Oct 17 Supreme Court considers appeal of Chicago suburb’s assault weapons ban By Mark Sherman, Associated Press The Supreme Court has so far resisted elaborating on two landmark decisions that established a nationwide right to defend one's home with a gun. That could change with a new appeal filed by gun owners that challenges a Chicago suburb's… Continue reading
Oct 15 The rise and fall of ex-U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert By Associated Press CHICAGO — A federal grand jury has accused former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert of agreeing to pay $3.5 million in hush money to keep an unidentified person silent about "prior misconduct" by the Illinois Republican. Continue reading
Aug 26 Blame the improving economy for worst traffic ever in U.S. By Joan Lowy, Associated Press WASHINGTON — More jobs and cheaper gasoline come with a big, honking downside: U.S. roads are more clogged than ever now that the recession is in the rearview mirror. Continue reading
Jul 20 Watch 10:34 Gangs and guns fuel Chicago’s summer surge of violence By PBS News Hour In Chicago, the number of shooting deaths has climbed in 2015 after falling the last two years. Vonzell Banks was one of the victims -- a 17-year-old church choir drummer, who got caught in the crossfire during a family outing… Continue watching
Jul 20 A Chicago ‘nightcrawler’ knows the city’s violence all too well By Chris Bury PBS NewsHour special correspondent Chris Bury reports on the uptick of deadly violence in Chicago. In the report, he introduces us to Paul “Pauley” Lapointe, a news photographer who has witnessed much of this violence, and who serves as a… Continue reading
Jul 20 Why a Chicago church allowed us in to film a teenager’s funeral, and why that’s important By Dan Morris When we asked the Reverend Derail Smith if we could film the funeral of 17-year-old Vonzell Banks, he hesitated. But ultimately the circumstances outweighed such concerns. "People need to see what’s going on here," he said. Continue reading
Jul 04 Most trading pits to close at Chicago Board of Trade as historic craft inches closer to extinction By Carey Reed The once lively grains trading pits at the Chicago Board of Trade building will go silent after Monday, as the oldest futures exchange in the United States moves one step closer to strictly electronic trading. Continue reading
May 29 Questions surround former Speaker Hastert’s indictment By Michael Tarm, Associated Press CHICAGO — A newly unveiled indictment against former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert accuses the Illinois Republican of agreeing to pay $3.5 million in hush money to keep a person from the town where he was a longtime high school… Continue reading
May 28 Indictment accuses former Speaker Hastert of paying $3.5 million in hush money By Michael Tarm, Associated Press CHICAGO — Federal prosecutors announced bank-related charges against former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert on Thursday, accusing the 73-year-old Illinois Republican of withdrawing $952,000 in cash in a way that evaded the requirement that banks report cash transactions over $10,000. Continue reading
May 01 Obama chooses Chicago to host his presidential library By Josh Lederman, Associated Press WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama has chosen his hometown of Chicago to host his future presidential library, two individuals with knowledge of the decision said, placing the permanent monument to his legacy in the city that launched his improbable ascent… Continue reading