Local News
Former Palos Hills judge arrested in Florida prostitution sting
From staff reports A former Cook County judge from Palos Hills was among more than 100 people arrested during a weeklong undercover human trafficking sting in Polk County, Florida. Officials said Daniel Peters, 66, was picked up as part of Operation March Sadness 2, which began March 8. Detectives said Peters told them he was…
Hills Chamber to bring back Business and Community Expo on Saturday
From staff reports The Hills Chamber of Commerce will once again host the Business and Community Expo from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, March 19, at Conrady Junior High School, 7950 W. 97th St., Hickory Hills. The expo returns after a two-year absence due to the pandemic. Over 50 exhibitors are scheduled to take part in the expo. Local businesses, direct sales…
Lake Katherine goes green for St. Patrick’s Day
By Kelly White The Chicago River wasn’t the only body of water to take on a shade of green this St. Patrick’s Day. To celebrate the annual day of the Irish, Lake Katherine Nature Center & Botanical Gardens, 7402 W. Lake Katherine Dr., Palos Height, created a little holiday magic as volunteers and staff dyed…
Palos Park police warn drivers to stay safe on St. Patrick’s Day
From staff reports Help us to keep Palos Park’s roads the safest in the nation by planning ahead to stay safe on March 17. Palos Park police are encouraging folks to plan ahead for a safe ride home and urge everyone to have a plan this St. Patrick’s Day. If you plan on drinking, designate…
Orland teen charged in Oak Lawn shooting
By Bob Bong A 16-year-old Orland Park youth has been charged as an adult in the shooting last week of an 18-year-old Oak Lawn youth. Police arrested the Orland teen just hours after the shooting. He was charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and attempted first-degree murder. Gerald Vetter, Division Chief of Investigations,…
Palos Heights police charge second man in armed robbery
From staff reports A second man, who police say was the brother of the first man arrested, has been charged for his role in an armed robbery that took place at a gas station on December 28. Marlon Triplett, 32, was picked up after police in Indiana were able to obtain a nationwide arrest warrant…
Bald is beautiful
Most Holy Redeemer resumes St. Baldrick’s shaving By Kelly White When 6-year-old Luke Sullivan heard about Most Holy Redeemer’s St. Baldrick’s event to take a stand against cancer, he knew immediately that he wanted to be a part. Not only did he do that, he also raised more money than anyone else for the effort.…
EPCHS art department gets $1,000 grant from credit union
From staff reports The art department at Evergreen Park Community High School will benefit from winning the 2022 grant award from the Evergreen Park Schools Federal Credit Union. The $1,000 grant will allow two EPCHS art classes to provide students with the opportunity to go above and beyond the basics in the art curriculum. Art…
Oak Lawn-Hometown Middle School shares the love
By Kelly White Oak Lawn-Hometown Middle School students shared the love in February. The school, 5345 W. 99th St. in Oak Lawn, held a Hershey Heartwarming Project, where students used green screen technology to make videos of picture book read aloud and activities for pediatric patients at Hope Children’s Hospital. “Reading books can take you…
Palos Heights officials hear from both sides on video gaming
By Jeff Vorva Palos Heights officials took the temperature of the community about video gaming Monday night. It was very warm for both sides. More than 80 people showed up at the Palos Heights Recreation Center’s Orchard Room for special meeting of the License, Permits and Franchise Committee for a chance to air their opinions.…
Seven reasons this spring sports season could be special
By Jeff Vorva Staff writer Things are a little quiet right now, but it’s the calm before the storm. Get ready for a monster sports spring in the area. The IHSA offers 13 spring sports and activities, including bass fishing. Area colleges will be busy, especially with baseball and softball. The Chicago Red Stars, who…
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Illinois News
State highway shootings decline as critics sue over ‘dragnet surveillance’
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois jnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com Illinois State Police say an automated license plate reader program has helped the agency identify witnesses or suspects in 82 percent of highway shooting cases this year, including all eight that resulted in a death. But as the state looks to further expand its network of more than…
Just weeks before Republican National Convention, Illinois GOP chair announces resignation
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com Halfway through the 2024 election cycle and just a few weeks away from the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Illinois GOP Chair Don Tracy on Wednesday announced his resignation as head of the state Republican Party. Tracy, who’d held the job since February 2021, explained his resignation in…
As Illinois session ends, lawmakers’ attempt to reinstate wetland protections fails
by JENNIFER BAMBERG Investigate Midwest jennifer.bamberg@investigatemidwest.org In 2006, 19-year-old Jessica Whinston inherited 20 acres of land that her grandparents once farmed in Quincy, Illinois. The land had sat dormant since the 1980s and was overgrown, but Whinston and her husband Bradley worked to turn it into a productive farm. The couple were eventually able to…
Elections board dismisses illegal campaign coordination complaint, declines to clarify law
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO – State elections officials on Tuesday indicated they were unlikely to step in to clarify what constitutes illegal campaign coordination after voting to dismiss a complaint alleging such coordination in the 2022 campaign for governor. At their monthly meeting in Chicago, Illinois State Board of Elections members…
Illinois’ ban on ‘bump stocks’ remains in place despite U.S. Supreme Court decision
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – An Illinois law banning the sale and use of “bump stocks” and other devices that increase the firing power of semiautomatic weapons remains in place, at least for now, despite a U.S. Supreme Court decision Friday striking down a federal ban on such items. “Illinois law…
Lawmakers pass on oversight vote for Pritzker’s prison closure, rebuild plan
By HANNAH MEISEL & DILPREET RAJU Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – For the last two decades, each time a governor has moved to close a large state-run facility like a prison or mental health center, a legislative oversight panel has voted on the plan. That changed on Friday – at least for now –…
‘We don’t really know what we’re voting on,’ top Dem says of Pritzker’s prison plan
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com LINCOLN – On the eve of a scheduled vote to advise Gov. JB Pritzker’s administration on plans to close and rebuild a pair of dilapidated state prisons, hundreds filed into a junior high school gymnasium Thursday evening clad in matching green T-shirts. Printed on the shirts was a…