Mayor Lori Lightfoot declined Monday to say whether the city is on track to lift its mask mandate along with the state or lift the vaccine mandate for patrons of restaurants, fitness centers and bars on Feb. 28.

Ald. Patrick Daley Thompson was found guilty on all seven counts in what was the first trial of a sitting member of the Chicago City Council since 1999.

The car market revs up despite challenges, preparing for the end of the state’s mask mandate in two weeks, and new legislation that would protect rape survivors from medical costs. Plus, dating during the pandemic and guaranteed basic income.

Niles, a northwest Chicago suburb. It’s well known for its landmark replica of the Leaning Tower of Pisa, but it’s also a community thinking about how to revamp one of its anchor businesses for the future. There are efforts to redevelop Golf Mill mall, a nearby park, and plans to improve infrastructure and pedestrian safety.

Chicago police change their foot pursuit policy. College athletes blocked from playing in championships. Efforts to renew the Violence Against Women Act. And ancient artwork in a new setting. 

Alligator Records said Lay was known for his “trademark, hard-to-copy ‘double-shuffle’" drumming, based on double-time hand-clapping in his childhood church.

Police reform advocates criticized the original policy as too “vague” and said it gave officers too much discretion to chase someone they suspect of a crime. 

The housing market has been hot throughout the pandemic and so is the industry itself, with more people getting into the business. Membership at the Illinois Realtors Association is up 15% in the past five years and the past two years have seen the most significant growth.

Back in 1890, the Art Institute of Chicago began collecting Egyptian art. Much of it has been out of view for years, but the museum spruced up the collection and is about to unveil it in a new gallery. We have a preview of ancient art and artifacts from the Nile Valley in North Africa.

Sen. Dick Durbin announced a bill to renew the Violence Against Women Act alongside his Democratic and Republican colleagues who were also joined by domestic violence survivors and actor and advocate Angelina Jolie.

The decision comes from their conference, the Horizon League, after UIC announced it’ll be leaving the league and joining the Missouri Valley Conference next year. 

Federal prosecutors have been laying out their case that Ald. Patrick Daley Thompson (11th Ward) committed crimes when he filed false tax returns and lied about how much he borrowed from a now-failed bank.

The governor announces a lifting of the mask mandate, but when, and what about schools? Two new grocery stores on the West Side. Debate over book bans. And the latest in aldermanic corruption cases.