Local News
Police Commissioner Dan Polk says Palos Park is not content with a single National Night Out, so the village has planned a week’s worth of events to celebrate the annual get-together of first responders and residents. Events will begin with Coffee with the Chief at 7 p.m. Friday, August 2, at police headquarters at 8999…
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From staff reports A fire last Thursday afternoon practically destroyed an Orland Park gym and knocked out neighboring businesses, as well. Orland Park firefighters received a call at 2:31 p.m. June 20 for a reported fire in the UFC Gym located at 66 Orland Square Drive Unit C. Multiple 911 calls were received for a fire in…
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Started his 50-year career as Orland Park cadet By Dermot Connolly Chicago Ridge Fire Chief William Bonnar officially announced his retirement from a nearly 50-year career at the June 18 Village Board meeting. Mayor Jack Lind made the announcement “with great regret,” joking that “he doesn’t have the age to retire but he decided to…
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From staff reports Orland Fire Protection District firefighters responded to a fire Monday evening at the Al Bahaar Restaurant, 39 Orland Square Dr. At first, restaurant owners suspected the fire alarm was triggered by a malfunction, but as firefighters inspected the restaurant to reset the fire alarm, they detected a burning smell. “What we found…
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By Bob Bong One firefighter suffered minor injuries while battling a fire at a home in Orland Park early Tuesday morning. Orland Fire Protection District officials said the fire was reported at 3:35 a.m. on Feb. 20 in the 14700 block of Holly Court in Orland Park. The fire was brought under control after about…
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By Jeff Vorva Ask any firefighter and they will say that seconds count when it comes to responding to an emergency. So, when minutes can be shaved off of response times, that’s a reason to be overjoyed. Orland Fire Protection District Chief Michael Schofield had a big smile on his face Jan. 31 at the…
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From staff reports Orland and Palos Heights firefighters responded to a structure fire early Saturday morning at a hookah lounge located in a corner surrounded by forest preserve land. At 5:06 a.m. on Oct. 21, companies of the Orland Fire Protection District and Palos Heights Fire District were dispatched in response to a possible structure…
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By Jeff Vorva Palos Park first responders are now a part of the Will, Cook and Grundy County Fire Investigation Task Force. Police Commissioner Dan Polk said at the Oct. 9 village council meeting that this will beef up resources for the community. “This provides collective strength under a unified command while allowing each agency…
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By Jeff Vorva The 40th National Night Out took place all across the country on Aug. 1 and two of the Regional’s three police departments hosted events that night while the third is doing a weeklong celebration. Palos Park is using early August to have residents learn about its Community Emergency Response Team, the Palos…
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By Isabella Schreck Many residents will be able to meet their local police officers and police canines, while enjoying food and fun activities at local National Night Out Against Crime events coming up on Tuesday, Aug. 1. The national event, which has occurred every year on the first Tuesday of August for the past four…
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Sandburg’s touchdown pass in final minute sinks Lincoln-Way Central
By Mike Walsh Sandburg coach Troy McAllister faced a decision in a Week 6 Southwest Suburban crossover game at Lincoln-Way Central. In reality, it wasn’t much of a choice: Let your best athletes make a play. And they did. In the Eagles’ 28-27 victory over Lincoln-Way Central, Charlie Snoreck caught a 5-yard touchdown pass from…
Myles and Myles to go: Mitchell, Richards race past Shepard
By Mike Walsh Have a senior season, Myles Mitchell. The versatile running back delivered another dominant performance in Week 6 as Richards shut out Shepard 21-0 in a South Suburban Red game in Palos Heights. Mitchell ran 25 times for 233 yards, including touchdowns of 91 and 9 yards. The North Dakota State recruit also…
Football notebook: New Solorio coach eyes turnaround
By Mike Clark After eight years away from football, Jonathan Jauregui was ready to get back in the game. Already working at Solorio, he joined the Sun Warriors’ coaching staff as defensive coordinator last year. This season, he’s the head coach and Solorio is off to a 4-2 start after getting past host Back of…
Kamarion and Kavarion McCarter power Kennedy past Ag. Science
By Mike Clark Things are changing for Kennedy football, and the McCarter brothers are among those making it happen. In one of the biggest games in program history, the Crusaders knocked off Ag. Science 17-8 in Week 6 at Gately Stadium. That all but clinched the Public League White Southwest title for Kennedy (5-1, 3-0),…
Argo’s late rally falls short vs. Tinley Park
Argo had the final scoring opportunity it wanted in Friday night’s South Suburban crossover contest against host Tinley Park. Unfortunately for the Argonauts, an untimely interception thrown after reaching the Titans’ 30-yard-line with 56 seconds remaining on a first-and-10 play sealed their fate in a 19-14 loss. “The kids fought at the end, but we…
Area sports roundup: Cougars fall to national power; area golfers swing to sectionals
By Jeff Vorva St. Xavier has proven to be a solid top-15 football team in the country in NAIA play, but the Cougars need a little more work when playing with top-5 opponents. Cougars coach Mike Feminis didn’t sugarcoat things when he said his team took “a good old-fashioned butt whipping from an outstanding team,”…
