chicagotribune--2020-12-27--Red Cross, fellow residents step up to help 56 displaced by Christmas Day fire in Palos Hills apartm

Red Cross, fellow residents step up to help 56 displaced by Christmas Day fire in Palos Hills apartment building

“ We had seen the lights from down the street and thought someone was getting towed , ” Rocha said @ @ @ @ @ up closer , we noticed all the fire trucks and ambulances and cop cars .
@ @ @ @ @ see what was the issue .
When we saw all our neighbors and their pets @ @ @ @ @ immediately panicked seeing all the smoke in the building .
”

An early Christmas morning fire at an apartment building at 9954 S. 84th Terrace in Palos Hills left the units of 56 residents uninhabitable. (American Red Cross)
Fifty-six Palos Hills residents were displaced following an early morning fire Christmas Day, but the American Red Cross and community members are trying to help them through a trying time.
The fire was reported at 2:50 a.m. at 9954 S. 84th Terrace, in the 40-unit building, said North Palos Fire Protection District Chief Paul F. Mackin. The fire was struck at about 4:30 a.m., and there were no injuries, Mackin said.
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The chief said the fire apparently started in a lower-level utility room, but the cause remained under investigation Saturday.
Laura Rocha, of Palos Hills, said she and her boyfriend lost all of their possessions on Christmas Day in a fire that displaced 56 residents of the Green Tree Condominiums in Palos Hills. (Laura Rocha)
The Palos Hills building commissioner deemed the building uninhabitable. The American Red Cross, in a Facebook post, said volunteers are assisting residents by providing safe places to stay, offering health services and delivering meals. Officials ask those in need of assistance to call the Red Cross dispatch line at 877-597-0747.
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Several Palos Hills residents are also stepping up to help fill the gap when emergency assistance runs out.
Michelle McDougall, of Palos Hills, posted to The Palos Hills Community group on Facebook that she was starting a Google Doc to help catalog the residents, their specific needs and how people can get in touch if they are interested in helping. By Saturday afternoon, she had four families on the list.
“Right now, I’m just trying to find the families so we can help them,” she told the Daily Southtown.
McDougall said she does not have any specific ties to anyone in the building, but as a resident in town she wanted to help. She said she knows many will continue to have needs and is trying to figure out how to facilitate help.
“We don’t know what their long-term needs are,” McDougall said, who invited people to contact her at mickeymo97@gmail.com.
Laura Rocha, of Palos Hills, shares a photo of her apartment after the fire. (Laura Rocha)
Julianne Zurzolo, of Palos Hills, also stepped up despite not know anyone who lives in the building. She said she thinks finding assistance may be harder for these families during the COVID-19 pandemic. She launched a Meal Train campaign to help.
“If everyone helps a little, our small, wonderful town can help our fellow residents who need it,” Zurzolo said. “If you are unable to help at this time, please say extra prayers for all the tenants and keep them in your thoughts.”
Laura Rocha, one of the residents, said she, her partner, their dog, two tortoises and two turtles moved to the Green Tree Condominiums at the beginning of 2020. She and her boyfriend were out celebrating Christmas Eve at her mother’s house when the fire started, and were returning home about 3 a.m.
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“We had seen the lights from down the street and thought someone was getting towed,” Rocha said. “As we drove up closer, we noticed all the fire trucks and ambulances and cop cars. We right away ran to see what was the issue. When we saw all our neighbors and their pets outside with them, I immediately panicked seeing all the smoke in the building.”
Rocha said they literally dropped their Christmas gifts and ran into the building, despite fire crews trying to stop them, to get their dog.
“We couldn’t see anything — smoke everywhere,” Rocha said. “We went into our unit and tried finding him and couldn’t see him. … It was almost impossible to see. I just remember the fear of knowing I could lose my best friend.”
Rocha’s boyfriend ultimately located the dog and their tortoises. Though she said the dog is “on edge” following the incident, all of the pets are otherwise in good condition.
But the experience of losing everything they owned has proved traumatic. Rocha said they passed on renters’ insurance, so the fire was a total loss.
“Everything in the first room was destroyed, which was all my belongings and important files and things I’ve kept for years,” she said. “It broke my heart seeing all my hard work and money just gone in a blink of an eye.”
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Rocha said the Red Cross has been amazing and provided them a place to stay and food until Monday. After that, she said they will stay with family. They also created a GoFundMe campaign to help them find a new home and get back some of the things they lost.
“I don’t expect anything, but I appreciate all the help we have been receiving from people, and I am truly blessed and touched at everyone’s kind words and donations,” Rocha said.
Rocha’s story is just one of many. She said she hopes if people take anything away from it, that they recognize what is most important in their lives.
“Please, please appreciate the little things, because in a blink of an eye you can be left with nothing,” Rocha said. “Thankfully my babies and my partner are OK, and in God’s hands we will restore ourselves and one day pay it forward to someone else in need as we are in today.”
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Shari Schmidt, of Palos Hills, is also working to help the residents. She said she has daughters at Stagg High School who know students who live in that building. She said learning about the fire was an overwhelming on Christmas.
“You put yourself in that situation,” Schmidt said. “They’re left with nothing.”
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She and a group of residents decided to start collecting gift cards from restaurants and Walgreens, Target and Walmart. She is collecting them in a box on her front porch at 9931 S. 86th Court. E-gift cards can be donated by contacting McDougall.
Schmidt said the idea is that food and toiletries will be the biggest needs up front. And the hotels where some residents are staying are near Target and Walmart locations.
Like others, Schmidt posted that call to action in The Palos Hills Community group on Facebook, where updates are being posted regularly. She said people have already been incredibly generous.
“The community group has been really amazing,” she said. “It’s really amazing to watch a group of strangers come together to help a group of strangers.”
Bill Jones is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.


chicagotribune--2020-12-27--Person fatally shot near Midway Airport

Person fatally shot near Midway Airport

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chicagotribune--2020-12-27--Men killed in two of four Elgin house fires on Christmas Eve/Day; man shot on Christmas Day

He was the building ’ s only resident and no one else was injured , reports said .
The town @ @ @ @ @ , but the fire was contained to that one building .
Other nearby units had @ @ @ @ @ was displaced , the release said .

Two men died as a result of fatal town house fires on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, two of four blazes that took place in Elgin over those two days, according to Elgin Fire Department reports.
There was also a shooting on Christmas Day, the second in a week, the Elgin Police Department reported.
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The first fatal fire occurred about 6:30 a.m. Thursday in the 40 block of Creekside Circle, a news release said. Firefighters arrived to find heavy fire coming from the second floor of the home but were able to find the victim quickly during a search, the release said.
The man, whose identity has not been released, was in critical condition when he was taken to Advocate Sherman Hospital in Elgin, where he later died, the release said.
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Four units ended up being damaged by the blaze, with the loss estimated at $300,000. The families living in other town houses were not able to return to their homes, the release said.
City investigators are working with the State Fire Marshal’s Office to determine a cause.
The second fatal fire occurred about 2 p.m. at 1269 Bradley Circle, reports said. Firefighters were called to the town home with information that a resident might be inside, a fire department news release said.
Fire and smoke engulfed the home, but was extinguished enough to allow firefighters to enter the structure, the release said.
“The resident was found quickly but unfortunately he did not survive,” the release said. “The town home where the fire originated is a total loss.”
The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the victim as Clarence Wilson Jr. and set his time of death as 2:15 p.m. Friday.
He was the building’s only resident and no one else was injured, reports said. The town house was a total loss, but the fire was contained to that one building. Other nearby units had smoke damage but no one was displaced, the release said.
City and state investigators are seeking a cause for the fire.
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Ann Street fire
Eleven people were able to escape unharmed when a fire was discovered about 3 a.m. Thursday in a multifamily home in the 300 block of Ann Street, reports said.
Firefighters arrived to find heavy smoke in the residence and its attic on fire, a news release said.
Damage was estimated to be $80,000 and all occupants offered temporary housing through the Red Cross.
The fire’s cause is under investigation.
Crystal Avenue fire
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A two-story apartment building was badly damaged in a fire that was reported about 11:30 p.m. Friday in the 300 block of North Crystal Avenue, reports said.
Smoke and fire was emanating from one of the two units units when firefighters arrived, and one resident home at the time was able to escape without injury, a news release said.
Both units were damaged but two other nearby apartments only had smoke damage.
The fire’s cause is under investigation.
Logan Avenue shooting
A man was seriously injured in a shooting that occurred about 5 a.m. Friday in the 700 block of Logan Avenue, according to an Elgin Police Department Facebook post.
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No other details were released other than the victim was taken to an area hospital for treatment.
The police department’s Major Investigations Division is handling the case. Anyone with information is asked to call 847-289-2600 or text 847411, including “ElginPD” at the start of the message.
It was the second injury shooting to occur in four days.
The first occurred Tuesday. Keshon D. Pledger, 28, of the 200 block of West Illinois Court, is being held in the Kane County jail after being charged with attempted first-degree murder in connection with the shooting of his girlfriend during an argument at her home, the Kane County State’s Attorney’s Office said.
The location of the incident, the victim’s condition or information on what provoked the fight have not been released by prosecutors or the police department.
In addition to attempted first-degree murder, which is a class X felony, Pledger was also charged several other felonies, including aggravated domestic battery, possession of a stolen firearm, unlawful use of a weapon by a felon and possession of a firearm without an FOID card.


