Stories by WTTW News

Chicago’s school board members face a crucial budget vote. And President Donald Trump threatens to yank funding from states that have eliminated cash bail.

Illinois in 2023 became the first state to fully eliminate the use of cash bail with the Pretrial Fairness Act. Proponents said the law is intended to address equity issues. The president claims such policies allow “dangerous individuals to immediately return to the streets and further endanger law-abiding Americans.”

As NASA’s Artemis mission prepares to return humans to the moon and establish a permanent lunar base, three University of Illinois Chicago students are playing their own small part to make that happen.

Community leaders, supporters and family members held a memorial Thursday at the burial place of Emmett Till and his mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, at Burr Oak Cemetery in south suburban Alsip to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Till’s murder.

The petition was filed on the same day two children were killed and 17 other individuals were injured in a mass shooting at a Catholic church in Minneapolis. As of Thursday, authorities had not yet publicly identified the specific weapons used in that shooting, only to say one of them was a rifle.

Top officials who resigned their positions at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention after the ouster of the agency’s director were escorted out of the building Thursday morning.

The busiest day for O’Hare and Midway airports is expected to be Friday, with O’Hare seeing nearly 285,000 passengers and Midway seeing nearly 58,000 passengers, according to the Chicago Department of Aviation

President Donald Trump and his aides have repeatedly slammed Chicago over policies that limit cooperation between local authorities and federal immigration enforcement.

If Trump federalizes the National Guard or sends additional ICE agents to Chicago, all Chicago Police officers will be required to wear their uniforms and will not be dispatched to immigration enforcement operations, Supt. Larry Snelling said Thursday.

 The ongoing National Guard mission in Washington, D.C., as part of President Donald Trump’s crime crackdown in the city, is costing roughly $1 million a day, experts estimated to CNN.

Townsend, an American who is ranked No. 1 in doubles, said Ostapenko, a Latvian, who won the 2017 French Open, told her she has “no class” and “no education.”

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker is doubling down on his message to President Donald Trump that the nation’s third-largest city doesn’t need or want military intervention to fight crime.

From the semi-obvious to the semi-obscure, a roundup of Chicago-area arts recommendations awaits.

Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said the shooter — armed with a rifle, shotgun and pistol — approached the side of the church and shot through the windows toward the children sitting in the pews during Mass at the Annunciation Catholic School.

How local officials plan to push back if the National Guard is deployed here. And the head of Chicago Public Schools on a crucial budget vote.

In 2013, Emmet Elementary School was one of 50 schools closed by former Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Chicago Public Schools. The Westside Health Authority and Austin Coming Together collaborated to redevelop the vacant building.

President Donald Trump has threatened to send National Guard troops to Chicago to address crime, calling the city “a killing field” despite violent crime being on a downward trend.

CPS officials have laid out a plan that aims to fill a $734 million budget gap. But there’s still debate over whether a loan should be a part of the final plan — and whether the district should take on a $175 million pension payment.

The Narcan newsstands, which were officially launched during a harm reduction event Wednesday, will be at four locations in Uptown.

Cesar Ramirez, 47, received his sentence this week after he pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated kidnapping stemming from the October 2022 incident. He was initially charged with numerous felonies that also included attempted aggravated sexual assault, attempted aggravated sexual abuse and aggravated battery.

Locally foraged fungi — in all their fascinating, weird and beautiful-ugly forms — will take center stage Sunday at the Illinois Mycological Association’s annual mushroom show.

Gov. JB Pritzker said he’s received no word from the Trump administration following reports it intends to use the Naval Station Great Lakes outside Chicago to house federal immigration agents or National Guard troops.

The new shots from Pfizer, Moderna and Novavax are approved for all seniors. But the Food and Drug Administration narrowed their use for younger adults and children to those with at least one high-risk health condition, such as asthma or obesity.

Had the settlement been even one dollar more, it would have required Chicago City Council approval under city rules. Instead, it was authorized by Corporation Counsel Mary Richardson Lowry.

Former NFL quarterback Jay Cutler was sentenced to four days in jail as part of a plea deal on Tuesday, after being charged with driving under the influence and possession of a firearm in 2024.

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