Stories by Brandis Friedman

The town is also home to Pontiac Correctional Center, one of only three maximum security Illinois state prisons. Just outside the prison’s doors is a neighborhood of single-family homes and a playground.

The gun rights advocates are challenging both a city ordinance passed last year by Naperville that bans the sale of assault rifles, and an Illinois state law enacted this year prohibiting the sale and possession of assault weapons and magazines.

Chicago Police Officer Sammy Encarnacion resigned Wednesday, the same day that results of the probe conducted by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability, known as COPA, was released, officials said.

According to the Chicago Fire Department, the collision occurred at 31st Street and Kedzie Avenue. Of the 16 people who were taken to area hospitals, two were adults who were listed in critical condition.

Streaming and its ripple effects are at the center of the dispute. The Writers Guild of America says that even as series budgets have increased, writers’ share of that money has consistently shrunk.

Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, who died in 2019, served on the court for nearly 35 years. In that time, the court decided cases on issues including abortion, affirmative action, presidential power, gun rights and the rights of prisoners held at the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, detention center.

The community is responding to more migrants arriving in Chicago from Texas. A crucial deadline for Medicaid recipients. The threat of a rising Mississippi River. And the challenges inside Pontiac Prison.

Chicago officials say they are having a hard time finding places for migrants to stay, with dozens now sleeping at police facilities.

During the pandemic, the number of low-income and disabled people who received government-backed health care grew in Illinois, and across the country, because at the height of COVID Congress made it illegal for states to kick anyone off Medicaid.

The crashes occurred late in the morning and involved 40 to 60 passenger cars and multiple tractor-trailers, two of which caught fire, Illinois State Police Maj. Ryan Starrick said. The highway was shut down in both directions in Montgomery County, 75 miles north of St. Louis.

In recent months, unexpected demand spikes, manufacturing problems and tight ingredient supplies have contributed to shortages that stress patients, parents and doctors.

The peak water levels this spring will likely rank in the top 10 of all time in many places, but the National Weather Service said river levels will generally remain well below past records. 

There have been 166 homicides recorded in the city thus far this year, according to the Chicago Police Department. That’s fewer than the same time periods in both 2022 and 2021, but higher than the 156 homicides recorded through the end of April in 2020.

Post-Civil War Dixon, 103 miles west of Chicago, was a growing city split by the formidable Rock River. On May 4, 1873, the 4-year-old bridge twisted, splintered and rolled over. Forty-six people perished, many immured by the unrelenting gridiron just below the water’s surface. 

The conditions that come with Pontiac Correctional Center’s age are just part of the reason inmates and advocates call it inhumane. Another reason is the climate inside. WTTW News details the issues facing the maximum security prison. 

Last summer, the 5,000 Chicagoans selected to participate in the city’s guaranteed income pilot program began receiving $500 per month. The Resilient Communities program was designed to help income-qualified Chicagoans stabilize their financial circumstances.

In a city known for its poets and poetry, being named Chicago’s first poet laureate is high praise and a tall order. But teacher, producer, composer, performer and poet avery young, who styles his name in all lowercase, said he can’t wait to get started serving as the city’s poetry ambassador.

Emergency measures designed to ensure people didn’t lose their health care during the COVID-19 pandemic are now being phased out.

Cinco de Mayo is just around the corner, and there’s plenty to do in Chicago to celebrate Latino culture.

The woman who accused Emmett Till dies at the age of 88. How Chicago’s guaranteed income pilot is working for families. Meet the city’s first poet laureate. And remembering Harry Belafonte.

About 26,000 people leave Illinois prisons each year, and many of them report having trouble finding employment once they’re home.

For nearly two decades, Chicago Police Detective Reynaldo Guevara was an infamous presence on the city’s Northwest Side. More than 50 people have accused Guevara of framing them for murders, coercing false confessions and engaging in other misconduct from the 1980s to the early 2000s.

Eleven men wrongfully convicted of murder seek justice. Woodlawn residents step up to help their new neighbors. And celebrating Cinco de Mayo with two festivals.

The EPA framed its decision as a way to reduce gasoline prices at a time of market supply uncertainty because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The agency said its action also encourages U.S. energy independence and supports American agriculture and manufacturing.

Among Pontiac Prison’s challenges is its status as the most short-staffed facility in IDOC. But former director Rob Jeffreys said having a lower incarceration rate could work in the agency’s favor.

A humanitarian crisis in Chicago after a new surge of migrants. How the CTA is trying fill its ranks with bus and rail operators. And James “Big Cat” Williams gives his take on the Chicago Bears’ draft moves.