Stories by Matt Masterson

U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis on Thursday raised concerns about the dismissal request in a class action lawsuit brought by the Chicago Headline Club and local journalists who fought for a broad injunction to limit federal agents’ use of force in an effort to protect legal observers.

The lawsuit, filed in the Northern District of California where Roblox is based, accuses the gaming company of creating a breeding ground for predators and prioritizing its own profits over user safety.

Those findings were included in an annual report published Wednesday by the school district’s Office of Inspector General, which is tasked with investigating allegations of CPS employee misconduct.

In his first month as Cook County’s new chief judge, Charles Beach said he has worked to improve transparency, strengthen court operations and boost overall accountability.

With only a handful of days left before the calendar turns to 2026, Chicago is on pace to see its lowest homicide total since at least 2014.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to allow the Trump administration to deploy National Guard troops in the Chicago area to support its immigration crackdown.

According to the Chicago Police Department, a 44-year-old man was killed in a shooting just before 1:30 a.m. in the 100 block of North Wells.

Illinois U.S. Reps. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, Delia Ramirez, Jonathan Jackson and Danny Davis toured the controversial west suburban facility Monday, months after being denied access.

The Federal Transit Administration on Friday said it determined the CTA failed to comply with a special directive issued earlier this month that required the agency to implement “immediate, measurable corrective actions” aimed at reducing violent crime and addressing “unsafe conditions.”

Federal prosecutors unsealed a new indictment against Lawrence Reed, 50, that alleged he “maliciously damaged and attempted to damage and destroy, by means of fire” Chicago’s City Hall building, located at 121 N. LaSalle Street on Nov. 14.

The Illinois Accountability Commission held its first public hearing in the Little Village neighborhood, where federal agents have repeatedly targeted residents in the predominantly Hispanic neighborhood.

Video shared with WTTW News showed Daniel Biss walk up to Greg Bovino and a handful of masked immigration agents outside a gas station Wednesday morning. The group was surrounded by people holding camera phones as whistles blown by residents to warn of the agents’ presence repeatedly sounded in the background.

Illinois health officials are maintaining their stance that all newborns should receive a hepatitis B vaccination, days after federal vaccine advisors voted to remove a similar recommendation.

Illinois officials have confirmed that a large group of federal agents returned to Chicago and have resumed “terrorizing our community,” Illinois Rep. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia said Tuesday.

University President Rob Manuel called the last several weeks “some of the most difficult our community has ever experienced” as he announced that DePaul had laid off 114 of its 1,493 full-time and part-time staff.

A Gurnee man who spent nearly three decades behind bars after being convicted of murdering his ex-wife has been awarded a $13 million settlement through a civil lawsuit he brought in 2023.

Lawrence Reed, 50, is scheduled to be arraigned next week on two counts of aggravated battery stemming from a March incident on a Blue Line train.

The family of Chicago police Officer Krystal Rivera, who was fatally shot in the line of duty this year by a fellow officer, says the shooting came after she broke off a romantic relationship with her partner.

The FBI’s Chicago field office on Wednesday said it is seeking to identify other potential victims of 44-year-old Luis Uribe, who stands accused of robbing and/or sexually assaulting at least four women in Schaumburg and Naperville throughout 2022.

Federal prosecutors allege that Luis Uribe is a “serial rapist” who used his position in law enforcement to sexually assault and rob at least four women at gunpoint throughout 2022.

In letters sent to both Mayor Brandon Johnson and Gov. JB Pritzker, the Federal Transit Administration on Sunday issued a special directive calling for “immediate, measurable corrective actions” aimed at reducing violent crime.

U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis on Thursday did not yet grant a motion to dismiss that class action lawsuit, brought forth this week by the plaintiffs themselves.

Chicago’s Board of Education approved a whopping $17.5 million payment to settle a lawsuit brought by a former Little Village student who was repeatedly sexually assaulted by a school official for years.

Attorneys representing the Chicago Headline Club and local journalists who fought for a broad injunction limiting federal agents’ use of force have abruptly moved to dismiss their lawsuit as the Trump administration’s vastly increased immigration efforts across Illinois appear to have “ended.”

Speaking at the City Club of Chicago on Tuesday to mark her first year as the county’s top prosecutor, O’Neill Burke said her office will be looking into possible improvements to the electronic monitoring system.

Charles Beach took his oath of office and officially took over as chief judge, months after he defeated eight-time incumbent Tim Evans in a September election held by Cook County judges.