Stories by Heather Cherone

A years-long effort by the Norfolk Southern Railway to double the size of its storage yard in Englewood finally got signal clearance.

The unsigned advisory opinion, issued Monday by the Chicago Board of Ethics, was prompted by a spate of campaign ads showing uniformed Chicago police officers and several complaints, officials said.

Miguel Deleon, who was set to go to trial this week on charges that he sexually assaulted two customers at his home, has been arrested and now faces new charges for allegedly sexually abusing or assaulting three more women under similar circumstances.

In a joint statement with ComEd released hours before she officially presented the massive deal to the City Council, Lightfoot touted the agreement as “a big win for Chicago” that will “accelerate an equitable transition to clean, renewable energy.”

The search, the third of a Biden site in less than two months, follows the 13-hour, Jan. 20 top-to-bottom check of his Wilmington, Delaware, home, where agents located documents with classified markings and also took possession of some of his handwritten notes.

The Green Comet is making its closest pass to Earth Wednesday night and the skies are looking clear enough for Adler Planetarium to host a virtual viewing party.

Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx on why she's dropping charges against R. Kelly. New life for the Equal Rights Amendment. Why Chicago elections are nonpartisan. And a longtime actor turns film director.

R. Kelly has already been convicted in other jurisdictions and sentenced to decades in prison, with more time likely to be added during a sentencing hearing next month.

The concept of the Equal Rights Amendment has been around for a century, but it's getting a renewed push of momentum in light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn the federal right to abortion.

Paul Vallas is a Democrat, but acknowledged that the Democratic Party has moved away from him on some issues, including charter schools.

Researchers examined information on the eating habits of people who were part of the UK Biobank, a large biomedical database. Eating patterns were then compared with medical records that listed both diagnoses and deaths from cancer.

Pay and benefits for America’s workers grew at a healthy but more gradual pace in the final three months of 2022, a third straight slowdown, which could help reassure the Federal Reserve that wage gains won’t fuel higher inflation.

During the course of just 75 intensely compelling minutes that unfold entirely in a posh hotel room in Tehran in 1976, the play poses profound questions about both art and revolution and the forces that shaped two very different men.

“Dr. Tony Sanders is an extraordinary choice for State Superintendent of Education,” Gov. J.B. Pritzker said in a statement.

Another case of mixing political campaigning with CPS. Three of the nation’s worst water polluters are in the Chicago area. The city nears a deal with ComEd to be the sole power provider. And remembering Blackhawks legend Bobby Hull.

The Chicago Blackhawks and the NHL Alumni Association announced the death of the two-time NHL MVP on Monday. There were no further details provided by either organization.

Oil refineries are discharging toxic pollutants into our waterways and the Great Lakes with little oversight from regulators, according to a new report from the Environmental Integrity Project, a nonpartisan nonprofit group that advocates for enforcement of environmental law

Supporters wearing campaign gear of an aldermanic candidate in the 48th Ward marched with an official contingent from Peirce Elementary School in a weekend parade. 

A federal evaluation of Chicago’s shoreline by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will no longer include Promontory Point — because the Point is getting a review all its own.

The move to end the national emergency and public health emergency declarations would formally restructure the federal coronavirus response to treat the virus as an endemic threat to public health that can be managed through agencies’ normal authorities.

The Chicago City Council could vote on the deal as soon as March 1 – one day after Mayor Lori Lightfoot and City Council members ask voters for new four-year terms in office.

Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx on Monday announced her office will be dropping its case against Kelly — nearly four years after he was arrested and charged with multiple counts of sexual assault and abuse.

The measure, backed by 18 members of the City Council, won the unanimous endorsement of the City Council’s Public Safety committee and heads to the full City Council on Wednesday for a final vote.

When Chicagoans go to the polls to vote for mayor, there’s a crucial piece of information missing from their ballots: the candidates’ political parties. WTTW News Explains tells you the reasons why. 

According to Chicago Police Department data, 13 people were wounded by gunfire over the weekend between 6 p.m. Friday and 11:59 p.m. Sunday. Those victims survived their wounds, but two men were killed in shootings just after 6 a.m. Monday.

Activists said "bad actors" lie about rideshare and delivery drivers to avoid paying. The Chicago ordinance would allow app drivers accused of misconduct to share their story and recoup income if they were found to be unfairly deactivated.