Northwest Herald - Shaw Local

The Cook County Clerk’s office and multiple police departments are warning residents of a scam circulating that falsely claims a court order requiring payment for traffic violations.

Abalabix Books of Crystal Lake and Reeses Barkery and Pawtique in McHenry received $10,000 Backing Small Business Enhancement Grants - the latter before a fire that gutted its shop.

A driver suffered minor injuries after crashing his car into a marsh Thursday afternoon near Woodstock, officials report.

CASA of McHenry County, whose volunteers work as court-appointed special advocates for children in the foster care and court systems, has marked 20 years of work on behalf of kids in need.

As McHenry County continues to digest the results – many still unofficial – of this year’s primary election, here are some oddities that flew under the radar this week.

The 2026 boys lacrosse season is underway. Here are this year's season preview capsules for McHenry County area teams.

The 2026 boys lacrosse season is officially underway. Here are five players to watch in the McHenry County area.

The Johnsburg and Huntley baseball teams both opened their seasons with a wins, and McHenry's softball team did the same. Plus, more in Friday's Northwest Herald roundup.

Oskar Freund and Mason Klimek delivered clutch hits in the seventh inning, Dylan Dumele struck out three batters to earn the save and Cary-Grove rallied to beat Fremd 3-2 in its season-opening baseball game Friday evening.

Crystal Lake Central junior Oli Victorine struck out 16 batters in a shutout, and sophomore Harper Wright collected a pair of two-out RBI hits to lift the Tigers to a 2-0 season-opening win over Wauconda on Friday.

Huntley girls basketball coach Steve Raethz is stepping down after 27 seasons and 505 career wins with the Red Raiders.

A man pleaded guilty Thursday to attempted aggravated arson in connection with a fire he started in a Crystal Lake motel room.

Weeks after McHenry County was sued for turning down a pair of solar farms in December, two more solar developers who were denied that night also have filed lawsuits against the county.

Woodstock wants to make sure its 5% hotel-motel tax applies to short-term vacation rentals in town operated through sites like Airbnb.

A Marengo woman has pleaded guilty to driving drunk a fifth time and was sentenced to prison, but still has another DUI case pending.

The 2026 girls lacrosse season is underway. Here are this year's season preview capsules for area teams.

The 2026 girls lacrosse season is officially underway. Here are five players to watch in the McHenry County area.

Richmond-Burton girls soccer and Crystal Lake Central co-op girls lacrosse earned season-opening wins Thursday. And more in the Northwest Herald roundup.

A Lake in the Hills woman accused of posting threats against McHenry County State’s Attorney Randi Freese on Facebook was denied pretrial release Thursday from the county jail.

A Wonder Lake woman said he didn't think the sentence was fair that was handed down to the man who sold a fatal dose of MDMA to her son, a Woodstock North student who died at 17.

Woodstock junior basketball player Max Beard announced this week that he will be transferring to Darrow School in New York. The 6-foot-4 guard averaged 16 points and 6 rebounds a game this season in leading the Blue Streaks to the Kishwaukee River Conference championship.

At least three new members are poised to join the McHenry County Board later this year after two incumbents are trailing in their reelection bids in the Republican primary election.

The boys tennis season is already underway. Here are five players to watch in the McHenry County area in 2026.

The high school boys tennis season is already underway. Check out our team-by-team preview with top returners, newcomers and info on each local team in the McHenry County area for the 2026 season.

Drake Lenckus tallied five goals and two assists as Crystal Lake South's boys lacrosse team improved to 2-0 with a win over Batavia on Wednesday.