Stories by Heather Cherone

Deputy Mayor of Community Safety Garien Gatewood told WTTW News’ “Chicago Tonight” program on Monday that city officials are excited to see what kind of technology is available.

Former Ald. Ed Burke is in the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons at Federal Correctional Institution Thomson in Thomson, Illinois, nearly 150 miles west of his beloved hometown. He will begin his two-year prison sentence.

Three lawsuits filed Monday detail abuse from 1996 to 2021, including rape, forced oral sex and beatings by corrections officers, nurses, kitchen staff, chaplains and others. Overall, 667 people have alleged they were sexually abused as children at youth facilities run by the state and Cook County in lawsuits filed since May.

The 60th annual Chicago International Film Festival runs Oct. 16-27. Screenings and programs are set to take place at the festival’s hub theater in AMC NEWCITY 14 in addition to the Music Box Theatre, the Gene Siskel Film Center and more.

An independent diversity study found that while Illinois has awarded more licenses to women and people of color than any other regulated market in the United States, white men are still the demographic most likely to have a cannabis license in Illinois.

U.S. households will be able to order as many as four nasal swab tests when the federal program reopens.

The Little Village shooting victims were among the 33 people shot in Chicago — six of them fatally — in 21 separate incidents over the weekend, according to police.

In each of the five cases, Inspector General Deborah Witzburg informed Civilian Office of Police Accountability Chief Administrator Andrea Kersten that the agency known as COPA had erred when it closed those cases because they involved serious allegations of police misconduct.

A new report from NYU offers alternative solutions to policing that researchers said would better serve the public and free up police to investigate more serious crimes.

ShotSpotter meets its demise in Chicago — despite the wishes of City Council. And CPS sets a vision for its future, but is that a future without the current CEO?

Three companies that process about 80% of prescriptions in the United States — Caremark, Express Scripts and OptumRx — have engaged in anticompetitive practices that spur price increases, the FTC is alleging in a new lawsuit.

The first big update to U.S. methadone regulations in 20 years is poised to expand access to the life-saving drug starting next month, but experts say the addiction treatment changes could fall flat if state governments and methadone clinics fail to act.

Elijah Jones must have impressed Chicago Shakespeare Theater with the same charisma he projects onstage as the titular king in “Henry V,” a lively production of Shakespeare’s history play about war between France and England. WTTW News spoke with the Juilliard-trained actor about his past, present and future.

While none of the officers who shot at Reed, who was hit 13 times, have returned to active duty, Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling has refused Civilian Office of Police Accountability Chief Administrator Andrea Kersten’s call to relieve them of their police powers.

A spokesperson for Mayor Brandon Johnson declined to comment on whether he had asked CPS CEO Pedro Martinez to resign, citing the mayor’s policy of not commenting on personnel matters. A spokesperson for Martinez declined to comment.

An extensive study on Chicago’s Mexican population. Is immigrant crime really on the rise? And as Chicagoans celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, we hear who inspires you.

A study published in the National Bureau of Economic Research reveals that immigrants have consistently been incarcerated at lower rates than U.S.-born citizens. However, so-called “migrant crime” has become a major talking point this election cycle.

“There wasn’t enough data there specifically about Mexicanos in Chicago,” said Jose Muñoz, CEO and executive director of La Casa Norte. “There were a lot of data sets about Latinos in general. But a lot of those conversations with the Mexican community were being lost.”

As Chicagoans celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, WTTW News wanted to hear from you about a Latino person who has influenced or inspired you.

Throughout four days of testimony, a central issue has been whether the weapons and equipment covered under the law are commonly used in American society for lawful purposes such as self-defense, and thus protected under the Second Amendment, or military-grade weapons that state and local governments can more easily keep out of civilian hands.

The solution to the Chicago area’s public transportation woes isn’t merging CTA, Metra and Pace into a single entity — it’s finally tackling the “decades-long, discriminatory and racially charged funding policies” that have left transit agencies “fighting over scraps,” according to CTA President Dorval Carter.

After nearly 15 hours of deliberation over three days, the jury’s foreperson told U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman that she was “absolutely positive” she and her fellow jurors could not find a way out of their stalemate.

The Chicago Department of Transportation is shaking things up and shifting resurfacing work this week to the stretch between Irving Park Road and LaSalle Drive. Lane closures start Sunday afternoon.

The Chicago City Council voted 44-3 to approve what supporters dubbed the Northwest Side Housing Preservation Ordinance, which expands two pilot programs that began in 2021 and makes them a permanent part of the city code.

The stench of smoked pot doesn’t give a police officer the right to search an adult’s car without a warrant, according to a new ruling from the Illinois Supreme Court.

This week’s “Pick Six” — our weekly roundup of outdoorsy recommendations in each of the Chicago region’s six counties — ranges from an unusual prairie remnant to a big day on the Fox River.