Stories by Heather Cherone

The Chicago City Council’s License and Consumer Protection Committee voted to ban the thousands of unpermitted sweepstakes machines that operate in all kinds of businesses across the city, including in bars, restaurants, gas stations, laundromats and convenience stores.

All entry to the museum is timed-ticketed, and visitors are strongly encouraged to reserve tickets online in advance, according to the center. Every Tuesday, the museum is free for Illinois residents.

Three passengers have died and at least four people are sick in what health officials say is an outbreak of hantavirus, which usually spreads by inhaling contaminated rodent droppings.

The legislation says the money would support enhancements to the ballroom project, “including above-ground and below-ground security features,” but also specifies that the money may not be used for non-security elements.

The U.S. Postal Service on Tuesday is releasing eight stamps marking significant parts of the road in each of the states it traverses, passing by vintage diners, gas stations and motels — many since preserved or restored — along with breathtaking vistas and wide horizons of the open road.

Through the first four months of 2026, Chicago has seen 130 homicides, CPD data shows, up from the 120 recorded during the same period in 2025.

Monitors have confirmed that for the third year running Sea Rocket has returned to Montrose and Blaze is back at Waukegan.

What a weakened Voting Rights Act could mean for future elections. And exploring Filipino culture and cuisine.

In his new documentary, “Food Roots,” Billy Dec invites viewers to see who he is under the iconic fedora as he travels to the Philippines to reconnect with relatives — uncovering culture, family recipes and parts of himself along the way.

President Donald Trump ignited the conflict over redistricting last year by urging Republicans to redraw congressional maps to reduce the likelihood that his party loses the U.S. House in the November midterm elections.

Officials said the zoo remains open and “animal care continues without interruption.”

Republican governors in Alabama and Tennessee have called lawmakers into special sessions this week to draw new congressional districts after the U.S. Supreme Court weakened a key provision of the Voting Rights Act.

There are usually 80,000 to 100,000 troops on the continent, with more than 36,000 in Germany. The Pentagon announced that it would remove 5,000 troops, and Trump said the next day that he would go “a lot further” than that.

In the trial set to start May 11, a jury will be asked to decide whether former CPD Detective Reynaldo Guevara framed Arturo DeLeon-Reyes, whose conviction in a 1998 double murder was overturned after a judge determined Guevara told “bald-faced lies” while under oath.

A state commission says federal immigration agents were violent and lawless during “Operation Midway Blitz.” And Democrats weigh a response after the U.S. Supreme Court further hobbles the Voting Rights Act.

Labor unions, community groups and Chicago Public Schools students are among those gathering Friday afternoon in recognition of May Day.

Changes to SNAP and Medicaid eligibility are seen as possible reasons for the drop in low-income numbers. These changes could have a direct impact on the amount of state funding school districts receive.

The Bontemps Apartments project was awarded federal low-income housing tax credits through the city of Chicago. The award was part of a broader $300 million investment from the city going toward 15 affordable housing developments.

The settlement is intended to resolve concerns over excessive surcharges imposed on ratepayers under Peoples Gas’ pipe retirement program.

Republicans are calling for changes to the law to make it easier to detain someone before trial. Gov. JB Pritzker blamed the judge in the case for deciding to release the man now accused of the murder despite a history of violent crimes.

The Trump administration appears to be recalibrating its approach to a centerpiece policy that helped bring the president back to the White House, moving in many ways away from aggressive, public-facing tactics toward a quieter approach.

Will a new report lead to accountability for immigration agents? And funding security for some federal workers as a record government shutdown is set to end.

Peabody and Emmy Award-winning producer Rita Coburn is offering a fresh way to look back on the legacy of civil rights pioneer and sociologist W.E.B. Du Bois.

Federal immigration agents engaged in unconstitutional uses of force including “extreme physical force" while White House officials routinely lied to conceal the motivations behind “Operation Midway Blitz,” an Illinois panel has found.

The funeral details for Chicago police Officer John Bartholomew, who was killed in a hospital shooting Saturday, have been released.

President Donald Trump swiftly signed bipartisan legislation Thursday funding much of the Department of Homeland Security, but not its immigration enforcement operations.