Stories by Heather Cherone

Angela Hurlock, the chair of the CHA Board of Commissioners, will serve as the agency’s interim CEO, while a search for a permanent leader takes place, according to a statement from the agency.

Jay Johnston, 56, of Los Angeles, joined other rioters in a “heave ho” push against police officers guarding a tunnel entrance to the Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot. Johnston also cracked jokes and interacted with other rioters as he used a cellphone to record the violence around him, prosecutors said.

PepsiCo said the decision was difficult but it described the 60-year-old building as a facility with “physical limitations.” The company said it would pay workers for the next 60 days even though they won’t be required to work.

Testimony resumed Monday in the fourth week of the former Illinois House speaker’s corruption trial inside Chicago’s Dirksen Federal Building. Michael Madigan, 82, and his longtime confidant Michael McClain, 77, are charged with racketeering, bribery and wire fraud.

Sidi Mohamed Abdallahi, 22, has been charged with six counts of attempted first-degree murder, seven counts of aggravated discharge of a firearm toward a police officer or firefighter and one count of aggravated battery.

The endorsement of the city’s Transportation and Public Way Committee sends the nominations of Natasha Jenkins, Thomas Kotarac, Jarixon Medina, Dennis J. Mondero and Nora Cay Ryan to the full Chicago City Council for confirmation.

Forecasts from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest that this respiratory disease season will be similar to last year’s — which brought more than 20 hospitalizations for every 100,000 people in one week at its peak — and far worse than in pre-pandemic years.

In the spring of 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the longstanding abortion protections established under Roe v. Wade, leaving decisions about the reproductive health care procedure up to the states. For Hoosier Abbey Hall, she never imagined such a change would impact her.

Uncertainty reigns entering the final full week of the 2024 campaign with Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump locked in a fiercely competitive presidential contest. What happens in the coming days will be pivotal in deciding the winner.

While Puerto Ricans cannot vote in general elections despite being U.S. citizens, they can exert a powerful influence with relatives on the mainland. Phones across the island of 3.2 million people were ringing minutes after the speaker derided the U.S. territory Sunday night, and they still buzzed Monday.

Voters will consider a non-binding referendum that seeks to impose a 3% tax on income over $1 million to fund property tax rebates for homeowners. It’s different from the contentious 2020 graduated income tax amendment that sparked an expensive campaign battle.

Between March 2021 and June 2024, Chicago spent more than $238.8 million on a host of programs including affordable housing, mental health, violence prevention, youth job programs and help for unhoused Chicagoans, according to the most recent reports filed with the U.S. Department of the Treasury as required by federal law.

Inside the courtroom where former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan is on trial. And Chicago gets an entirely new school board.

The final bit of work will take place Monday and Tuesday on the stretch between LaSalle Drive and Hollywood Avenue.

Lil Durk, 32, is charged with conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire in the slaying of Saviay’a Robinson, 24, who was gunned down on Aug. 19, 2022, according to an FBI affidavit released Friday.

Prosecutors paint picture of Mike McClain’s extreme loyalty to ex-Illinois House speaker Michael Madigan as the trial wraps up for the week.

The special was shot live at the Vic Theatre in Chicago where Meyers got big laughs when talking about mundane things like not knowing how to fold a stroller and the risks of playing board games with his children, who are 8, 6 and 3 years old.

Thousands of Aztec marigolds grown in the University of Illinois Chicago’s research garden will play an integral role in Saturday’s Day of the Dead celebration on Chicago’s lakefront. 

Residents on the city’s Northwest Side may be losing access to programs provided by a local community organization. The nonprofit Hermosa Neighborhood Association says it’s set to lose state funding in June. As the grant end date approaches, community organizers are working to figure out what comes next.

Chicago has a new shelter plan for migrants and unhoused residents. And are efforts to save monarch butterflies doing more harm than good? A new study suggests that’s the case.

Chicago is set to overhaul its migrant shelter system by the end of this year, capping guaranteed beds at 3,800 for asylum seekers who have been in the city for less than 30 days. This shift is part of the new One System Initiative, designed to streamline services for both migrants and long-term unhoused residents.

“Day of the Dead LIVE!” is running Oct. 29-Nov. 1 at the Harold Washington Library. The free show will feature larger-than-life puppets, stilt-walkers, skeletons, ghosts and aerialists — plus classical music from pianist Llewellyn Sánchez Werner.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a food safety alert Tuesday warning that dozens of people reported eating the Quarter Pounder sandwich at McDonald’s before becoming sick.

The seven new board members, appointed by Johnson earlier this month, were sworn in during Thursday’s agenda review committee meeting. CPS CEO Pedro Martinez, who was also present at Thursday’s meeting, has seen questions swirl about his continued employment with the school district.

An official with knowledge of the decision who was not authorized to speak on the record ahead of a planned press conference confirmed that Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón would recommend resentencing for the brothers.

The DNA of Bruce Lindahl, who is believed to have killed as many as a dozen women and girls, was confirmed to be on Kathy Halle’s clothing, authorities said.