Local News

dvn harlem ave and 95th street detours

Road work to begin on Harlem Avenue and 95th Street

By Bob Bong / September 28, 2024 /

The Illinois Department of Transportation announced last week that an improvement project on Harlem Avenue (Illinois 43) over 95th Street (U.S. 12/20), from 92nd Place, in Bridgeview, to south of 99th Place, in Chicago Ridge, passing through Oak Lawn, will begin, weather permitting, Monday, Sept. 30. The project is scheduled to be completed in several…

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Hickory Hills gears up for annual carnival

By Nuha Abdessalam / August 21, 2024 / Comments Off on Hickory Hills gears up for annual carnival

Hickory Hills’ seventh annual carnival will be here this weekend for local families and friends to partake in the city’s final stretch for a sunny summer-ending hurrah. Angel Sanchez, the Hickory Hills Park District Recreation Manager for the past 12 years, and his dedicated team members have been tirelessly curating diverse activities for everyone to…

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Green Hills Library collecting back-to-school supplies

By Kelly White / July 20, 2024 / Comments Off on Green Hills Library collecting back-to-school supplies

By Kelly White It may still be summer but the Green Hills Public Library District is preparing students for their return to the classroom. The library, 10331 Interlochen Dr., Palos Hills, is hosting a Back-to-School Collection Drive from now until Friday, August 9. “One of my biggest goals as a librarian has always been breaking…

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Hometown Hoops Hero: Stagg alum Max Strus discusses his rise through the NBA, hitting big shots and his annual youth hoops camp

By Xavier Sanchez / July 14, 2024 /

By Xavier Sanchez Correspondent A lot of changes have taken place for Max Strus during the past year. While the Cleveland Cavaliers guard has played in an NBA Finals and been featured as No. 1 on ESPN SportsCenter’s “Top Plays,” among other noteworthy events, the Stagg alum is the same homegrown kid who grew up…

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Hickory Hills man charged in grandfather’s murder

By Bob Bong / June 26, 2024 /

By Nuha Abdessalam A 32-year-old Hickory Hills man has been charged with first-degree murder in the June 21 death of his 90-year-old grandfather. Dean J. Faulk was charged on June 22 with the June 21 murder of Dean L. Faulk. Police said they responded to a call at 9:45 a.m. June 21 at a residence…

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Young Spiderman fan wishes students a great summer

By Bob Bong / June 19, 2024 / Comments Off on Young Spiderman fan wishes students a great summer

By Nuha Abdessalam Spiderman-kid bids farewell and wishes a beautiful summer break to students of Glen Oak Elementary in Hickory Hills. Since the summer of 2023, when he discovered the movie “Spiderman: Into the Spider-Verse,” a story about multiple Spidermen from different dimensions, 6-year-old Ribhi Gaber has been more than just a fan of Spiderman.…

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Hills Farmers Market to open at 8 a.m. Friday

By Bob Bong / June 6, 2024 / Comments Off on Hills Farmers Market to open at 8 a.m. Friday

By Nuha Abdessalam The Hills Farmers Market is bringing more and offering unique experiences this year. The Hills Chamber of Commerce and the City of Hickory Hills have joined forces this year, pooling their resources and ideas to create an annual farmers market at 8653 W. 95th Street. The market will be held every Friday…

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Hickory Hills police bid adieu and say welcome

By Bob Bong / May 10, 2024 / Comments Off on Hickory Hills police bid adieu and say welcome

By Nuha Abdessalam The Hickory Hills Police Department bid a fond farewell to Lieutenant Glenn Tienstra and welcomed new Officer Daniel Balzhiser. On a memorable Thursday evening, April 25, city hall was filled with the warmth of community family, friends, officers, and council members, all gathered to joyfully celebrate Officer Balzhiser and respectfully commemorate Lieutenant…

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Lions Club District 1A Helen Keller race draws big field

By Kelly White / May 3, 2024 / Comments Off on Lions Club District 1A Helen Keller race draws big field

By Kelly White The damp weather from overnight rain did not deter more than 100 people on Sunday morning from getting some exercise. The 14th annual District 1A Helen Keller 5k Fun Run/Walk proudly took place along at Harold L. Richard’s High School, 10601 Central Ave., Oak Lawn. “This is a really great event,” Oak…

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Hickory Hills adds new police officer

By Bob Bong / April 18, 2024 /

By Nuha Abdessalam Hickory Hills Police Chief Jason Bray welcomed Andre Showers as the city’s newest police officer during last week’s city council meeting. Aldermen and the community at the April 11 meeting helped celebrate the induction of the Showers, 21. He’s an Army veteran and a 2023 Cook County Correctional Camp graduate at Moraine…

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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…

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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…

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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…

Kennedy sophomore Kavarion McCarter had two interceptions in a win against Ag. Science on Oct. 3.

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),…

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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…

Zach Norred, left, and Ryan Fitzgerald get back to the defensive line on Oct. 5 against Indiana Wesleyan. SXU photo

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,”…

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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…

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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…

Mother McAuley's Sydney Buchanan gets ready to serve against Marist Oct. 5 in the ASICS Challenge. Photo by Jeff Vorva

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…

Solorio runners George Cortes (left) and Rigoberto De La Torre flank co-coach Robert Dron at the Sun Warrior Invitational on Oct. 5. Photo by Mike Walsh

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

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

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

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’

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

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

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

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

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

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

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…