chicagotribune--2020-12-27--Watch live: Rockford police give update on bowling alley shooting

Rockford police are giving an update on Saturday night ’ s shooting at a bowling alley that killed three people @


chicagotribune--2020-12-26--Police search for man who robbed Oswego bank

According to Oswego police , at approximately 5 p.m. Wednesday a man walked up to the counter at the U.S. @ @ @ @ @ at 2700 Route 34 , implied he had a weapon and robbed the bank of @ @ @ @ @ .

Police are searching for a man who robbed a bank in Oswego on Wednesday.
According to Oswego police, at approximately 5 p.m. Wednesday a man walked up to the counter at the U.S. Bank inside the Meijer store at 2700 Route 34, implied he had a weapon and robbed the bank of an undisclosed amount of cash.
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The man left the store and was last seen heading out the south store exit, police said.
According to police, the man was wearing a fedora hat, black mask, a black or navy blue buttoned-up shirt and a black jacket.
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Oswego police are still investigating the incident. Anyone with information about the robbery is asked to call Oswego police at 630-551-7300.
Anonymous tips can be provided to Kendall County Crime Stoppers at 630-553-5999. Tips to Crime Stoppers leading to an arrest can result in a cash reward.


chicagotribune--2020-12-26--Police investigating after body found on East Chatham street

About 8:40 p.m. , an unresponsive person was found lying on the south side of the 900 block of East @ @ @ @ @ said .
The individual , who has not yet been identified , was pronounced dead @ @ @ @

A person was found dead on a street Christmas evening in the East Chatham neighborhood on the South Side, authorities said.
About 8:40 p.m., an unresponsive person was found lying on the south side of the 900 block of East 82nd Street, Chicago police said. The individual, who has not yet been identified, was pronounced dead at the scene.
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Police are investigating the cause of the death.
ayin@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-12-28--Coronavirus in Illinois updates: Here’s what’s happening Monday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area

A bruising year in the food industry is giving way to optimism that the lessons learned will make for a @ @ @ @ @ other food producers that pivoted their business models to find new revenue streams are making @ @ @ @ @ .
Grocery stores are adapting to consumers ’ embrace of online food shopping .
And @ @ @ @ @ of their industry are expected to come roaring back into the waiting arms of a @ @ @ @ @ .

We have lifted the paywall on this story. To support essential reporting, please consider becoming a subscriber .
Laquitta Boyd, holds her 6-year-old daughter Venisha while receiving her first COVID-19 vaccination at a back-to-school health fair hosted by RUSH University Medical Center at the Salvation Army Freedom Center on July 30, 2022, in Chicago. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
Chicago officials on Monday began distributing vaccines to long-term medical care facilities and outpatient clinics, marking another milestone in the city’s fight against COVID-19, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said.
Meanwhile, Illinois health officials on Monday announced 4,453 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 and 105 additional fatalities, bringing the total number of known infections in Illinois to 942,362 and the statewide death toll to 16,074 since the start of the pandemic.
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On the COVID-19 relief front, President Donald Trump has now signed a $2 trillion-plus COVID-19 and annual federal spending package providing relief for millions of Americans, even as Congress returns to confront the White House on remaining priorities in a rare end-of-session showdown.
On Monday, the Democratic-led House voted to boost the $600 payments to $2,000, sending a new bill to the Senate. There, Republicans have the majority but reject more spending and are likely to defeat the effort.
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Here’s a look at what’s in the COVID-19 stimulus package that Trump signed.
Here’s what’s happening Monday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area and Illinois:
5:07 p.m.: House approves Trump’s $2,000 relief checks, sending to GOP-led Senate
The House voted Monday to increase COVID-19 relief checks to $2,000, meeting President Donald Trump’s demand for bigger payments and sending the bill to the GOP-controlled Senate, where the outcome is uncertain.
Democrats led passage, 275-134, their majority favoring additional assistance. They had settled for smaller $600 payments in a compromise with Republicans over the big year-end relief bill Trump reluctantly signed into law.
The vote divides Republicans who mostly resist more spending. But many House Republicans joined in support, despite being wary of bucking the president. Senators are set to return to session Tuesday to consider the measure. Read more here. — Associated Press
2:42 p.m.: Chicago distributes COVID-19 vaccines to long-term medical care facilities, outpatient clinics
Chicago officials on Monday began distributing vaccines to long-term medical care facilities and outpatient clinics, marking another milestone in the city’s fight against COVID-19, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said.
Lightfoot and public health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady announced the latest stage in vaccine distribution during a news conference at Esperanza Health Center on the Southwest Side. While highlighting the event’s significance, Lightfoot and Arwady also warned residents against becoming complacent or letting down their guard against the virus as widespread distribution of the vaccine remains months away.
And, they said, part of the city’s Latino community continues to struggle with higher case rates.
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”We cannot afford to let more Chicagoans, our neighbors, get sick and die because of risky and irresponsible behavior,” Lightfoot said.
Read more here. —Gregory Pratt
2:35 p.m.: Novavax starting final stage of testing for its COVID-19 vaccine
The Maryland biotech Novavax is starting a final, so-called Phase 3 clinical trial in the United States and Mexico for its experimental coronavirus vaccine, the company announced Monday.
The little-known firm, which has never brought a vaccine to market before, received up to $1.6 billion from the federal government’s Operation Warp Speed this summer to expedite development. The company reported robust results in earlier phases of its trial, showing that the vaccine prompted strong immune responses in monkeys and people.
Read more here. —The New York Times
12:05 p.m.: 4,453 new confirmed and probable COVID-19 cases and 105 additional deaths reported
Illinois health officials on Monday announced 4,453 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 and 105 additional fatalities, bringing the total number of known infections in Illinois to 942,362 and the statewide death toll to 16,074 since the start of the pandemic.
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Officials also reported 51,046 new tests in the last 24 hours. The seven-day statewide rolling positivity rate for cases as a share of total tests was 7.2% for the period ending Sunday.
—Chicago Tribune staff
11:26 a.m.: House Democrats to vote on $2,000 relief checks that Trump demanded
Shelving his objections, President Donald Trump has signed a $2 trillion-plus COVID-19 and annual federal spending package providing relief for millions of Americans, even as Congress returns to confront the White House on remaining priorities in a rare end-of-session showdown.
Trump appears to have accomplished little, if anything, from the days of drama over his refusal to accept the sweeping bipartisan deal. While the president’s demands for larger $2,000 pandemic relief checks seem destined to fail, his push served up a political opportunity for Democrats, who support the larger stipends and are forcing Trump’s Republican allies into a tough spot.
On Monday, the Democratic-led House is set to vote to boost the $600 payments to $2,000, sending a new bill to the Senate. There, Republicans have the majority but reject more spending and are likely to defeat the effort.
Read more here. —Associated Press
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10:25 a.m.: As COVID-19 surges in US, gun violence, killings also see a spike in large and small cities
In Detroit, Chicago, New York, Philadelphia and even smaller Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Milwaukee, 2020 has been deadly not only because of the pandemic, but because gun violence is spiking.
Authorities and some experts say there is no one clear-cut reason for the spike. They instead point to social and economic upheaval caused by the COVID-19 virus, public sentiment toward police following George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis police custody and a historic shortage of jobs and resources in poorer communities as contributing factors. It’s happening in cities large and small, Democrat and Republican-led.
”I think the pandemic — COVID — has had a significant emotional impact on people across the country,” Detroit Police Chief James Craig said. “Individuals are not processing how they manage disputes. Whether domestics, arguments, disputes over drugs, there’s this quickness to use an illegally carried firearm.”
About 7,000 guns had been seized through mid-December in Detroit, with more than 5,500 arrests for illegal guns. There were 2,797 similar arrests last year.
”I’ve not seen a spike like this. But when it’s happening in other cities — some smaller — what do we all have in common?” Craig said of the slayings and shootings. “That’s when you start thinking about COVID.”
Read more here. —Associated Press
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6 a.m.: A nightmare year for Chicago restaurants and food suppliers may have permanently altered how and what we eat
A bruising year in the food industry is giving way to optimism that the lessons learned will make for a stronger 2021. Farmers and other food producers that pivoted their business models to find new revenue streams are making some of those changes permanent. Grocery stores are adapting to consumers’ embrace of online food shopping. And restaurants that survive the wreckage of their industry are expected to come roaring back into the waiting arms of a public desperate to go out.
Purely Meat Co., a commercial butcher in Chicago’s West Humboldt Park neighborhood that supplies mostly high-end restaurants, saw sales plummet 75% when the state banned indoor dining in March. It halted plans to expand into a 35,000-square-foot facility purchased late last year and more than double its current footprint, and let go of many of its 60 employees.
The company created a website to sell Purely Meat’s products directly to consumers, and soon it became a major part of the business. The company’s drivers deliver cases of vacuum-sealed, freezer-ready prime cuts to people’s suburban doorsteps rather than the city’s swank downtown restaurants. Going into 2021 it plans to help restaurants sell branded products to consumers as well.
Purely Meat plans to maintain its new consumer business even as it prepares for a midsummer restaurant rebound, owner Joseph Musillami said. The company also introduced seasoned meats, improved worker training and figured out how to run the business more efficiently. It has recaptured 70% of its usual sales and has 40 employees working.
Read more here. —Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz
Breaking coronavirus news Stay up to date with the latest information on coronavirus with our breaking news alerts.
In case you missed it
Here are some recent stories related to COVID-19:


