Local News
Oak Lawn police target drivers who ignore stop signs
By Joe Boyle Oak Lawn police are going to crack down on reckless drivers who repeatedly blow stop signs throughout the village. And police will begin enforcing those measures within the next two weeks. The subject was brought up during the Oak Lawn Village Board meeting June 11. Village Manager Tom Phelan said that he…
Volunteers from Brother Rice, St. Rita and St. Laurence help indigent on their final journey
By Nuha Abdessalam Father Larry Sullivan, a director of Catholic Cemeteries of the Archdiocese of Chicago and pastor of Christ the King Parish, joined County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and spoke words of love, respect, and God at the 35th annual committal service at Mount Olivet Cemetery. The service on June 6 at 1:30 p.m.…
Riot Fest abandons Chicago park for SeatGeek Stadium
By Bob Bong Last year, Lyrical Lemonade moved its Summer Smash hip-hop music festival from Chicago’s Douglass Park to Bridgeview’s SeatGeek Stadium. Thousands of fans poured into the stadium at 7100 S. Harlem Ave. over the course of three days and, by most accounts, enjoyed the experience. Summer Smash returned to SeatGeek this weekend for…
Comings & Goings: Orland Park Summerfest returns this weekend
By Bob Bong Back for a second go round this weekend is the Orland Park Area Chamber of Commerce’s Summerfest. The event combines a carnival, live music, an array of dining options and a car show, at the 153rd Street Metra Station location in Orland Park and will run from Friday, June 14, through Sunday,…
Softball | Marist will play for state title for fourth straight season
By Randy Whalen Correspondent Marist returned to the state title game for the fourth straight season with a 7-1 victory over Mundelein in the semifinals, held June 7 at Louisville Slugger Sports Complex in Peoria. The Mustangs (36-2) were making their first appearance at state since 1996. “We have a core group of returners,” Marist coach…
Record crowd sees Bay FC top Red Stars at Wrigley Field
By Xavier Sanchez Correspondent Historic Wrigley Field hosted its first professional women’s sporting event in 80 years when the Chicago Red Stars hosted Bay FC on June 8. An NWSL-record announced crowd of 35,038 came out on a cool, rainy evening on the North Side and saw the expansion team from the San Francisco Bay…
Softball | St. Charles North rides big inning over Marist for Class 4A state title
By Randy Whalen Correspondent The final game was in doubt until the late innings but, in the end, Marist came up short in its bid for a second consecutive state championship. St. Charles North (25-6) broke open a tied game by scoring five times with two outs in the bottom of the sixth, eventually capturing…
Boys Volleyball | Marist’s Nathen Toth named state finals MVP
By Jeff Vorva Correspondent With the IHSA boys volleyball state semifinals and finals championships held on the same day, the round of four tends to get overshadowed once the smoke clears. But Marist’s 28-26, 26-24 semifinal win over Glenbard West in a battle of two of the top five teams in the nation, according…
Brown family legacy continues in world of Illinois boys volleyball
By Jeff Vorva Correspondent The Brown family’s legacy continues in the world of boys volleyball. Twins Chris and Eric Brown helped Oak Lawn finish fourth in the IHSA volleyball tournament in 1993, the second year the boys state tournament took place. Though the twins graduated that year, that season served as a springboard for the…
Don’t sleep on grappling great | St. Rita grad Austin O’Connor starts MMA career with a win
By Jeff Vorva Correspondent The “Irish Nightmare” was not about to be put to sleep. Austin O’Connor, a four-time IHSA state wrestling champion during his years at St. Rita, made his professional MMA debut on June 9; and despite some pre-match taunting from opponent Camden Fontenot — who claimed he would put O’Connor to sleep…
Oak Lawn police seize drugs, cash in raid on home
From staff reports Oak Lawn Police Department tactical detectives last week raided a home and recovered drugs and cash. At 8 a.m. on May 29, detectives executed a search warrant at 8825 S. Austin, assisted by the department’s Special Response Team. Detectives recovered more than 17 pounds of cannabis bagged for sale and approximately $7,000…
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Illinois News
Capitol Briefs: State Police report fewer deaths on Illinois highways in 2023
By JENNIFER FULLER Capitol News Illinois jfuller@capitolnewsillinois.com Fatal crashes on interstates and expressways in Illinois fell by 7 percent in 2023 compared to the previous year, and shootings were down more than 30 percent. Illinois State Police report the declines came at the same time troopers were beefing up their enforcement on the state’s transportation…
Back wages totaling more than $5 million owed to thousands of Illinois workers
By ALEX ABBEDUTO Capitol News Illinois abbeduto@capitolnewsillinois.com The U.S. Department of Labor is currently holding more than $5 million in wages owed to more than 7,000 Illinois workers, and the department has launched a new website in an effort to return it. When an employee is underpaid for the work they do, the DOL’s Wage…
Staffing agencies not exempted from antitrust law, state Supreme Court rules
By Hannah Meisel CAPITOL NEWS ILLINOIS hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com Staffing agencies – a fast-growing industry that employs nearly a million Illinoisans – are not exempt from the state’s antitrust law, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled late last week. The decision comes 3 ½ years after Attorney General Kwame Raoul sued a trio of staffing agencies, alleging they…
Smart Start preschool expansion ahead of schedule in first fiscal year
By COLE LONGCOR Capitol News Illinois clongcor@capitolnewsillinois.com An early childhood education program championed by Gov. JB Pritzker is ahead of schedule when it comes to increasing access to preschool in Illinois. The Smart Start program passed last May as part of the state’s operating budget, which allocated $250 million to expand early childhood education programs,…
Tracy Katz Muhl appointed to fill seat of resigned Rep. Jonathan Carroll
By ALEX ABBEDUTO Capitol News Illinois abbeduto@capitolnewsiillinois.com Tracy Katz Muhl, a Northbrook school board president and Northfield Township Democratic committeeperson, will fill former Democratic Rep. Jonathan Carroll’s 57th district seat. Carroll resigned earlier this month, saying in a written statement it was “in the best interest” of his family’s “physical and mental health.” Illinois law…
Smart Start preschool expansion ahead of schedule in first fiscal year
By COLE LONGCOR Capitol News Illinois clongcor@capitolnewsillinois.com An early childhood education program championed by Gov. JB Pritzker is ahead of schedule when it comes to increasing access to preschool in Illinois. The Smart Start program passed last May as part of the state’s operating budget, which allocated $250 million to expand early childhood education programs,…
State Supreme Court upholds downstate police, firefighter pension consolidation
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Supreme Court on Friday unanimously upheld a 2019 law that consolidated nearly 650 municipal police and firefighter pension funds, rejecting arguments from pension fund members that their voting power was diluted unconstitutionally. The law, which Gov. JB Pritzker signed soon after it passed with…