Ald. Carrie Austin (34th Ward) stands to speak at the Dec. 14, 2022, Chicago City Council meeting. (WTTW News)

Former Ald. CarrieAustin is now receiving more than $9,500 per month in pension payments for the rest of her life, according to records obtained by WTTW News from the Municipal Employees’ Annuity and Benefit Fund of Chicago. If Austin is convicted, she could lose her pension, since her conduct occurred as part of her official duties as an alderperson.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot unveils the forecast for the 2023 Chicago budget on Aug. 10, 2022. (WTTW News)

The projections detailed by outgoing Mayor Lori Lightfoot represent a significantly rosier financial picture for Chicago than the forecast released in August, when city officials projected a likely budget gap of $473.8 million in 2024. 

Ald. Carrie Austin (34th Ward) stands to speak at the Dec. 14, 2022, Chicago City Council meeting. (WTTW News)

Ald. Carrie Austin, 73, who did not seek a seventh term on the Chicago City Council, stepped down the day after Chicago voters went to the polls to pick a new mayor and City Council. 

Ald. Jim Gardiner (45th Ward) on the floor of the Chicago City Council. (WTTW News)

The Chicago Board of Ethics first asked the city's watchdog to probe Gardiner in 2021 after complaints he used his power as an alderperson to retaliate against critics.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot unveils the forecast for the 2023 Chicago budget on Aug. 10, 2022. (WTTW News)
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With less than two months until Election Day, Mayor Lori Lightfoot touts the $16.4 billion spending plan she crafted as a “stability budget” for a city enjoying a faster than expected recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. Here’s what it does.

Ald. Carrie Austin (34th Ward) stands to speak at the Dec. 14, 2022, Chicago City Council meeting. (WTTW News)

Surveillance conducted by FBI agents in recent weeks shows Austin is “not gravely ill,” but has a busy schedule and is “alert, lucid and responsive” and able to move about on her own without assistance, according to court records.

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Chicago taxpayers will pay $1.2 million to settle three lawsuits claiming Chicago police officers committed a wide range of misconduct, including handcuffing an 8-year-old boy for more than 40 minutes during a raid of his family’s home.

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The dispute over the future of the gang database represents the first clash between the Police Department’s leaders and the commission made up of Chicagoans given the authority to set policy for the department in an attempt to restore trust in its operations.

(Photo by logan jeffrey on Unsplash)
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A spokesperson for Uber, said firm officials were “pleased to put this matter behind us.” 

Ald. Ed Burke is pictured in a file photo. (WTTW News)
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Burke, 78, faces a November 2023 trial on racketeering, bribery and extortion charges centered on allegations that he repeatedly — and brazenly — used his powerful position at City Hall to force those doing business with the city to hire his private law firm.

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The interim Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability will hold a virtual meeting at 6:30 p.m. Monday to discuss a draft of the policy that would govern the new gang database, dubbed the Criminal Enterprise Information System.

A file photo shows 34th Ward Ald. Carrie Austin at a Chicago City Council meeting. (WTTW News)

Austin, 73, pleaded not guilty to charges that she accepted bribes from a developer and lied to FBI agents. Indicted in July 2021, Austin has never appeared in person before Judge John Kness because of her ill health and restrictions put in place to stop the spread of COVID-19. 

(WTTW News)
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The Chicago City Council is set to pay $5.8 million to resolve three lawsuits alledging misconduct by Chicago Police officers.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot speaks during a City Council meeting on Nov. 7, 2022. (WTTW News)
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The budget takes effect Jan. 1, 2023, approximately two months before Mayor Lori Lightfoot is set to ask voters for a second term as Chicago mayor, does not include a property tax hike to keep up with the soaring rate of inflation, or any other tax or fee hikes.

A Chicago Works sign hangs on the fence separating traffic from ongoing work to renovate the Dearborn Street bridge. (Heather Cherone/WTTW News)

Representatives of the city’s Department of Transportation and the Budget Office declined to provide WTTW News with a full breakdown of spending during 2021 and 2022 under the banner of Chicago Works.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot addresses the news media Monday, Aug. 29, 2022. (Heather Cherone/WTTW)
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The 16-page report was the first action of the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability after it finally launched at the end of August, more than eight months behind schedule. A final vote by the Chicago City Council on Lightfoot’s $16.4 billion plan is scheduled for Monday.