chicagotribune--2020-12-28--Daywatch: Pandemic’s lasting changes for food industry, pot expungements lagging in Illinois and Bea

Daywatch: Pandemic’s lasting changes for food industry, pot expungements lagging in Illinois and Bears a win away from playoffs

This year proved to be a fruitful one for the Obama Presidential Center ’ s timeline .
In December , @ @ @ @ @ project concluded , and a lawsuit against it was quashed this summer .
Supporters of @ @ @ @ @ say more than ever , the end — or rather , the beginning — is @ @ @ @ @ years of obstacles .
But opponents of the project planned for Jackson Park aren ’ @ @ @ @ @ their fight .

Good morning, Chicago. Illinois reported 3,767 new and probable cases of COVID-19 and 104 additional fatalities Sunday
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump signed a $900 billion COVID-19 package Sunday night after days of drama, ending a standoff with his own Republican party. His delay resulted in a lapse in unemployment benefits for millions of Americans.
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Here’s more coronavirus news and other top stories you need to know to start your day.
For your smart speaker | Join our COVID-19 Facebook group | More newsletters | Puzzles & Games
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People march in front of Chicago Police headquaters in support of Anjanette Young in Chicago on Dec. 27, 2020. (Youngrae Kim / Chicago Tribune)
Social worker Anjanette Young has agreed to meet privately with Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot following public uproar over a mistaken police raid on her home but has requested that they also have a public forum with the police superintendent and aldermen, her lawyer said Sunday.
Black politicians, activists protest Anjanette Young raid, demand policy to prevent future raids
Founder and owner Maribel Moreno Musillami watches Chef Matt Ronan tie up a Wagyu prime rib cut at Purely Meat Co. on Dec. 23, 2020, in Chicago. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)
A bruising year in the food industry is giving way to optimism that the lessons learned will make for a stronger 2021. Farmers and other food producers that pivoted their business models to find new revenue streams are making some of those changes permanent. Grocery stores are adapting to consumers’ embrace of online food shopping. And restaurants that survive the wreckage of their industry are expected to come roaring back into the waiting arms of a public desperate to go out.
Almost one year after legalization took effect, few of the state's cannabis cases have been cleared. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
Marijuana legalization in Illinois came with grand plans for wiping clean many criminal records involving cannabis. That aspect of the law was so important that on the eve of legalization on Jan. 1, 2020, Gov. J.B. Pritzker pardoned more than 11,000 people of low-level marijuana convictions.
Yet more than 700,000 cases could qualify for expungement, a process in which police and court records of arrests and convictions are cleared. Now, almost one year after legalization took effect, few of those cannabis cases have been cleared. But officials say more expungements are on the way.
The Rev. Byron Brazier, pastor of Apostolic Church of God, walk around the Woodlawn neighborhood in 2017. (Nancy Stone / Chicago Tribune)
This year proved to be a fruitful one for the Obama Presidential Center’s timeline. In December, two federal reviews of the project concluded, and a lawsuit against it was quashed this summer. Supporters of the presidential center now cautiously say more than ever, the end — or rather, the beginning — is finally in sight after four years of obstacles. But opponents of the project planned for Jackson Park aren’t ready to give up their fight.
Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky throws a pass for a touchdown during the first half against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Dec. 27, 2020, in Jacksonville, Fla. (Phelan M. Ebenhack/AP)
The Bears are staring at a golden opportunity — a win-and-in game against the rival Green Bay Packers in their regular-season finale — after routing the Jacksonville Jaguars 41-17 on Sunday. The Bears scored 21 points in the third quarter and one more touchdown seven plays into the fourth to turn a tight game into a laugher.


chicagotribune--2020-12-28--Column: The year of the virus, the year of the mask. Be gone, 2020, that’s all that we ask.

We saw life more clearly

Paca Kujtim of Arlington Heights self-administers a COVID-19 test in his car at the Arlington International Racecourse on March 31, 2021 in Arlington Heights. Kujtim was getting testing as a precaution for upcoming travel. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
Goodbye, 2020!
Good riddance, farewell!
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You’ve maxed out our patience
You’ve put us through hell.
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.
The year of the virus!
The year of the mask!
Be gone 2020!
That’s all that we ask.
.
Winter
It started half hopeful —
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A normal new year —
Despite the impeachment
of Trump, our King Lear.
.
“Obstruction of Congress!”
The Democrats cried
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“Abuse of his power!
Our president lied!”
________
Columns are opinion content that reflect the views of the writers.
________
But Trump was acquitted —
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Mitch wrangled the vote —
And when the plague surfaced
We barely took note.
.
A virus in China?
That’s so far away!
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It wasn’t our problem
But then came a day …
.
A day in mid-March
When Tom Hanks said, “I’m sick”
The NBA canceled
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And life collapsed quick.
.
“Pandemic,” they called it
We’d live with that word
Along with so many
We rarely had heard.
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.
Like “aerosols,” “lockdown”
And “COVID-19”
Like “shelter-in-place”
And the dread “quarantine.”
.
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The rest’rants were shuttered
The taverns were locked
The hospitals teemed
And the loss left us shocked.
.
Each hug was a danger
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Each handshake a threat
Each time we went out
We played virus roulette.
.
We learned how to distance —
Yo, 6 feet apart! —
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To wash our hands often
To wipe down a cart.
.
We lived in our bubbles
We hoarded TP
We went to no concerts
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But binged on TV.
.
Corona engulfed us
Like permanent weather
We sought to stay sep’rate
While also together.
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.
We sanitized parcels
And often were grouchy
But all except rebels
Said, “Thank God for Fauci.”
.
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The good doctor schooled us
In hope and in science
He taught us precautions
Despite Trump’s defiance.
.
The president dithered —
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“Don’t worry!” he said,
“We’ll open by Easter!” —
We counted the dead.
.
We fought off despair
As we battled our gloom
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We schooled kids at home
And held funerals on Zoom.
.
The health care providers
Were heroes we praised
They worked to exhaustion
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For days upon days.
.
We waited in lines
To get tests, to get food …
And this was not all
That would darken our mood.
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.
Spring
So much had been lost
And so much was destroyed
And then came a killing —
His name was George Floyd.
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.
A cop pinned him down
And he struggled for breath
A movement exploded
Because of his death.
.
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In cities and suburbs
Folks took to the street
They cried, “Black lives matter!”
They marched in the heat.
.
The young and the old —
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They were Black, brown and white —
They knew it was time
To stand up for this fight.
.
Summer
The summer ticked on
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Full of civil unrest
While ravaging wildfires
Ignited the West.
.
The president sputtered,
“This chaos must stop!”
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He posed with a Bible —
Hey, look! Photo op!
.
He tweeted “ANTIFA!”
He spread his fake news
He goaded his fan base
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To share his dark views.
.
He said he’d send soldiers —
They might have to shoot! —
Dear Lord, how we wished
We could put him on mute.
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.
The country was burning
A nation in flames
At least, sighed the ball fans,
We get to watch games.
.
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And while we trudged onward
Some heroes expired
Among them John Lewis
Who left us inspired.
.
We lost Kobe Bryant,
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We lost Justice Ruth
Who gave us the strength
To keep fighting for truth.
.
Autumn
While small business suffered
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The stock market soared
While millions went jobless
The megarich scored.
.
The virus kept surging
And so did our dread
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While those in the White House
Abetted the spread.
.
The president caught it:
Oh, would he survive?
He got special treatment
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And stayed quite alive.
.
He held his great rallies
(Well, not all that great)
He said he’d beat Biden
In most ev’ry state!
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.
But then came November
The voters said: No!
We’re done with you, Donald
We’re voting for Joe.
.
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Trump pouted and lied
And he threatened a coup
But then Mitch McConnell
Conceded: He’s through.
.
And now …
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We called the year awful,
Chaotic and strange
And yet on the bright side
We learned how to change.
.
We saw life more clearly
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For better and worse
We saw our divisions
And how they’re a curse.
.
Divisions of justice
Divisions of wealth
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Divisions of who
Gets a chance at good health.
.
We learned about courage
Learned better to share
We learned that it’s time
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For some major repair.
.
Though Facebook still stalks us
And spies on our tracks
Though misinformation
Is still spread by hacks
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.
Democracy made it!
And though it feels frail
Let’s pause for a moment
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To share an exhale.
.
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A new year is coming
It won’t all be fun
But let’s raise a toast
To the year ’21!
mschmich@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-12-28--Pot legalization was to bring expungements to many with records in Illinois. Numbers so far are low,

