Stories by Heather Cherone

The former 22nd Ward alderman appears set to plead guilty three months after being indicted on charges that he drained more than $38,000 from the bank account of the City Council’s Progressive Reform Caucus and used those funds to pay for trips, jewelry, iPhones and tickets to sporting events.

The advisory now covers 31 states — including those that border Illinois — as well as Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C. Unvaccinated visitors to Chicago from those states are urged to quarantine for 10 days or record a negative test within 72 hours of their arrival, officials said.

With a robust vote after weeks of fits and starts, the Senate approved a $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure plan on Tuesday, a rare coalition of Democrats and Republicans joining to overcome skeptics and deliver a cornerstone of President Joe Biden’s agenda.

If you’ve seen random objects covered in yarn and wondered what they were, you’re in luck: We introduce you to Valerie Sherman, whose favorite pastime has led to a citywide beautification project.

There are four ways to appeal property tax assessments in Cook County. But is that a good thing? Former state Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie and Assessor Fritz Kaegi weigh in.

Senate Democrats unwrapped a budget resolution Monday envisioning a massive $3.5 trillion, 10-year cascade of federal resources, aiming historic sums at family support, health and education programs and an aggressive drive to heal the climate. 

Emonte Morgan, 21, and his brother Eric Morgan, 22, each face criminal charges stemming from the Saturday night shooting in West Englewood that left one police officer dead and another in critical condition.

“Unboxing Bernstein: A Live Revue” served as a stirring reminder of Leonard Bernstein’s genius for mixing and matching musical genres. 

Jamel Danzy, 29, of Hammond, Indiana, was arrested Sunday and has been charged with conspiracy to violate federal firearm laws.

An estimated 21 million Americans believe that Joe Biden is an illegitimate president and that Donald Trump should be restored to the White House by force, according to a new report from the University of Chicago. We discuss the findings with political science professor Robert Pape, who led the survey.

After several delays, the first phase of the sex trafficking trial of R&B hitmaker R. Kelly started Monday with jury selection in New York City.

A highly anticipated report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change states in the plainest terms yet that the window of opportunity to avert disaster is narrow, and closing.

The pizza chain announced Monday a “Surprise Frees” promotion, giving customers a chance for some free food to counter delivery apps like UberEats and DoorDash. Domino’s called competitors’ extra fees a “disappointing surprise.”

Exelon strikes a $885 million deal with a French utility giant, but will it cost the energy company more than what it paid? Crain’s Chicago Business reporter A.D. Quig has details on that story and more.

The latest in the weekend shooting death of a Chicago police officer. A major new climate change report. New research on the Jan. 6 insurrectionists. And business headlines from Crain’s.

There were more than 45 separate shooting incidents over the weekend, according to police, including two mass shootings and the killing of Chicago police Officer Ella French on Saturday night.

Three officers assigned to the police department’s Community Safety Team were conducting a traffic stop on a vehicle near 63rd Street and South Bell Avenue at around 9 p.m. Saturday when they were fired upon, Chicago’s top cop said at the news conference.

As journalists, we often work to avoid becoming part of the stories we cover. But sometimes, the story is part of us. Last month, my friend Sonya Anderson’s stepson was shot and killed, just two days before his 19th birthday. We sit down for an intimate conversation about gun violence.

The retired Harvard Business School professor and Englewood native talks about some of the ideas in his new book, “A Letter to My White Friends and Colleagues: What You Can Do Right Now to Help the Black Community.”

One-on-one with a local nonprofit leader working with young men of color whose stepson was recently killed. A guaranteed income pilot program. How white people can help reduce the wealth disparity. 

Senators were laboring Sunday toward eventual passage of a $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package, resigned to stay as long as it takes to overcome Republican holdouts who want to drag out final votes on one of President Joe Biden’s top priorities.

A new initiative in the nation’s capital is one of five ATF efforts underway nationwide — the others are located in Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco and New York City — in cities experiencing significant gun violence.

Motorists put the pedal to the metal during the pandemic and police are worried as roads get busy with the final stretch of summer travel.

Census Bureau statisticians and outside experts are trying to unravel a mystery: Why were so many questions about households in the 2020 census left unanswered?

A year after being taken to task by the city’s Office of Inspector General for inefficient weed-clearing practices, the Department of Streets and Sanitation has made some improvements but still has work to do, according to a follow-up report released last week.

The COVID-19 outbreak in the United States crossed 100,000 new confirmed daily infections Saturday, a milestone last exceeded during the winter surge and driven by the highly transmissible delta variant and low vaccination rates in the South.