Stories by Heather Cherone

Mayor Lori Lightfoot was told in November 2019 that a raid that left Anjanette Young handcuffed and pleading for help during a mistaken raid of her home in February 2019 was “pretty bad,” according to emails released Wednesday by the mayor’s office.

California on Wednesday announced the nation’s second confirmed case of the new and apparently more contagious variant of the coronavirus, offering a strong indication that the infection is spreading more widely in the United States.

With live music events still on hold, Chicago independent music venues look forward to relief in the Save Our Stages part of the stimulus bill.

Indiana’s attorney general recommended no criminal charges or licensing actions Wednesday after concluding an investigation into more than 2,000 sets of fetal remains found last year at the suburban Chicago garage of a late prolific abortion doctor.

Britain became the first country to authorize AstraZeneca’s inexpensive, easy-to-handle COVID-19 vaccine Wednesday, gaining another weapon against the virus amid a resurgence.

If ever a year's end seemed like cause for celebration, 2020 might be it. Yet the coronavirus scourge that dominated the year is also looming over New Year's festivities and forcing officials worldwide to tone them down.

More than a half dozen large parties have been shut down by city officials in the past month, even as Chicago remains under a stay-at-home advisory designed to prevent people from contracting COVID-19.

Watch the Dec. 30, 2020 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

From the pandemic to protests to the power of nature, 2020 has been a year for the history books. We take a look back at the year that was — warts and all.

President Donald Trump’s push for bigger $2,000 COVID-19  relief checks stalled out Tuesday in the Senate as Republicans blocked a swift vote proposed by Democrats and split within their own ranks over whether to boost spending or defy the White House. 

The first reported U.S. case of the COVID-19 variant that’s been seen in the United Kingdom has been discovered in Colorado, Gov. Jared Polis announced Tuesday, adding urgency to efforts to vaccinate Americans.

Friday marks one year since it became legal to buy and use marijuana in Illinois. But what about the thousands of people who previously got in trouble for possessing, smoking or selling pot? 

Many details surrounding the Christmas Day bombing in downtown Nashville remain unclear, but the incident has renewed concerns about the rise of domestic terrorism, and the proliferation of racist ideology by white supremacists. 

It’s a New Year’s Eve tradition. Check out our virtual discussion about the history of Watch Night services with Brandis Friedman, host of “Black Voices,” and a panel of guests.

A spacecraft designed by an Illinois researcher and professor will orbit Earth’s outermost atmospheric layer to better understand powerful bursts of radiation from the sun, also known as solar flares. Lara Waldrop tells us more.

Representatives of a Portage Park high school on Tuesday unanimously approved a measure saying students and staff will not be allowed into the building following winter break “until it is safe to return to in-person learning.”

The resignation was announced 3 1/2 years after Randy Conner took the top job amid a furor caused by the city watchdog’s determination that the Department of Water Management was rife with “overtly racist and sexist behavior and attitudes.” 

Disposable mask dispensers are being installed on 200 buses serving 20 routes, including the No. 56 Milwaukee, No. 91 Austin and No. 77 Belmont. If successful, the program will expand to all bus routes, as well as to rail stations, the CTA said.

Chicago Public Schools on Tuesday announced that 5,833 of its 7,002 pre-K and cluster program staff members will be heading back to schools when in-person learning resumes for those students on Jan. 11.

Travelers from the Badger State can avoid the 10-day quarantine if they record a negative test for COVID-19 within 72 hours, according to the city’s COVID-19 travel order.

As part of the city’s campaign to convince those skeptical about the coronavirus vaccine to get inoculated, Dr. Allison Arwady, the commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health, got the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine at the new clinic.

Watch the Dec. 29, 2020 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

The police department late Monday issued a community alert seeking information about the Dec. 23 incident that resulted in the deaths of Araceli Gutierrez and 12-year-old Giovanne Bucio in the Gage Park neighborhood.

Beginning late Tuesday afternoon, a mix of snow that could be heavy at times and freezing rain will descend on the Chicago area, according to the National Weather Service.

Illinois’ recreational marijuana program was set up to right the wrongs of a war on drugs by giving a leg up to those from disadvantaged communities or who had been punished for low-level drug crimes. But nearly a year later, social equity applicants remain locked out.

Success rates for organ transplantation have grown through the years, but disparities impacting communities of color remain. A Northwestern Medicine transplant surgeon is providing care curated specifically for the Latino community.