Pot legalization was to bring expungements to many with records in Illinois. Numbers so far are low, but more are expected to be on the way.

While only misdemeanor and the lowest level felony cases are eligible for automatic expungement , there remain an estimated 71,000 @ @ @ @ @ cannabis that don ’ t qualify for automatic expungement but are eligible to be cleared @ @ @ @ @ .
Yet very few individuals have come forward seeking to clear their records , advocates @ @ @ @ @ of familiarity with the process by the public , courts and court clerks .

Donna Goon is helped by advisor Sydney Huggins as she shops at the Sunnyside cannabis store in Naperville on Dec. 24, 2020. Naperville previously banned recreational marijuana shops, but a voter referendum changed that. This is Cresco's 10th store, the most allowed in the state. (Zbigniew Bzdak/Chicago Tribune)
Marijuana legalization in Illinois came with grand plans for wiping clean many criminal records involving cannabis. That aspect of the law was so important that on the eve of legalization on Jan. 1, 2020, Gov. J.B. Pritzker pardoned more than 11,000 people of low-level marijuana convictions.
Yet more than 700,000 cases could qualify for expungement, a process in which police and court records of arrests and convictions are cleared. The process is crucial to giving people with such records a better chance at getting a job, an education and a place to live.
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Now, almost one year after legalization took effect, few of those cannabis cases have been cleared. But officials say more expungements are on the way.
Under the legalization legislation, Illinois State Police were tasked with identifying by Jan. 1, 2021, those cases that occurred since 2013 that could be expunged automatically. That amounts to some 47,000 cases, Toi Hutchinson, Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s senior adviser on cannabis, said. With the deadline just days away, state police said they would make an announcement about those expungements soon.
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In Cook County, State’s Attorney Kim Foxx worked with a nonprofit tech company called Code for America to identify and clear 2,200 cases early this year. But during the COVID shutdown of courts, that process was delayed for months. Now, prosecutors there plan to expunge another 11,000 cases early in 2021.
McHenry County State’s Attorney Patrick Kenneally also went to court to get about 1,900 cases expunged early in 2020. But in general, other counties have not taken such initiative. Some are still waiting for state police to identify which cases are eligible.
In Lake County, for instance, the state’s attorney’s office knew of only two requests to vacate and expunge records, both of which were granted.
As a result, many people are still paying the price for having small amounts of marijuana that customers now buy routinely at pot shops. On the production side, licensed cannabis companies are churning out tons of the plant, amounts that previously could have earned life sentences in prison.
Now, after months of delays in the process, in part because of the pandemic, advocates are trying to reboot parts of the state’s plan to clear convictions.
While only misdemeanor and the lowest level felony cases are eligible for automatic expungement, there remain an estimated 71,000 cases involving larger amounts of cannabis that don’t qualify for automatic expungement but are eligible to be cleared in court, advocates say. Yet very few individuals have come forward seeking to clear their records, advocates say. They blame lack of familiarity with the process by the public, courts and court clerks.
In response, a program called New Leaf is seeking to get people with pot convictions to come forward and get their slates wiped clean.
New Leaf brings together 20 nonprofit organizations to help people get through the sometimes difficult process, which can take months or years. The program is being led by Illinois Legal Aid Online, which has step-by-step instructions for people to take part. The effort is being funded by taxpayers through the nonprofit Illinois Equal Justice Foundation.
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Low-level cases with convictions for amounts up to 30 grams — about 1 ounce — are forwarded by police to the Prisoner Review Board, which recommends qualifying cases to Pritzker. The governor said he would pardon any recommended case, which clears the way for the record to be wiped from public view.
In cases involving up to 500 grams, those who were convicted may still apply individually for a court to have their records sealed and kept from public view. But police or prosecutors have the power to object in court, depending on the circumstances of the crime.
To apply for expungement, petitioners will have to get a copy of their arrest and court records from police and the court clerk in whichever county the case occurred. They also may have to submit fingerprints and pay an application fee.
Attorney Beth Johnson, who specializes in clearing criminal records, was part of a committee that helped the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts draw up forms to clarify the process for judges and clerks. She expects the forms to be released statewide early next year.
“It’s not just having the law, it’s how do you make it as clear as possible?” she said.
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Foxx has said the process is crucial to “righting the wrongs” of the war on drugs, which led to the arrests of Blacks and Hispanics far more often as a percentage of their population than whites, despite similarly reported rates of usage.
In other counties, prosecutors were waiting for state police to supply the database of records for automatic expungement. Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart said he will act urgently to expedite expungement of any cases that meet the criteria, which require that the cannabis case was not accompanied by any violent offense.
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Rinehart intends to seek private funding or grants to help with any part of the process that falls under his office’s purview, his spokesman Lee Filas said.
There are also many record-keeping logistics to iron out. As an example of the obstacles that clerks must overcome, Lake County Court Clerk Erin Cartwright Weinstein said she had to modify the case management system to expunge only cannabis counts among other convictions, saying the whole enterprise was “not an easy task.”
In general, advocates were not aware of county-level efforts to clear those records and hoped that other prosecutors would take action to do so.
State Rep. Jehan Gordon-Booth noted that some members of law enforcement opposed allowing legalization or the expungements.
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“I believe there will be state’s attorneys that lean into this issue and state’s attorneys that are moving along a little bit slower,” she said. “We have to raise our voices and make sure and demand that this life-changing tool is available.”
Foxx recently announced that she is open to broadening the process to include amounts up to 500 grams, the lowest class of felony. Such cases are eligible for expungement now only if someone comes forward to ask to clear them in court. Foxx also raised the idea of forgiving low-level cocaine and heroin cases.
The idea, state’s attorney spokesperson Sarah Sinovic said, is to approach such drug offenders as people who need treatment for substance abuse, rather than penalizing people as criminals.


chicagotribune--2020-12-27--Coronavirus in Illinois updates: Here’s what happened Dec. 25-27 with COVID-19 in the Chicago area

Airline passengers from the United Kingdom will need to get negative COVID-19 tests within three days of their trip and @ @ @ @ @ airline , the CDC said in a statement .
The agency said the order will @ @ @ @ @ into effect on Monday .

