Stories by Matt Masterson

Carmita Coleman was charged Friday with four counts of wire fraud following a five-year scheme in which she allegedly took $651,272 and used the funds on, among other things, “clothing, food, and trips.”

In the midst of what feels like the cancellation of everything, Chicago’s biggest outdoor holiday light displays are still happening — albeit in a socially distanced way. Want wattage? We’ve got the scoop on where to go. 

A defiant Michael Madigan vowed late Friday to run again for speaker of the Illinois House despite a swirling corruption investigation around him that has prompted 18 Democratic state representatives to say they will not vote to reelect him.

The overall U.S. death toll has reached about 254,000, by far the most in the world. Confirmed infections have eclipsed more than 11.8 million, after the biggest one-day gain on record Thursday — almost 188,000. 

State officials have nearly completed an effort to send $300 million in housing assistance grants to Illinois residents struggling to make ends meet. The program is the largest in the nation, officials said.

With tighter mitigations in place due to a surge in COVID-19 cases, the Chicago Park District and surrounding forest preserve districts have suspended programs indefinitely.

Joe Biden will be sworn in as the oldest president in the nation’s history, displacing Ronald Reagan, who left the White House in 1989 when he was 77 years and 349 days old.

As college students prepare to go home for the holidays, some schools are quickly ramping up COVID-19 testing to try to keep infections from spreading further as the coronavirus surges across the U.S.

Customers won’t be able to board the Holiday Train or Holiday Bus but the CTA’s festive fleet will still spread holiday cheer across the city.

As of Thursday evening, 16 Democrats elected to be part of the Illinois House next year have publicly said they will not support Michael Madigan for what would be a historic 19th term in the powerful position.

The win by Joe Biden pads his Electoral College margin of victory over President Donald Trump. Biden now has 306 electoral votes to Trump's 232.

A coalition of over 35 organizations is working to make distribution of a COVID-19 vaccine in Chicago equitable. We speak with three members of the Vaccine Corps Partnership.

With the coronavirus surging out of control, the nation’s top public health agency pleaded with Americans on Thursday not to travel for Thanksgiving and not to spend the holiday with people from outside their household.

Chicago’s Justice of the Pies was one of 31 businesses named to the Office of Tourism’s Illinois Made program, which boosts the profile of the state’s makers, creators and artisans.

Traveling more than 2,000 miles every year, the migration journey of monarch butterflies links the United States and Mexico in a way no trade agreement or cultural exchange ever could.

“My No. 1 consideration is not whether someone’s going to get angry at me,” Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Thursday. “It’s whether I can save a life or save the lives of people who are potentially going to get sick."

The Chicago City Council is poised to approve Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s $12.8 billion spending plan for 2021 after the plan advanced on Thursday with a 26-8 vote of the Budget and Government Operations Committee.

Taking in the city’s expanse via drone, the special explores Chicago’s famous grid system, its industrial legacy, and the natural areas that weave through the dense urban jungle.

The suit was filed Thursday on behalf of 60 protesters who claim police used “unconstitutional tactics that are clearly intended to injure, silence, and intimidate” during protests following the killing of George Floyd.

Watch the Nov. 19, 2020 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

Three firms involved in the botched smokestack demolition in Little Village will pay $370,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, his office announced Thursday.

Adam Hollingsworth, 33, entered the plea through his attorney Thursday during a brief arraignment held in virtual court.

The delays are happening as the country braces for winter weather, flu season and holiday travel, all of which are expected to amplify a U.S. outbreak that has already swelled past 11.5 million cases and 250,000 deaths.

A close confidant of Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan and Commonwealth Edison’s first female CEO are among those indicted Wednesday in connection with a bribery scheme.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker tells his political opponents that his family is off limits as he announces new restrictions designed to stop the spread of the coronavirus. Our politics team takes on those stories and more in this week’s roundtable. 

Meet a high school student who’s on a quest to see more bird species in Cook County than anyone, ever.