Stories by Associated Press

In times of crisis, effective leaders strike a balance between inspirational rhetoric and leveling with the public about the tough times ahead. Facing the coronavirus, President Donald Trump chose a different path.

Illinois Republicans probe Michael Madigan. U.S. Attorney General Barr touts a drop in Chicago crime. Recordings reveal President Trump knew about COVID-19 dangers while publicly saying the opposite.

Eric Trump, the president’s son, twice texted Mayor Lori Lightfoot to thank her for taking steps to protect Trump Tower in downtown Chicago after violent protests.

Two former Illinois child welfare workers who investigated abuse allegations involving AJ Freund face child endangerment charges accusing them of failing to protect him from harm, according to an indictment filed Friday.

“If you’re talking about getting back to a degree of normality which resembles where we were prior to Covid, it’s going to be well into 2021, maybe even towards the end of 2021,” Dr. Anthony Fauci said Friday.

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases remained steady in the two regions of the state where officials have increased restrictions after a surge in infections. The statewide positivity rate is 3.9%, officials said Friday.

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin is proposing the creation of a modern-day Civilian Conservation Corps as a way to put Americans to work while also directing resources toward the nation’s long neglected conservation projects.

Chicago Public Schools said 84.2% of its students attended remote learning classes Tuesday, the first day of the new year. That figure is down about 10% over each of the past four school years.

“We need help,” CPD Area One Commander Jarrod Smith said Friday. “So whatever you can do … if you have information, give us a call. There’s no such thing as too much information in a criminal investigation.”

A majority of Americans ages 18 through 34 say they've sometimes felt isolated in the past month, compared with about 4 in 10 older Americans, according to a new COVID Response Tracking Study conducted at the University of Chicago.

In a year when the coronavirus pandemic has reshaped countless American rituals, even the commemoration of 9/11 could not escape unchanged.

The west suburban community is full of history, with monuments to WWI and WWII veterans, and home to a legendary musician. It has struggled with higher rates of poverty and lack of access to health care, making it particularly susceptible to COVID-19.

Will new EPA regulations allow a Wisconsin power plant to dump more toxic metals into Lake Michigan? Chicago Tribune reporter Michael Hawthorne explains.

Alleys serve many purposes, but they’re not typically used as the backdrop for public art. Enter Teresa Parod, who is using house paint to elevate the ordinary into the extraordinary.

Six state representatives – three Democrats and three Republicans – got to work Thursday tackling whether Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan engaged in conduct “unbecoming” of a legislator. 

The mostly party-line vote capped weeks of wrangling that gave way to election-season political combat and name-calling over a fifth relief bill that all sides say they want but are unable to deliver. 

Two famous Germans take up permanent residence in Chicago, only to witness the evolution of a West Side neighborhood. Geoffrey Baer goes long on two enduring Humboldt Park statues.

Football is back. The Chicago Bears are set to kick off the regular season Sunday against the Detroit Lions. It’ll be the first time the Bears face an opponent this year, since the NFL skipped the preseason due to COVID-19.

The kickoff of the NFL season Thursday with 17,000 fans in the stadium illustrates the nation’s determination to resume its most popular sport in the middle of a pandemic that has already killed nearly 200,000 Americans.

A group of states suing over service cuts at the U.S. Postal Service is asking a federal judge to immediately undo some of them, saying the integrity of the upcoming election is at stake.

Police Superintendent David Brown said the so-called “tabletop exercises” involved officers responding to hypothetical looting reports to test the effectiveness and quickness of their response.

Nearly 2,000 new cases of coronavirus and 28-virus related deaths were reported Thursday by state health officials, as Gov. J.B. Pritzker said eight Illinois regions are making progress in slowing the spread of the virus.

A new rail ridership information dashboard, unveiled Thursday, provides data on the average number of seats taken per rail car at each stop along a given line, by time of day and day of the week. 

Watch the Sept. 10, 2020 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Thursday unveiled a plan to replace the lead service lines responsible for contaminating the tap water in thousands of Chicago homes “over multiple decades” that relies on federal and state funds.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Illinois is already months behind in awarding licenses to new marijuana dispensaries. But now, legislators want to further delay the process.