We have lifted the paywall on this story. To support essential reporting, please consider becoming a subscriber .
Laquitta Boyd, holds her 6-year-old daughter Venisha while receiving her first COVID-19 vaccination at a back-to-school health fair hosted by RUSH University Medical Center at the Salvation Army Freedom Center on July 30, 2022, in Chicago. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
Illinois reported 3,767 new and probable cases of COVID-19 Sunday, bringing the statewide total since the beginning of the pandemic to 937,909. The state also reported 104 new deaths, raising the overall toll to 15,969.
It was the second straight day with cases under 4,000. There were 3,293 new and probable cases reported Saturday, the lowest total in Illinois since Oct. 19, when 3,113 cases were reported.
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Here’s what’s happening this weekend with COVID-19 in the Chicago area and Illinois:
Sunday
3,767 new and probable cases of COVID-19, 104 additional deaths reported
Illinois reported 3,767 new and probable cases of COVID-19 Sunday, bringing the statewide total since the beginning of the pandemic to 937,909. The state also reported 104 new deaths, raising the overall toll to 15,969.
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There were 46,226 tests reported in the previous 24 hours. The seven-day statewide positivity rate is 8.5%.
—Chicago Tribune staff
Vaccination effort expected to arrive in Lake County long-term care centers Monday
COVID-19 inoculations are expected to start Monday in Lake County long-term care facilities, local health officials said.
The move follows the vaccination of nearly 8,000 Lake County front line health care workers since December 17. More vaccine is arriving, and the Lake County Health Department will begin offering injections of health care personnel, emergency medical workers and some others next week.
Mark Pfister, the executive director of the Lake County Health Department, said the entire shipment of 6,825 doses of Pfizer vaccine was shipped to six of the county’s hospitals December 17. It produced more shots than anticipated. An additional 3,900 packages arrived Tuesday.
Read more here. —Steve Sadin, Lake County News-Sun
Unemployment benefits for millions of Americans expire as Trump refuses to sign COVID-19 relief bill
Unemployment benefits for millions of Americans struggling to make ends meet lapsed overnight as President Donald Trump refused to sign an end-of-year COVID-19 relief and spending bill that had been considered a done deal before his sudden objections.
The fate of the bipartisan package remained in limbo Sunday as Trump continued to demand larger COVID relief checks and complained about “pork” spending. Without the widespread funding provided by the massive measure, a government shutdown would occur when money runs out at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday.
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“It’s a chess game and we are pawns,” said Lanetris Haines, a self-employed single mother of three in South Bend, Indiana, who stood to lose her $129 weekly jobless benefit unless Trump signed the package into law or succeeded in his improbable quest for changes.
Washington has been reeling since Trump turned on the deal after it had won sweeping approval in both houses of Congress and after the White House had assured Republican leaders that Trump would support it.
Read more here. —Associated Press
Saturday
Unemployment benefits for millions in limbo and government shutdown looms as Trump rages
Unemployment benefits for millions of Americans struggling to make ends meet were set to lapse at midnight Saturday unless President Donald Trump signed an end-of-year COVID relief and spending bill that had been considered a done deal before his sudden objections.
Trump’s refusal to sign the bipartisan package as he demands larger COVID relief checks and complains about “pork” spending could also force a federal government shutdown when money runs out at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday in the middle of a pandemic.
“It’s a chess game and we are pawns,” said Lanetris Haines, a self-employed single mother of three in South Bend, Indiana, who stands to lose her $129 weekly jobless benefit unless Trump signs the package into law or succeeds in his improbable quest for changes.
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Washington has been reeling since Trump threw the package into limbo after it had already won sweeping approval in both houses of Congress and after the White House assured Republican leaders that Trump would support it.
Instead, he has assailed the bill’s plan to provide $600 COVID relief checks to most Americans — insisting it should be $2,000. House Republicans swiftly rejected that idea during a rare Christmas Eve session. But Trump has not been swayed.
Read more here. —Associated Press
Illinois reports 3,293 new and probable COVID-19 cases and 66 new deaths
Illinois reported 3,293 new and probable cases of COVID-19 on Saturday, bringing the statewide total since the beginning of the pandemic to 934,142.
The case total is the lowest in Illinois since Oct. 19 when 3,113 cases were reported.
The state also reported 66 new deaths — the lowest total in about a month — raising the overall total to 15,865.
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The deaths ranged from a man in his 20s to two women who were 100 or older.
A spokesperson for the Illinois Department of Public Health said reported cases and deaths are typically lower after weekends, and “this could be the case for the holiday weekend.”
As of Friday night, 4,021 people were hospitalized with the virus, including 874 in the ICU and 494 on ventilators.
—Madeline Buckley
Friday
5,742 new and probable cases of COVID-19 and 156 additional deaths reported
Illinois public health officials Friday announced 5,742 new and probable cases of COVID-19. The total number of known infections in Illinois is 930,849 since the pandemic began in March.
The state reported another 156 deaths on Christmas Day. The statewide death toll is now 15,799 since the start of the pandemic.
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There were 98,958 tests reported in the previous 24 hours. The seven-day statewide positivity rate for the week ending Dec. 24 fell to 8.6%.
—Chicago Tribune staff
A COVID-19 Christmas — less glitter, but still some silver linings: ‘It gets back to what’s important’
For most Chicago-area residents who observe Christmas, this year’s holiday is like no other in their lifetimes, with traditional gatherings of loved ones in homes and churches, and exchanges of presents and meals, curtailed, modified, Zoom-ified or done away with altogether.
For some that has meant dropping off presents at front stoops instead of getting together, or visiting with relatives at care facilities through the window.
But many are still trying to count their blessings and make the best of things.
Read more here. —Elyssa Cherney
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Pope Francis: COVID-19 vaccines for all, but for needy and vulnerable first
Pope Francis made a Christmas Day plea for authorities to make COVID-19 vaccines available to all, insisting that the first in line should be the most vulnerable and needy, regardless of who holds the patents for the shots.
“Vaccines for everybody, especially for the most vulnerable and needy,” who should be first in line, Francis said in off-the-cuff remarks from his prepared text, calling the development of such vaccines “light of hope” for the world.
“We can’t let closed nationalisms impede us from living as the true human family that we are,” the pope said.
He called on the leaders of nations, businesses and international organizations to “promote cooperation and not competition, and to search for a solution for all.”
Amid a surge of coronavirus infections this fall in Italy, Francis broke with tradition for Christmas. Instead of delivering his “Urbi et Orbi” speech — Latin for “to the city and to the world” — from the central loggia of St. Peter’s Square, he read it from inside a cavernous hall at the Apostolic Palace, flanked by two Christmas trees with blinking lights.
Read more here. —Associated Press
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US to require negative COVID-19 test from all travelers from Britain because of new strain of virus, CDC says
xThe United States will require airline passengers from Britain to get a negative COVID-19 test before their flight, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced late Thursday.
The U.S. is the latest country to announce new travel restrictions because of a new variant of the coronavirus that is spreading in Britain and elsewhere.
Airline passengers from the United Kingdom will need to get negative COVID-19 tests within three days of their trip and provide the results to the airline, the CDC said in a statement. The agency said the order will be signed Friday and go into effect on Monday.
Read more here. —Associated Press
Breaking coronavirus news Stay up to date with the latest information on coronavirus with our breaking news alerts.
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chicagotribune--2020-12-29--‘The light at the end of the tunnel’: COVID-19 vaccinations begin in Chicago’s hard-hit nursing home

‘The light at the end of the tunnel’: COVID-19 vaccinations begin in Chicago’s hard-hit nursing homes as mayor asks for continued vigilance against virus

“ These vaccines are the light at the end of the tunnel .
But we are still very much in @ @ @ @ @ Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Monday .
“ In the coming days , weeks and months @ @ @ @ @ work with community leaders and stakeholders not only to roll out the vaccine in an @ @ @ @ @ to ensure that we have the trust in our communities , especially our Latinx and @ @ @ @ @ individual members understand the importance and the safety of this vaccine .
”

