Stories by Heather Cherone

For the first time since a damning 2019 audit was released by the city’s watchdog, police officials defended their continuing use of records that list approximately 135,000 Chicagoans as members of gangs, citing their need for the data to prevent “retaliatory violence.”

Hearings for the Capitol insurrection probe get underway. Chicago prepares for climate refugees. And has a local scientist found a solution to food insecurity?

As rising sea levels, destructive floods, droughts and wildfires threaten communities in the U.S. and around the globe, some say governments need to prepare for more migration.

Capitol Police Officer Aquilino Gonell told House investigators Tuesday he could feel himself losing oxygen as he was crushed by rioters — supporters of then-President Donald Trump — as he was defending the Capitol during the Jan. 6 insurrection. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention changed course Tuesday on some masking guidelines, recommending that even vaccinated people return to wearing masks indoors in parts of the U.S. where the delta variant of the coronavirus is fueling infection surges.

Fear, uncertainty and misinformation surrounding the COVID-19 vaccine can lead to hesitancy in any community. Advocates serving homeless Chicagoans talk about the role trust plays in reaching this vulnerable population.

Dr. Allison Arwady, commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health, said safety protocols in place for the massive four-day festival are sufficient to allow it to go forward despite a surge in COVID-19 cases. “I’m certainly hopeful that we won’t see a significant problem,” she said.

Federal authorities on Tuesday announced that Jose Valdovinos had been arrested earlier this week after a federal grand jury returned an indictment charging him with maliciously damaging and destroying a building in June 2020.

Simone Biles came to Tokyo as the star of the U.S. Olympic movement and perhaps the Games themselves. It all came to a stunning halt in the women’s gymnastics final on Tuesday night with an uncertain vault.

Angel Idowu and a panel of guests discuss the coronavirus pandemic through the lens of Chicago’s arts community. Watch the discussion now.

Families living in poverty are more likely to be involved with the child welfare system, according to a recent brief from the University of Chicago. As part of our “Firsthand: Living in Poverty” series, we look at the barriers facing families that need financial assistance.

Senators ran into new problems Monday as they raced to seal a bipartisan infrastructure deal, with pressure mounting on all sides to show progress on President Joe Biden’s top priority.

At a farm just north of the city, trainers are working to preserve an art form on display at the Tokyo Olympics. We visit Tempel Farms to see the Lipizzan stallions they’re teaching to dance.

The four-day music festival is expected to draw hundreds of thousands of people to Grant Park, and many are concerned it could become a “superspreader” event. But city officials say it will go on as planned. 

Erratic winds and the potential for dry lightning added to the challenges facing firefighters battling California’s largest wildfire, one of numerous blazes burning Monday across the U.S. West.

More than 100,000 fans are expected to attend the massive four-day music festival that starts Thursday. “We’ve been having large-scale events all over the city since June without major problems or issues," Mayor Lori Lightfoot said.

A merger that would have created the world’s largest insurance brokerage falls through. Crain’s Chicago Business editor Ann Dwyer takes us behind the headline of that story and more business news.

On the 31st anniversary of the ADA, the Biden administration released guidance and resources to support people experiencing long-term effects of COVID-19, known as “long COVID,” as the condition shapes up to be a major, long-term public health issue.

The mayor announced Monday that negotiators had reached an eight-year deal that offers more than 11,000 Chicago police officers annual average raises of approximately 2.5% — while imposing new rules on officers suspected of misconduct.

R. Kelly’s lawyers said Monday they would fight prosecutors’ bid to tell jurors about allegations beyond the actual charges  at his upcoming federal sex trafficking trial. 

Wheaton resident Jeri Davis had a lot of irreverent thoughts about chemotherapy, so she jotted down one-liners during her treatment sessions. With the help of more than dozen artists, she has now turned her witty insights into a coloring book.

Chicago’s top doctor on the rising number of COVID-19 cases. Western wildfires mean hazy Chicago skies. The anniversary of the ADA. And preserving an equestrian art form.

There were 52 separate shooting incidents between Friday evening and Sunday night, according to data from the Chicago Police Department. That includes a police shooting Sunday in the Kenwood community that left one person wounded.

The United States will keep existing COVID-19 travel restrictions on international travel in place for now due to concerns about the surging infection rate because of the delta variant, according to a White House official.

In her new book, author and psychologist Inger Burnett-Zeigler examines the stress, trauma and unacknowledged emotional suffering Black women have faced for generations, while offering a new way of being strong that includes being comfortable with vulnerability.

While the number of women in prisons is relatively small compared to the number of incarcerated men, the rate of female incarceration is on the rise. Black women in particular are overrepresented in the nation’s jails and prisons.