Local News
From staff reports A LaGrange man has been charged with the robbery last week of the T-Mobile store at 5640 S. Harlem Ave. in Summit. Michael Lang Anderson, 26, was arrested in LaGrange after he was found hiding under some stairs, police said. Police said he robbed the store on January 10. Community activist Raul…
Read MoreBy Carol McGowan Nearly 150 people showed up to give support to Summit’s Reverend Wheeler Parker Jr. last week on the day his much-awaited book was released. The book, officially released on January 10, is called “A Few Days Full of Trouble,” and is described as “revelations on the journey to justice for my cousin…
Read MoreThis winter will be a bit warmer across the south suburbs for those in need thanks to the combined efforts of students and staff at Sandburg, Stagg and Andrew High Schools. A grand total of 8,652 pairs of socks were donated in the month of October to the Educational Support Professionals’ Association Socktober Sock Drive. Because…
Read MoreBy Carol McGowan Summit officials and residents were on hand November 17 for the lighting of the village Christmas tree in front of the police station on Archer Road. In what’s become an annual event the last couple of years, the tree is lit before the last Neighborhood Watch meeting for the year. There is…
Read MoreCOUNTRYSIDE Man arrested for waving gun at bar A Chicago man was arrested October 27 for allegedly threatening people with a gun at Time Out Sports Bar, 6025 S. LaGrange Road. Jose J. Mendoza, 45, of Chicago, was charged with unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon. Aggravated assault, battery and disorderly conduct. Police…
Read MoreEva Manzke, a third- and fourth-grade teacher at Walker Elementary School in Bedford Park, is the recipient of the 2023 Illinois Agriculture in the Classroom Teacher of the Year Award from the Cook County Farm Bureau. Manzke, who has been a teacher for 30 years, utilizes agriculture across her curriculum with her students. From urban…
Read MoreBy Carol McGowan Secretary of the Interior, Deb Haaland, visited Summit last Friday to get a first-hand look at the site of the future Mamie Till Mobley and Emmett Till Memorial at Argo High School. Haaland then met with community leaders and had lunch with Emmett’s cousin, the Rev. Wheeler Parker, at the Emmett Till…
Read MoreWeekend-long lane closures, including a detour of the ramp carrying the southbound Central Tri-State Tollway (I-294) to westbound 95th Street, are scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. Friday, October 21, for work to shift traffic on southbound I-294 between 87th Street/Roberts Road and 95th Street. Once the new traffic pattern is in place, southbound I-294 traffic will be in a counterflow…
Read MoreBy Steve Millar Correspondent Argo sophomore Hubert Grele could not have imagined a better place to play one of his best games of the season. Taking on rival Reavis at SeatGeek Stadium, Grele produced a goal and two assists to lead the Argonauts to a 3-0 South Suburban Red win on Oct. 12. “Getting to…
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Cheerleading State Finals: Sandburg takes fourth behind conference rivals
By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer BLOOMINGTON — Sandburg’s competitive cheerleaders finished fourth in the SouthWest Suburban Conference meet on Friday and Saturday. Wait. That wasn’t an SWSC meet. It was the IHSA state meet, held Feb. 4 at Grossinger Arena in Bloomington. The Large Team division had the feel of an SWSC meet, as the…

Girls Bowling | Reavis wins second straight regional crown; Argo’s Sara Flynn take indie title
By Mike Walsh Correspondent Two years, two consecutive regional championships for Reavis’ girls bowling team. The Rams made it back-to-back titles in an impressive manner, topping the 13-team field at the Reavis Regional with a pinfall total of 4847, topping second-place Argo (4684) by 163 pins at Palos Lanes in Palos Hills Reavis advanced to…

Countryside plans summer concert series, bluegrass festival
By Steve Metsch It might be winter, but it’s never too soon to talk about summertime music. Such was the case Jan. 11 when the Countryside City Council’s Special Events Committee heard from promoter Katie Goggin regarding the city’s annual Summer Concert Series. The committee also heard about the second annual Bluegrass and Brews Festival from Sharon…