Madeline Buckley, Gregory Pratt, Jamie Munks

Laquitta Boyd, holds her 6-year-old daughter Venisha while receiving her first COVID-19 vaccination at a back-to-school health fair hosted by RUSH University Medical Center at the Salvation Army Freedom Center on July 30, 2022, in Chicago. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
Since the beginning of the pandemic, Daniel Johnson has fretted about bringing the coronavirus home to his 11-year-old son — so much so that Johnson, a nursing home facilities manager and a widower, sent the boy to live nearby with his grandmother back in April.
Johnson’s son, who lost his mother four years ago, returned after a few homesick months. But so too did Johnson’s daily unease that his job in the hard-hit nursing home industry could put his family at greater risk.
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On Monday, though, Johnson, 46, could begin to breathe a sigh of relief. At Symphony 87th Street, the skilled nursing facility on Chicago’s South Side where he works, Johnson received the first dose of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine.
“We want to do what we can to get us back to some sense of normalcy,” Johnson said.
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Fellow Symphony employees, as well as residents, were among the first nursing home patients and workers in Chicago to receive the shots, marking another milestone in the city’s fight against COVID-19 as its vaccine campaign, which began this month with hospital workers, extended to long-term care facilities and outpatient clinics.
Symphony was one of eight long-term care centers in Chicago that began inoculations on Monday. Another 26 are slated to begin vaccinations later this week, city officials said. Eventually, the vaccine will be rolled out to all 128 facilities in the city.
The state’s long-term care facilities have been particularly hard hit during the pandemic, with at least 62,600 confirmed infections and 7,910 deaths among residents, according to state data updated last week.
On Tuesday, the city will also open a mass vaccination site for health care workers at Malcolm X College near the United Center, officials said.
“These vaccines are the light at the end of the tunnel. But we are still very much in that tunnel,” Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Monday. “In the coming days, weeks and months, we will continue to work with community leaders and stakeholders not only to roll out the vaccine in an equitable manner, but also to ensure that we have the trust in our communities, especially our Latinx and African American communities so that individual members understand the importance and the safety of this vaccine.”
Before receiving the shot Monday, Symphony resident Victor Murray was initially wary of the vaccine, given how rapidly it became available. He never thought a vaccine would be available before the end of the year.
But he said, “the virus is much more risky, as far as I’m concerned.”
Earlier this year, Murray, 54, was hospitalized due to a severe asthma attack. He tested negative for the coronavirus, but, like many people who get seriously ill from COVID-19, he had to be intubated and placed on a ventilator. Now, Murray is recovering at the care center.
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Because of the severity of his respiratory problems, Murray fears that contracting COVID-19 could be fatal, so he signed up to receive the Moderna shot, despite his nervousness.
“I was going to refuse it at first,” Murray said. “The literature they gave me made me feel better about it.”
Johnson said Symphony has launched an educational campaign, but he noted the concerns many residents of color have because of past wrongs by the medical establishment.
“We wanted to try to address some of the concerns they had, and the misconceptions, to try to put everyone’s mind at ease,” Johnson said.
Still, he said the mood on Monday was mixed, with some people eagerly accepting the vaccine, and others declining out of lingering concern.
So far, the city has provided more than 20,000 vaccinations, though that figure doesn’t include people who don’t live in Chicago but have received a vaccine because they work in the city, officials said. Throughout Illinois, nearly 113,000 first doses of the vaccine have been administered as of last week, according to the latest statewide numbers available.
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Lightfoot and Public Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady announced the latest stage in vaccine distribution during a news conference at Esperanza Health Center on the Southwest Side. While highlighting the event’s significance, Lightfoot and Arwady also warned residents against becoming complacent or letting down their guard against the virus as widespread distribution of the vaccine remains months away.
And, they said, part of the city’s Latino community continues to struggle with higher case rates.
“We cannot afford to let more Chicagoans, our neighbors, get sick and die because of risky and irresponsible behavior,” Lightfoot said.
Johnson said he knows it will take time for life to go back to normal, but he’s begun to feel hope and excitement after a challenging year. He watched as colleagues came down with the virus, and as others lost loved ones.
“It’s been difficult coming to work, knowing that you are putting yourself at risk,” he said, though adding that he has been inspired by the dedication of colleagues who continue to report to work.
Still, even as he longed to be with his son during their months apart, he said others made greater sacrifices. He and his son were able to spend a quiet Christmas together opening presents under the tree.
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Then Johnson went to work for a few hours to make sure the Symphony residents, many who were spending Christmas alone, were able to enjoy some good food and activities.
Earlier this month, the city administered its ceremonial first COVID-19 vaccination at Loretto Hospital, a 122-bed medical facility in the Austin community that was chosen because of the care it has provided to communities hit hardest by the virus. The hospital also was chosen to help public health officials promote the vaccine in the Black community, where the country’s history of inhumane medical experiments such as the Tuskegee Syphilis Study remains an unhealed wound.
She said the city has received its first batch of Moderna vaccines, which don’t require the same ultra cold storage that Pfizer’s vaccine needs.
She said the city was so far pleased with the vaccine rollout and that there haven’t been “unexpected side effects.”
“The rollout has been very good in terms of what we’re hearing back from all of our vaccinating partners, and we expect to continue to really hear as vaccine rolls out into these outpatient settings, that the vaccine continues to have the safety profile that we saw in the trials,” Arwady said.
The statewide COVID-19 death toll surpassed 16,000 on Monday, 10 days after Illinois exceeded 15,000.
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On Monday, the state Department of Public Health reported another 105 deaths, in addition to 4,453 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19, out of a batch of 51,046 tests conducted.
The statewide death toll now stands at 16,074, and the total number of known cases has climbed to 942,362. The seven-day statewide positivity rate for cases as a share of tests conducted was 7.2% for the period ending Sunday, down from 7.5% a week earlier.
As of Sunday night, 4,243 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 across Illinois, with 884 patients in intensive care units and 515 on ventilators.


chicagotribune--2020-12-29--The Spin: Kinzinger ‘concerned’ Trump’s election claims could spur violence | Talks crumble for Ligh

The Spin: Kinzinger ‘concerned’ Trump’s election claims could spur violence | Talks crumble for Lightfoot, Anjanette Young meeting | Former Ald. Moreno charged with DUI

But the city ’ s most prominent African American elected leader — Mayor Lightfoot — wasn ’ t there .
@ @ @ @ @ s heeding social distancing rules amid the pandemic and that she has spoken to protest @ @ @ @ @ are calling for the top brass — including police Superintendent David Brown , who reports @ @ @ @ @ the changes they want to see at the Police Department .
She said she believes @ @ @ @ @ same page .

