Stories by Associated Press

American journalist Danny Fenster, who was recently sentenced to 11 years of hard labor after spending nearly six months in jail in military-ruled Myanmar, was freed and on his way home Monday, a former U.S. diplomat who helped negotiate the release said.

The United Auto Workers said in a statement Friday night that the proposed contract with the agricultural machinery giant “includes modest modifications" to the latest rejected proposal, which included immediate 10% raises.

The Chicago Police Board on Monday will hold the first in a series of hearings that could lead to the termination of police officer and union head John Catanzara for defying the department’s brass and ignoring its rules.

Animal rights organizations have been advocating for stricter federal limits on exotic animals for years. Now lawmakers have two bills in the works to put interstate limits on the sale, breeding, possession of and public contact with primates and various species of big cats.

The latest in the fight against COVID-19. Help for those who can't afford broadband internet. Exploring immigrant identity in a new show. And La Ultima Palabra on standing up for your community.

An effort to plant more trees in underserved areas. A new movie shines light on the history of “racial passing.” Two local social media stars tour a South Side neighborhood. And meet Poppin’ Chuck.

Two antiviral treatments for existing COVID infections are on the horizon. And in Chicago, more than 6,000 children ages 5 to 11 received COVID-19 vaccinations this past week. But, case counts are again on the rise and with holiday gatherings just around the corner, the threat of COVID remains.

Aguijón Theater of Chicago on the Northwest Side kicked off its 21st season with “La Gran Tirana,” exploring the idea of immigrant identity as it follows the journey of Ana Morgana, an immigrant who transcends her own reality by imagining herself to be the Cuban diva La Lupe.

The new Netflix movie “Passing” centers around two Black women who can both “pass” as white but take different paths, one choosing to live as white, the other Black. The film is an adaptation of the 1929 novel by Chicago author Nella Larsen.

“Chicago Party Aunt,” based on the fictional Twitter account by Chris Witaske went national last September with the premiere of the Netflix series. But Witaske has roots primarily in the western suburbs which leaves some things out. So another Chicago social media star gave him a tour of a prominent South Side neighborhood.

Hinsdale Central High School senior Alexandra Collins gives us La Ultima Palabra on the emotion she says stops many of us from creating change in our communities – and how you can stop it from stopping you.

We introduced you to a violinist who's one of dozens of Chicago artists receiving cash grants to pursue their careers. Now, meet an artist with a dance style that started in the late ‘60s but has evolved through the decades. 

Chicago is set to invest $46 million in tree planting over the next five years. Trees can help improve air quality, reduce flooding, and offer several other health and social benefits. But the distribution of trees throughout Chicago is far from equal.

For the last two years, stay-at-home orders and closed schools made people’s reliance on the internet more apparent than ever. It also showcased the inequities in access to broadband internet. Nationwide, Latino households are not only less likely to have broadband access, but also the devices needed to get connected.

The Biden administration is nominating its first set of U.S. Marshals, including the first Black man to serve as the U.S. Marshal in Minnesota, along with a slate of other historic firsts for U.S. attorney posts across the nation.

Bradley Rukstales stormed the Capitol, threw a chair in the direction of police officers who had been forced to retreat from rioters, was nearby as a melee between officers and rioters broke out and had to be dragged away by officers after he refused to comply with attempts to get him up from the floor.

Chicago Police Superintendent David Brown said at a news conference that Alton Spann of Chicago was arrested and charged with first-degree murder, armed robbery and two counts of unlawful use of a weapon.

A court in military-ruled Myanmar on Friday sentenced U.S. journalist Danny Fenster to 11 years in prison with hard labor, the maximum penalty under three charges, despite calls by the United States and rights groups for his release.

Chicago school kids get a day off to get COVID vaccines. Kyle Rittenhouse gives emotional testimony in his Kenosha murder trial. Illinois’ richest resident vows to take down Pritzker. And more.

The decision capped a stunning five-month odyssey that saw Spears publicly demand the end of the conservatorship, hire her own attorney, have her father removed from power and finally win the freedom to make her own medical, financial and personal decisions for the first time since 2008.

Kyle Rittenhouse is charged with several counts, including homicide and attempted homicide. Wisconsin law allows the prosecution and defense to ask that jurors be told they can consider lesser charges as part of the instructions they receive before deliberating the case. 

Cinespace Studios, which helped spark a boom in movie and television production in Chicago, has been sold to a private equity firm that tapped a former Netflix executive to lead the operation on Chicago’s West Side.

The decision to recommend a suspension for slain officer Ella French was the “height of tone-deafness,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Friday, after a police watchdog agency issued disciplinary recommendations for those involved in the 2019 raid at Anjanette Young’s home.

The Labor Department said Friday that 4.4 million people quit their jobs in September, or about 3% of the nation’s workforce. That’s up from 4.3 million in August.

Buckle up for a bumpy ride this weekend. Friday’s forecast calls for high winds and bursts of heavy snow, more snow is possible Saturday, and Sunday’s temperatures are expected to dip into the teens, according to the National Weather Service.

A 22-year-old college student who was critically injured in the crush of fans at the Astroworld festival in Houston has died, the family’s lawyer said Thursday, bringing the death toll to nine.