The Rundown | Chicago News

President Donald Trump has pardoned former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich. Advocates in Chicago worry about the potential rise of vigilante activity because of anti-immigrant rhetoric coming from the White House. A tenants union on Chicago’s Northwest Side is protesting rising rents and looming displacement.

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul is suing the Trump administration along with attorneys general from 21 other states over Trump’s plans to cut funding for medical and public health research at universities. The family of a woman killed in yet another Chicago police chase gone wrong is slated to receive $27 million dollars. Karina’s Bill has now been signed by Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker into Ka...

In the Illinois legislature’s spring session, The Clean Slate Coalition is hoping to cut through bureaucratic red tape that comes with relieving a criminal record. Legislation filed last week could boost partnerships between faith-based organizations in Illinois. Illinois broke another record for annual cannabis sales last year.

More than 160 employees who work on environmental justice or held positions related to DEI at the EPA have been placed on paid administrative leave. Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul has announced plans for another lawsuit against the Trump administration. Plus, county officials in Springfield have reached a 10 million dollar settlement with Sonya Massey’s family. 

The Justice Department sues officials including Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker over immigrant sanctuary policies. A Chicago school board member wants the next leader of the Chicago Public Schools to be a full fledged superintendent, not a CEO. Chicago Public Schools says an independent arbitrator sided with them in Chicago teachers union contract negotiations.

The Department of Justice is suing the City of Chicago, the state of Illinois and Cook County over their so-called sanctuary laws that limit cooperation with immigration authorities. Illinois House Democrats are doing what they can to oppose President Donald Trump – but their power is extremely limited. Virginia McCaskey, owner of the Chicago Bears franchise, died today at 102 years old.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is expected to defend Chicago’s sanctuary city status on a national stage next month — in testimony before the House Oversight Committee. The Chicago Teachers Union says an independent arbitrator has sided with them on some key issues. An Illinois Congressman warns that Ukrainians will die if the Trump administration cuts off humanitarian aid to that country.

Mayor Brandon Johnson says he will travel to D.C. next month to testify before Congress. Chicago attorneys say they are exploring what appears to be violations of the Fourth Amendment during recent immigration raids. Plus, a winter weather advisory.

Illinois is moving to bar anyone who took part in the January 6th insurrection from state employment. Will Chicago follow suit? Chicago’s cultural commissioner was at City Hall defending Chicago artists yesterday. The city of Chicago releases bodycam footage showing police officers fatally shoot a knife-wielding man in a senior apartment building.

Hundreds of ducks and other birds are washing up dead along the Chicago area’s lakefront. An organization that represents Illinois’s largest private employment sector is worried about price hikes. Plus, Shakira is coming to Suenos Music Festival this May in Grant Park.

Chicago teachers say some of their students stayed home yesterday as part of a national protest called a day without immigrants. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s policy agenda for the first quarter of this year is absent of any bold ideas for progressive revenue, despite promises to push for new funding streams. Illinois lawmakers will try again to pass legislation merging the Chicago area’s transi...

Mayor Brandon Johnson works toward a revised Anjanette Young ordinance, Illinois lawmakers introduce a measure to punish students who sexually assault other students at school, and Cook County says more information is needed to make south suburban property taxes more fair.

Educators in Chicago are calling on universities to protect international student protesters. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker is directing the state not to hire anyone convicted of crimes connected to the U.S. Capitol attack on January 6, 2021. Be prepared for a wild weather weekend.

The head of Chicago Public Schools says teachers union contract deal is closer than ever… the union challenges him to make it happen. The Chicago City Council is exploring how the city could regulate and tax the sale of hemp products. An Illinois Congressman says they’re worried the latest federal funding freeze debacle won’t be the last.

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker says he doesn’t support some changes to state pensions that unions are asking for. The head of Illinois’ largest university system says he is no longer using the term DEI because he “doesn’t know what it means anymore.” The Chicago Housing Authority is offering scholarships for students who live in public housing.

Venezuelan migrants will soon be considered undocumented-immigrants by the Trump administration. The move could boost deportation numbers. Chicago public schools are trying to figure out how one of Trump’s executive orders will impact the district. Local activists say President Trump is endangering the health and safety of the trans community.

President Trump’s administration says an effort to block immigration raids in Chicago is “unprecedented and fundamentally flawed.” The fate of ex-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan is now in the hands of jurors. Plus, reading scores for Illinois fourth graders continue to decline.

Top Illinois Democrats say President Donald Trump is lying as they continue grappling with his proposed freeze on federal aid. World Relief Chicagoland has seen a stop in its funding from the federal government for its refugee resettlement work, due to an executive order issued last week. Former Chicago Bears Head Coach Matt Eberflus is heading back to Texas.

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul is joining a group of attorneys general to sue the Trump administration. As reports of immigration enforcement raids in Chicago continue, some local employers are seeing the effects. Plus, the Chicago Blackhawks are headed toward a third-straight bottom-three finish in the standings.

Reports of immigration enforcement raids in Chicago over the weekend are raising fears for local employers, employees and customers. Former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan’s defense team tears into government mole Danny Solis in closing arguments. Some immigrant parents in Chicago say they are not taking their kids to school because they fear getting arrested.

Faith leaders gathered at a church in north suburban Evanston today to support the church’s sanctuary status. A top lawyer for former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan is trying to poke holes in the government’s racketeering conspiracy case as the trial nears its end. Lookingglass Theatre in Chicago is reopening this week with a new show and a new look.

Will a federal judge weigh in on the threatened immigration raids? Lawyers for former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan are making their closing arguments in his federal corruption trial. Illinois public health leaders launch a data dashboard to track gun-related injuries and deaths.

CPS officials say federal immigration agents came to a school in the Back of the Yards neighborhood on Chicago’s South Side. Mayor Brandon Johnson says Chicago is not considering strengthening its sanctuary city ordinance amid threats of mass deportation from President Donald Trump. Local researchers say President Trump’s partial shutdown of the National Institutes of Health could cost lives.

The State Board of Education says school districts should set policies for how they want to interact with federal immigration officials. Local researchers warn Trump’s new restrictions on the NIH could slow scientific progress. The City of Chicago is partnering with The Shine Hope Company to help city residents fight hopelessness.

President Trump will allow immigration officers to make arrests at schools, hospitals and even churches, causing fear among the undocumented communities. Amid abortion clinic closures, the Chicago Abortion Fund says their work will not slow down. Federal investigators are poking around at an embattled charter school network on Chicago’s South Side.