As President Donald Trump’s term winds down, Republican U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger says he’s “concerned” about “people being driven to violence” as the commander in chief and his allies continue making baseless claims that election fraud cost him reelection.
Trump has called on supporters to “never give up” and to assemble next week in Washington, D.C., when a joint session of Congress holds what has been a ceremonial count of Electoral College votes to cement the election results — in this case Joe Biden’s victory.
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During an appearance on CNN yesterday, Kinzinger said any suggestion that the election outcome could be reversed during the Jan. 6 congressional session is a “scam.”
This afternoon, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said she was “hoping” that details could be settled for a meeting this week with Anjanette Young, the social worker whose Chicago home was the subject of a mistaken police raid before she took office. A short time later, the Tribune’s Gregory Pratt nailed it down: The meeting’s been called off after the two sides couldn’t agree on a separate public forum, according to emails exchanged between the city’s top lawyer and Young’s attorney.
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The mayor remains under scrutiny over her administration’s attempt to stop CBS-Ch. 2 from airing police body camera footage that captured a distraught, naked and handcuffed Young telling officers 40-plus times that they were in the wrong home.
My colleague William Lee wrote about the protest over the raid yesterday at Chicago Police Headquarters including some of the city’s and state’s most prominent Black women in politics such as Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, who talked about how the case was another indignity heaped upon Black women.
But the city’s most prominent African American elected leader — Mayor Lightfoot — wasn’t there. She said that she’s heeding social distancing rules amid the pandemic and that she has spoken to protest organizers in recent days who are calling for the top brass — including police Superintendent David Brown, who reports directly to Lightfoot — about the changes they want to see at the Police Department. She said she believes they’re on the same page.
Welcome to The Spin.
Adam Kinzinger, then-congressman-elect, reads his email as he walks along Michigan Avenue on Nov. 3, 2010. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
Trump repeatedly has taken to Twitter to tell supporters as recently as this weekend to “never give up” and to attend a “big protest” in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6 when Congress cements the presidential election — that is, Democrat Joe Biden’s victory. Last week, Trump tweeted about the protest, “Be there, will be wild!”
During an appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union” Sunday morning, Kinzinger told journalist Dana Bash he’s become exasperated by the conspiracy theories and expressed some of the same concerns others have about whether Trump supporters could cause chaos in the streets when Biden is formally certified.
“I’m concerned to an extent about January 6, because, if you convince people that Congress can change a legitimate election, and everything was stolen, and there’s a deep state ... QAnon theory driving this, which is that it’s satanist pedophiles that run the government, you could see people being driven to violence. So, I’m concerned about that.”
The Channahon Republican, whose district stretches east to the Indiana border and north toward the Wisconsin border, has by his own description had a hot and cold relationship with the president. But at this point, it’s safe to say it’s the temperature of Lake Michigan in February.
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Long a darling of the cable news networks, Kinzinger has been making the rounds with greater frequency of late, prompting some to question whether he’s eyeing a bigger office. Watch the full interview here or read the transcript of the interview here.
About that Jan. 6 joint session of the U.S. House, Senate: The act of congress counting the Electoral College votes is generally a routine, ceremonious affair, but Trump’s repeated, baseless efforts to challenge Biden’s presidential victory will bring more attention than usual to the session, The Associated Press reminds. It’s the final step in reaffirming Biden’s presidential win and is required by the U.S. Constitution. More here.
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Symphony 87th Street skilled nursing facility nurse case manager Eric Walker films himself receiving the Moderna COVID vaccine as residents and staff begin vaccinations on Dec. 28, 2020. Walker said he filmed himself to show family members who were nervous for him to receive the vaccination. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
The president signed the joint omnibus and COVID-19 relief bill on Sunday, but the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives was expected to vote tonight in favor of upping direct relief payments from the current $600 to $2,000 — something Trump wanted and threatened to veto the entire package over.
Don’t get too excited. Senate Republicans don’t seem to be in favor of increasing the price tag of the package. NBC News has more details here.
Latest numbers locally: The statewide COVID-19 death toll surpassed 16,000 on Monday, 10 days after Illinois exceeded 15,000, the Tribune’s Gregory Pratt and Jamie Munks report. Today alone, the state Department of Public Health reported another 105 deaths, in addition to 4,453 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19, out of a batch of 51,046 tests conducted.
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The seven-day statewide positivity rate for cases as a share of tests conducted was 7.2% for the period ending Sunday, down from 7.5% a week earlier, Pratt and Munks note.
Vaccine tally: The city of Chicago has provided more than 20,000 vaccinations; statewide, 112,987 first doses of the vaccine have been administered as of last week, according to the latest numbers available. More here.
Chicago officials today began distributing vaccines to long-term medical care facilities and outpatient clinics, marking another milestone in the city’s fight against COVID-19, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said. Mid-month, there was a record number of Illinois nursing home residents with COVID-19 who died over about a week’s period, the Tribune’s Robert McCoppin and Joe Mahr reported.
Unbalanced rollout: Few South, West side residents get COVID vaccines thus far, the Chicago Sun-Times’ Brett Chase and Elvia Malagon write.
Ex-Ald. Joe Moreno, right, and his attorney Camilo Oceguera walk the lobby of the Leighton Criminal Court Building after briefly appearing in front of a judge on June 4, 2019. (Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune)
From the Tribune’s Katherine Rosenberg-Douglas and Jeremy Gorner: “Former Ald. Proco “Joe” Moreno was charged with DUI and reckless driving after his Audi rammed and sideswiped at least eight cars along four blocks of a street in the Gold Coast before smashing into a tree Sunday night.”
The incident happened not too far from Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s home. Read more about it here.
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A reminder that Moreno is fighting charges of insurance fraud and obstruction of justice stemming from a 2019 incident when prosecutors say the ex-alderman, who lost reelection that year, falsely claimed his 2016 Audi A6 had been stolen from his garage. As my colleagues note, “Moreno allegedly had turned the car and its keys over willingly only hours earlier to a woman he had dated.”
Marijuana plants in a growing room at Cresco Labs in Joliet on Dec. 17, 2019. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
The Tribune’s Robert McCoppin writes: “Marijuana legalization in Illinois came with grand plans for wiping clean many criminal records involving cannabis. That aspect of the law was so important that on the eve of legalization on Jan. 1, 2020, Gov. J.B. Pritzker pardoned more than 11,000 people of low-level marijuana convictions.”
McCoppin notes that more than 700,000 cases could qualify for expungement, a process in which police and court records of arrests and convictions are cleared. But nearly a year after recreational weed became legal, few of those cases have been cleared. Read more, including vows to get expungements on track, here.
An artist's rendering of the proposed Obama Presidential Center shows a south-facing view of the public plaza and museum building. (Obama Foundation/HANDOUT)
OK, so there was a lot of hope that groundbreaking in Jackson Park for the Obama Presidential Center would happen in 2021. A date is not on the calendar yet.
But that hasn’t stopped the Rev. Byron Brazier from envisioning how the proposed center would add to the existing glory of the South Side, my Tribune colleague Alice Yin writes.
Nor has it stopped Herb Caplan, president and founder of the Protect Our Parks nonprofit, from pushing back. He’s sued to try to block the center and plans to file a petition in the coming months for his lawsuit to be considered by the U.S. Supreme Court. Read the full story here on the status of the center’s plans here.
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Twitter @byldonovan


chicagotribune--2020-12-29--Judge rules against marijuana craft grower applicants seeking immediate licenses

In a ruling issued Christmas Eve , Walker wrote that the governor ’ s initial emergency order delaying the licenses @ @ @ @ @ also wrote that a later governor ’ s order clarified the delay was necessary because @ @ @ @ @ Illinois Department of Agriculture , which is supposed to issue the licenses , to concentrate @ @ @ @ @ livestock facilities and the food supply chain .

More than three dozen companies who applied for marijuana craft grower licenses will continue to wait after a court ruling kept the permits in limbo.
Cook County Judge Allen Walker ruled against the Illinois Craft Cannabis Association, which wanted him to require Gov. J.B. Pritzker to award the licenses.
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By law, the 40 grower licenses were supposed to be issued by July 1, but Pritzker has not done so, initially citing delays in reviewing the applications because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a ruling issued Christmas Eve, Walker wrote that the governor’s initial emergency order delaying the licenses was insufficient. But Walker also wrote that a later governor’s order clarified the delay was necessary because the pandemic has forced the Illinois Department of Agriculture, which is supposed to issue the licenses, to concentrate on oversight of meat and livestock facilities and the food supply chain.
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“While (the later order) does not explicitly say: ‘IDOA’s issuing cannabis licenses by the (deadline) would have the effect of diverting needed resources from the pandemic effort thus making it more difficult for the governor to cope with the COVID-19 crisis ...’ that is the point implicitly being made,” the judge wrote.
Walker is due to consider additional issues raised in the lawsuit early next year.
Paul Magelli, spokesman for the craft growers’ association, said the group is “considering an appeal given the weakness of the judge’s order. … We plan to decide early this week.”
In addition to the craft grower licenses, the Pritzker administration has indefinitely delayed the issuance of infuser and transporter licenses, as well as licenses for 75 new recreational marijuana retail stores, which were due to be awarded May 1.
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Just 21 applicants received perfect scores to qualify for a tiebreaking lottery to award the licenses. Some included politically connected or wealthy white owners, though the law was meant to encourage social equity applicants from areas hardest hit by the war on drugs.
Other applicants complained that they were never notified of deficiencies in their applications, as required by law, or that identical parts of different applications were scored differently.
To address those issues, the Pritzker administration is sending out new deficiency notices to allow applicants to correct problems and get rescored. Officials won’t say when the process will be completed and new licenses awarded.
The latest ruling was similar to a Sangamon County court ruling in November that allowed the state to continue rescoring the dispensary licenses.
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Both successful and unsuccessful applicants say that the delay is costing them thousands of dollars in payroll and lease costs to keep their business groups intact, without knowing if they’ll be able to open.
Combined recreational and medical cannabis sales in Illinois are likely to exceed $1 billion in the debut year. Sales have generated more than $100 million in tax revenue.
rmccoppin@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-12-28--Anjanette Young meeting with Mayor Lori Lightfoot called off in dispute over public forum

In the email , Saulter said he spoke with acting corporation counsel Celia Meza , who said the mayor offered @ @ @ @ @ Young privately and then speak to the press at 12:00 p.m. while the rest of @ @ @ @ @ Young and any Alderman who had the respect enough for Ms. Young to stay for @ @ @ @ @ inside addressing the issues and doing the hard work of moving towards Transparency and Accountability @ @ @ @ @ others .
”