Nazareth’s ground game dominates vs. St. Rita
By Mike Walsh Quarterback Logan Malachuk and the other skill players at Nazareth draw most of the attention and deservedly so. After all, the Roadrunners have piled up 206 points through the first six games of the season, a 34.3 average. But after Nazareth’s 45-21 CCL/ESCC Green victory at St. Rita in Week 6, it…
Mike Walsh’s Football Top 10, Week 7
1. MARIST (5-1) Last week: Beat Providence 28-7 This week: at St. Ignatius Comment: Running back John McAuliffe and quarterback Jacob Ritter accounted for two TDs each in a strong victory over Providence. 2. LYONS (6-0) Last week: Beat Oak Park-River Forest 49-14 This week: at Downers Grove North Comment: West Suburban Silver supremacy on…
Girls volleyball roundup: Mother McAuley beats Marist to take third in ASICS
By Jeff Vorva Mother McAuley’s chance for a three-peat of winning the ASICS Challenge was halted in the semifinals. But the third-place match was no disappointment. The host Mighty Macs took third in the tournament by beating rival Marist for the second time in 10 days, 25-20, 25-19 on Oct. 5. The two teams met…
Cross country: Solorio’s unique venue a hit with runners
By Mike Walsh Come over the bridge spanning the west branch of the lagoon at the Marquette Park Golf Course on the way from the ninth green and make a left. While making the final kick down the left side of the No. 1 hole, there are trees on the left that have leaves beginning…
Illinois News
Jury deadlocks, mistrial declared in case of ex-AT&T boss accused of bribing Madigan
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO – A federal judge on Thursday declared a mistrial after a jury deadlocked in their deliberations over whether former AT&T Illinois President Paul La Schiazza bribed longtime Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan via a no-work contract for the speaker’s political ally. After nearly 15 hours of deliberation…
High court: Smell of burnt cannabis is not cause for warrantless vehicle search
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com Law enforcement officers in Illinois cannot rely on the smell of burnt cannabis alone to justify searching a vehicle without a warrant, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled on Thursday. The decision was unanimous, though Justice Lisa Holder White did not take part in it. Writing for the court,…
State wraps up case in challenge to assault weapons ban
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com EAST ST. LOUIS – A federal judge invoked images from the 1917 race riots in East St. Louis, Illinois, on Thursday at the end of a trial in a case challenging the constitutionality of the state’s ban on assault-style weapons and large-capacity magazines. Judge Steven McGlynn, who has…
Gun expert says assault weapons ban ‘describes the most popular firearms I’m involved with’
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com EAST ST. LOUIS – A firearms expert testified Wednesday that the weapons restricted under Illinois’ assault weapons ban include many of the most common firearms that American consumers use for self-defense. Steven Randall Watt, a combat veteran and retired law enforcement officer who now owns a private firearms…
Case of former AT&T boss accused of bribing Madigan heads to jury
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO – On Valentine’s Day in 2017, then-AT&T Illinois President Paul La Schiazza got some good news: After years of trying to push for legislation in Springfield that would save the company hundreds of millions of dollars annually, powerful Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan had agreed to a…
State Supreme Court hears arguments in Jussie Smollett’s effort to overturn conviction
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois jnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday in actor Jussie Smollett’s appeal to overturn his conviction on disorderly conduct charges for falsifying a hate crime. Smollett, who was an actor on the TV show “Empire,” was improperly charged with the same crime twice, his legal team…
Testimony continues in 2nd Amendment challenge to Illinois’ assault weapons ban
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com EAST ST. LOUIS – An engineer who spent decades designing weapons for one of the world’s leading gun manufacturers testified Tuesday that the assault-style weapons now banned in Illinois are intended only for civilian use and cannot be easily converted into military-grade firearms. James Ronkainen, a former engineer…
Contractor’s unsecured databases exposed sensitive voter data in over a dozen Illinois counties
By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois aadams@capitolnewsillinois.com Around 4.6 million records associated with Illinoisans in over a dozen counties – including voting records, registrations and death certificates – were temporarily available on the open internet, according to a security researcher who identified the vulnerability in July. The documents were available through an unsecured cloud storage…
Prosecutors rest case against former AT&T Illinois boss accused of bribing Madigan
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO – After years of pushing in Springfield, AT&T Illinois’ executive team was thrilled when the Illinois General Assembly in 2017 passed legislation that would get the company out from under expensive obligations to maintain its aging copper landline wires in Illinois. “Game over. We win,” AT&T Illinois…
Trial begins in challenge to assault weapons ban
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com EAST ST. LOUIS – The owner of a gun store testified Monday that Illinois’ ban on the sale of assault-style weapons and large capacity magazines has had a significant impact on his business and prevented his customers from buying items they would normally use for self-defense, hunting, target…
