's deep freeze is a preview of next week, which could bring more than a half-foot of snow and the potential for the “coldest stretch in years.”

Orland Park Police say Jakharr Williams of University Park was arrested Wednesday without incident. He was wanted in connection with Monday's fatal shooting of Javon Britten of Richton Park.

The ruling comes a week after Chicago building inspectors found code violations at the R&B star’s recording studio on the city’s Near West Side during a court-ordered inspection. 

Orland Park Police identified the suspect as 19-year-old parolee Jakharr Williams of University Park. The department said that Williams, who fled after the shooting and has not been arrested, should be considered armed and dangerous.

The announcement comes two weeks after the popular documentary series “Surviving R. Kelly” drew fresh attention to the sex abuse allegations against R. Kelly, which have dogged him most of his career. 

The Rev. John Smyth has been removed from the Archdiocese of Chicago’s ministry while it investigates accusations of sexual abuse against the longtime priest. 

The Chicago area is forecast to receive 5 to 9 inches of snow through Saturday followed by chances of lake effect snow Sunday.

The governor’s third executive order requires a review of emerging industries so that state money for workforce training can be best used.

Chicago Building Department spokesman Gregg Cunningham says the agency will list the violations during a court hearing next week. 

Eddie Lampert, the hedge fund owner who steered Sears into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in October, is aiming to keep open roughly 400 stores and preserve tens of thousands of jobs.

A 19-year-old man from Elgin allegedly stole a cellphone belonging to an individual he met through an unidentified dating app.