Porfirio resigns township post to take Senate seat
By Steve Metsch Mike Porfirio is now a state senator and the Township of Lyons Board of Trustees has a vacancy. Porfirio submitted his resignation as a trustee, which was accepted by the board at its Jan. 10 meeting. Porfirio was elected to the Illinois Senate in November, and was sworn in as a state…

Drone takes McCook crime fighting to new level
By Steve Metsch The McCook Police Department has a new weapon to fight crime. A new drone equipped with an infrared camera and the ability to zoom in 200 times was at the village’s latest board meeting on Jan. 17. The village used part of a $50,000 grant from the Secretary of State’s office to…

Tri-State lane closures start Monday as area ramps prepare to reopen
Overnight lane closures are scheduled next week to shift traffic on Interstate 55 and on the northbound Tri-State Tollway (Interstate 294) between Willow Springs Road and Plainfield Road and reopen the ramp connecting northbound I-294 to southbound I-55 and Wolf Road. On Monday, February 6, beginning at 9 p.m. and continuing until 5 a.m. on…
Illinois News

Illinois’ biometric privacy law strengthened by latest high court ruling
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – People who’ve been subject to fingerprinting, face or retinal scans as either employees or customers of Illinois companies have five years to file lawsuits if they believe the business violated a stringent state privacy law, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled this week. It’s the latest in…

Pritzker seeks more info on AP African American Studies course
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker this week asked the College Board for more information about its reasoning for changing the final framework of a new Advanced Placement course in African American studies after it had been criticized by Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis. “Although we are pleased to…

Report pushes for greater focus on teacher recruitment and retention amid shortages
By NIKA SCHOONOVER Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Illinois schools are still grappling with a teacher shortage that seems to only be getting worse, a recent survey by the Illinois Association of Regional Superintendents of Schools shows. This mirrors the state’s own data, which shows Illinois’ teacher shortage is at the highest level in…

Illinois’ COVID-19 disaster proclamation to end in May
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol news Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Exactly 38 months after the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic, Illinois will no longer be under a disaster proclamation as of May 11, Gov. JB Pritzker announced Tuesday. That’s the same day President Joe Biden will end the national public health emergency, which…

CAPITOL RECAP: Gun lawsuit restraining order remains in place
By CAPITOL NEWS ILLINOIS SPRINGFIELD — A temporary restraining order that partially blocks Illinois’ new assault weapons ban from being enforced will remain in place after a divided state appellate court panel’s ruling Tuesday. The restraining order was issued Jan. 20 by Effingham County Circuit Judge Joshua Morrison, but it applies only to the 800…

Appellate court upholds restraining order on assault weapons ban
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – A temporary restraining order that partially blocks Illinois’ new assault weapons ban from being enforced will remain in place after a divided state appellate court panel’s ruling Tuesday. The restraining order was issued Jan. 20 by Effingham County Circuit Judge Joshua Morrison, but it applies only…

Tony Sanders to become state superintendent of education
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois State Board of Education announced Tuesday that Elgin-based School District U-46 Superintendent Tony Sanders will become the next state superintendent of education. Sanders, 53, will succeed Carmen Ayala, who announced in November that she would retire effective Jan. 31. ISBE said Sanders will take…

Amid ‘unprecedented’ prolonged revenue boom, state finds budget breathing room
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Sustained higher-than-predicted state tax revenues have in recent months given lawmakers a level of budgeting flexibility that is, at least in modern times, without precedent in a state with a reputation for perilous finances. For the current fiscal year and the one before it, that’s led…

‘Omnibus’ health care bill passed amid criticisms
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – A law recently signed by Gov. JB Pritzker will extend the deadline for the state to transfer criminal defendants deemed mentally incompetent to stand trial from jail to a mental hospital. That same bill, House Bill 240, also gives nursing homes in Illinois two more years…

Veteran Statehouse reporter Hannah Meisel joins Capitol News Illinois reporting team
By CAPITOL NEWS ILLINOIS [email protected] Longtime Statehouse reporter Hannah Meisel has joined the Capitol News Illinois team as a full-time state government and politics reporter. She’s had a number of assignments covering the Statehouse and Illinois government since the 2014 legislative session, most recently serving as Statehouse editor for NPR Illinois from 2020 until after…