Stories by Matt Masterson

National Guard troops arrived in Illinois as part of an unprecedented deployment with a directive to protect federal immigration agents “in places where there are violent demonstrations. So where might that be?

Each Wednesday, WTTW News producer Josh Terry presents must-see live music shows from indie rock to jazz, country, hip-hop and more.

Local organizers who have been working on the project for more than 30 years said the Red Line extension is essential for those who live in “transportation deserts” on the Far South Side of the city.

National Guard members arrive in the Chicago area. And the Trump administration moves to withhold federal funding for Chicago’s Red Line extension — a look at the impact.

The federal government entered its sixth day of a shutdown Tuesday, leaving hundreds of thousands of employees furloughed.

President Donald Trump’s efforts to send National Guard troops into U.S. cities — including Los Angeles; Portland, Oregon; and Chicago — over the objections of Democratic mayors and governors have prompted a host of questions about the president’s authority and who controls the Guard.

Botched raids by the Chicago Police Department have cost taxpayers more than $5.5 million since 2020, according to a WTTW News analysis.

Eric Blackmon was wrongfully convicted of the murder of Tony Cox, who was killed on the West Side in what police believed was a gang-related shooting.

If approved, it would bring the total amount spent by taxpayers in 2025 to compensate those wrongfully convicted based on evidence developed by Chicago police officers to $164.2 million, according to a WTTW News analysis.

“It’s illegal, unconstitutional,” Mayor Brandon Johnson said. “It’s dangerous. It’s wrong. This is not about deportations, this is not about safety for this president. This is about authoritarianism. It’s about stoking fear. It’s about breaking the Constitution.”

Chicago firefighters and paramedics — who are prohibited from striking — have been working under the terms of a contract that expired in 2021.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, both potential 2028 presidential candidates, contend Trump’s troop deployments should be a matter of concern for all governors. But some Republican governors have supported Trump’s actions.

Quinn Priester grew up in the Chicago area and was in Wrigley Field’s stands for Game 5 of the 2016 World Series. The 25-year-old right-hander will be back at Wrigley on Wednesday as he continues his breakthrough season by trying to pitch the Brewers into the NL Championship Series.

The Chicago Park District has shot down a social media rumor that it had received any information about ICE agents targeting Sunday’s upcoming Chicago Marathon for enforcement activities.

One on one with Mayor Brandon Johnson on National Guard troops in Illinois, immigration enforcement and more.

“We’re not going to be intimidated in Chicago,” Mayor Brandon Johnson said. “It’s my responsibility to stand up to tyranny and to make sure that we are defending the people of this city.”

President Donald Trump plans to deploy 400 members of the Texas National Guard and 300 members of the Illinois National Guard to the area any day. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson have asked a federal judge to block that move.

Before this year, U.S. health officials — following recommendations by infectious disease experts — recommended annual COVID-19 boosters for all Americans ages 6 months and older.

Prosecutors in Chicago on Monday filed a murder-for-hire charge against 37-year-old Juan Espinoza Martinez, whom they claim is a “ranking member” of the Latin Kings gang.

Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling rejected claims his officers failed to respond to a pair of incidents involving federal agents in the city over the weekend, saying more than two dozen officers were affected by chemical gas deployed by the agents.

The lawsuit filed by Illinois and Chicago officials calls the looming deployment of both Texas and Illinois National Guard troops a politically motivated and unconstitutional federal overreach.

Former NFL quarterback Mark Sanchez is now facing a felony charge of battery involving serious bodily injury in addition to the misdemeanor charges stemming from a weekend incident in Indianapolis that led to his arrest.

Broadview Mayor Katrina Thompson has signed an executive order setting fixed protest hours outside the Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s suburban processing facility.

The work by Mary E. Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell and Dr. Shimon Sakaguchi uncovered a key pathway the body uses to keep the immune system in check, called peripheral immune tolerance. Experts called the findings critical to understanding autoimmune diseases such as Type 1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis and lupus.

The campaign is part of ICE’s $30 billion initiative to hire 10,000 more deportation officers by the end of the year to supercharge deportations.

The return of normal express lanes operations comes as all Kennedy outbound local lanes open, the Illinois Department of Transportation announced Sunday. Work continues on several outbound ramps through late October, with construction on pace to finish before Thanksgiving, according to IDOT.