Stories by Blair Paddock

Larry Snelling takes the reins as top cop amid a surge in robberies. Some City Council members call for more state help with migrants. The federal government careens toward shutdown. And the Bears flat out stink.

Although Maestro Riccardo Muti will soon head to New York and embark on a seven-country, 14-concert tour of Europe with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, his concert at Orchestra Hall on Thursday evening was an ideal example of the thrilling bond between him and the CSO’s brilliant musicians.

Ald. Pat Dowell called on Mayor Brandon Johnson to center the need of Black Chicagoans and warned that every bus that arrives “is eating away at the goodwill of the people of the city of Chicago.”

Illinois is the only state in the country that has a driving test requirement for people over a certain age. Illinois also requires more frequent driver’s license renewals for people over age 80, something only 23 states require.

United said the airline will add a filter to the booking tool on its website to help consumers find flights on which the plane can more easily accommodate their wheelchairs. The cargo doors on some planes are too small to easily get a motorized wheelchair in the belly of the plane.

The creators behind the city’s favorite annual spring art weekend now welcome an autumn celebration: the inaugural Chicago Exhibition Weekend. The goal is to amplify public art space, with more than 55 galleries, artist-run spaces and community institutions throughout the city.

Feinstein died on Thursday night at her home in Washington, D.C., her office said on Friday. Opening the Senate floor, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced that “earlier this morning, we lost a giant in the Senate.”

There is no evidence that any Chicago police officer had sexual contact with any of the migrants forced to sleep on the floor of the stations after arriving in Chicago from the southern border, the head of the agency charged with investigating police misconduct announced Friday.

The SEC on Thursday announced it had filed charges against Anne Pramaggiore, ComEd and its parent company Exelon, alleging they engaged in a “multi-year scheme to corruptly influence and reward” former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan.

The United Auto Workers union says its two-week strike against Detroit automakers will spread to 7,000 more workers at a Ford plant in Chicago and a General Motors assembly factory near Lansing, Michigan.

Cook County Judge Lawrence Flood acquitted Sgt. Christopher Liakopoulos, 44, and Officer Reuben Reynoso, 43, after a bench trial, finding they acted reasonably when they opened fire on two men in July 2022.

CPS officials on Thursday announced that the district’s 20th day enrollment, which serves as the official tally for the academic year, had risen by about 0.4% up to 323,291 students. That marks the first increase in student population in 12 years.

The more scientists can learn about the Chicago colony of black-crowned night herons, the more they can help these birds help themselves. Because night herons are hanging on in Illinois by a thread.

The federal government is just days away from a shutdown that will disrupt many services, squeeze workers and roil politics as Republicans in the House, fueled by hard-right demands, force a confrontation over federal spending.

Illinois members of Congress on avoiding the looming government shutdown. The history and purpose of Chicago’s water cribs. And reaction to how the city handles Mexican Independence Day celebrations.

The cost of caring for the migrants through the end of the year is now estimated to reach $345 million, according to updated financial projections shared by Cristina Pacione Zayas, the mayor’s first deputy chief of staff. Three weeks ago, those costs were pegged at $302 million, according to city data.

Meet Ellis Chesbrough, Chicago’s first city engineer and designer of the water delivery system we still use today. WTTW News Explains how water cribs work out on Lake Michigan. 

Art walks, a charity run and a 12-foot puppet usher in the weekend. Here are five things to do in and around Chicago.

Benjamin George, a construction worker, said his life was upended on Aug. 19, 2019, when he stopped at a 7-Eleven store in Jefferson Park and mistakenly picked up a cell phone left on the checkout counter that did not belong to him.

A judge’s ruling that Donald Trump committed fraud as he built his real-estate empire could strip him of his authority to make major decisions about the future of his marquee properties in his home state.

The average rate on the benchmark 30-year home loan rose to 7.31%, from 7.19% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. A year ago, the rate averaged 6.70%.

Lee Harris, 67, who claimed he was framed by police and prosecutors before spending 33 years in prison, filed the federal civil rights lawsuit Thursday — six months after his conviction was vacated and he was released from prison following his conviction in the 1989 murder of 24-year-old Dana Feitler.

Ongoing research efforts come as many long COVID patients have already exhausted available treatment options and are now left to manage and live with a variety of chronic symptoms.

The first sighting of the invasive pest was confirmed in Chicago, but we’re years from a major infestation and have learned from cities like Pittsburgh how to minimize the nuisance, an expert said.

Larry Snelling is sworn in as Chicago’s police superintendent. The city battles the infestation of a new invasive species. And we introduce you to a local champion of artists with disabilities.

Matt Bodett recently received a 2023 Midwest Award for Artists With Disabilities. His work is currently on display in a new exhibit in the Hermosa community.