A proposed Wednesday meeting between Mayor Lori Lightfoot and social worker Anjanette Young has been called off after the two sides couldn’t agree on a public forum, according to emails exchanged between the city’s top lawyer and Young’s attorney.
Lightfoot first requested a meeting with Young via a Dec. 17 email sent to Young’s attorney, Keenan Saulter, just before a news conference in which the mayor was apologetic for a mistaken 2019 police raid on the social worker’s home and the city’s subsequent attempts to keep video footage from the incident out of public view.
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In a response sent to Lightfoot and several aldermen on Dec. 26, Young agreed to meet privately with the mayor and requested it happen at her church later this week. Saulter also requested a public forum afterward with police Superintendent David Brown and several aldermen. He later amended the invitation to include all aldermen.
But Saulter and Lightfoot weren’t able to reach an agreement on the public forum, he said in a Monday letter to the mayor and nearly the entire City Council.
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In the email, Saulter said he spoke with acting corporation counsel Celia Meza, who said the mayor offered to “meet with Ms. Young privately and then speak to the press at 12:00 p.m. while the rest of us (me, Ms. Young and any Alderman who had the respect enough for Ms. Young to stay for the public forum) were inside addressing the issues and doing the hard work of moving towards Transparency and Accountability for this incident and many others.”
Saulter said that if Lightfoot wanted to apologize to Young, “she could have done that last fall when CBS2 made her first aware of the horrific raid and treatment that Ms. Young had suffered.”
Instead, Saulter said, Lightfoot “waited over a year for that” and “her apologies without action ring hollow and fall of deaf ears.”
Meza responded to Saulter’s email and said Lightfoot accepted the invitation for a private meeting at the church but “would not be participating in the public gathering you have arranged at noon.”
He answered: “There was one invitation. Not two. The Mayor decided that she was going to reject the invitation that Ms. Young gave. That’s fine. Let’s not parse words or play games.”
Although negotiations appeared to have fallen apart with the exchange between Saulter and Meza, they could resume.
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After the blowup between Saulter and Meza, Lightfoot’s office released a statement reiterating that the mayor is eager to meet with Young “to continue the process of healing.”
“Hopefully such a meeting will be possible soon,” the mayor’s office said.
Earlier Monday, Lightfoot expressed public health concerns about gathering 50 aldermen in a church amid COVID-19 restrictions but said she’s “anxious to meet directly with Ms. Young, and I’m hoping that the details can be worked out so that will happen.”
The mistaken raid on Young’s home has become a major crisis for Lightfoot, who initially said she had only learned of it after WBBM-Ch. 2 aired police body camera footage that showed Young, who was naked and handcuffed, repeatedly telling officers who barged into her home that they had the wrong place.
But Lightfoot has since acknowledged that members of her team told her about the raid via emails in November 2019, as CBS was reporting on search warrants being served at the wrong addresses. Lightfoot said her administration would release those emails, though the mayor’s office has not yet done so.
In response to the controversy, several aldermen have requested an investigation by city Inspector General Joe Ferguson. Lightfoot said she is supportive of such an effort but also asked former federal Judge Ann Claire Williams to review the case and its handling. The Civilian Office of Police Accountability is also looking into the Police Department’s handling of the raid, but Lightfoot has been critical of the agency for being too slow in completing its investigation.
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A city spokesman previously said 12 Chicago police officers involved in the botched raid of Young’s home have been placed on desk duty.
The Law Department’s top attorney, Mark Flessner, resigned over the scandal, and two high-ranking staffers also left.
City lawyers previously filed a request to have Young sanctioned for allegedly violating a confidentiality order on the video, though the city later said it only wanted her lawyer sanctioned. The city eventually filed paperwork seeking to drop the matter altogether, though a judge said he is still weighing whether to take action against the lawyer.
A federal judge rejected the Lightfoot administration’s unusual request to prevent the television station from airing a news report. The courts long have ruled against efforts to prevent news companies from publishing reports, saying it’s an unconstitutional violation of the First Amendment.
Lightfoot has repeatedly criticized the Law Department for taking the action and denied knowing about it beforehand.
Lightfoot initially denied that her administration withheld footage of the raid from Young but later acknowledged her administration had denied an open records request submitted by Young for the footage and said that shouldn’t happen.
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The Young case has also highlighted a recurring problem for the Law Department after Lightfoot’s office disclosed that it failed to give Young’s attorney all of the body camera footage of the wrongful police raid.
A 2016 Chicago Tribune investigation found that, of nearly 450 cases alleging police misconduct since former Mayor Rahm Emanuel took office, a federal judge had to order the city to turn over potential evidence in nearly 1 in every 5 cases.
In numerous cases, the city’s conduct was found to be so inappropriate that a federal judge took the unusual step of handing down sanctions.
Emanuel’s administration famously fought to keep secret a video showing white police Officer Jason Van Dyke shooting Black teenager Laquan McDonald 16 times, but a county judge ordered his administration to release the video. Emanuel has since been dogged by accusations that he covered up the scandal to preserve his 2015 reelection campaign, an allegation he’s denied.
Chicago has since instituted a rule allowing the release of police shooting videos and audio within 60 days. Lightfoot said she will pursue changes to make other video releases easier.
gpratt@chicagotribune.com
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Twitter @royalpratt


chicagotribune--2020-12-28--Coronavirus in Illinois updates: 4,453 new COVID-19 cases and 105 additional deaths reported as Chic

Coronavirus in Illinois updates: 4,453 new COVID-19 cases and 105 additional deaths reported as Chicago begins distributing vaccines to long-term medical care facilities and outpatient clinics


chicagotribune--2020-12-28--Third suspected gunman charged in killing of retired Chicago firefighter during attempted carjacking

They waited for him to come out , and three left the Ford and confronted Williams , 65 .
He @ @ @ @ @ his waistband and exchanged gunfire , police said .
Williams was hit once in the @ @ @ @ @ three got back into the car and sped down Artesian Avenue .

A third man has been charged with murder in connection with a botched Dec. 3 carjacking that left a retired Chicago firefighter dead.
Devin Barron, 20, was arrested Saturday by members of the Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force at a hotel in south suburban Lansing, according to Chicago police and Cook County prosecutors. Authorities found three semi-automatic handguns inside his room, prosecutors said.
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Barron, of Lynwood, faces first-degree murder charges for the death of Dwain Williams, as well as a weapons charge.
Devin S. Barron, 20, is charged with first-degree murder in the death of retired Chicago fire Lt. Dwain Williams, 65. (Chicago police / HANDOUT)
Judge David R. Navarro denied bail and also approved a petition for no bail for violating the terms of release for a pending stolen motor vehicle case against him.
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Two others, one a 15-year-old boy, have already been charged in the shooting death of Williams, a retired Chicago fire lieutenant who traded shots with gunmen as they approached during an apparent ambush. The getaway driver remains at large.
The Tribune has previously reported that police believe the would-be car thieves were members of a “crew” that stole cars in the south suburbs.
Police say Barron was one of two gunmen who emerged from the rear of a stolen black Ford Fusion that followed Williams’ maroon Jeep Grand Cherokee to a popcorn shop in the 2400 block of West 118th Street in the Beverly Woods neighborhood.
They waited for him to come out, and three left the Ford and confronted Williams, 65. He pulled out a revolver from his waistband and exchanged gunfire, police said. Williams was hit once in the abdomen and collapsed. The three got back into the car and sped down Artesian Avenue.
During the court hearing Monday, prosecutors said an eyewitness familiar with all four suspects positively identified them from surveillance videos. A second witness familiar with Barron identified him as the person exiting the Fusion’s rear passenger door with a handgun.
Prosecutors also noted that Barron’s cellphone had synced with the Fusion’s data system after it was stolen. The Fusion was located two days after Williams was shot.
Barron has an extensive criminal history, including five juvenile convictions dating back to 2014, and four pending cases, one involving a home invasion/aggravated kidnapping charge, authorities said.
Barron returns to court next month.


chicagotribune--2020-12-28--Will Chicago see a white Christmas this year? Here’s what 149 years of weather data predict for Dec.

Will Chicago see a white Christmas this year? Here’s what 149 years of weather data predict for Dec. 25.

“ The snowfall began late in the afternoon , following a severe cold snap that dropped the mercury to an @ @ @ @ @ at 6 and 7 a.m .
This made yesterday one of the coldest Christmases since @ @ @ @ @ was recorded .
”

The snowfall on Dec. 24, 2017, was almost a whiteout on Chicago's North Side at the lakefront. (Nancy Stone / Chicago Tribune)
The National Weather Service considers Christmas to be white only when snow depth on the ground is 1 inch or more the morning of Dec. 25.
So, any snow that could fall later that day? Pretty, but it doesn’t count.
The most snowfall on Christmas Day in Chicago happened in 1950, when 5.1 inches blanketed the ground at Midway Airport. Forecasters predicted light snow for that day.
For the first time in five years, Chicago had a white Christmas in 2022 — with 1 inch of snow on the ground. In 2016 and 2017, Chicago had 2 inches of snow on the ground heading into Christmas Day, marking the city’s first white Christmases since 2013. There was no snow on the ground in 2018, 2019, 2020 or 2021.
(1/3) This Christmas for #Chicago:
• First White Christmas (1+" of snow depth) since 2017
• High temp in the mid teens was the coldest Christmas high since 1996 (2000 was close with 17°)
• Low temp of 2° was the coldest Christmas low since 2008 #ILwx pic.twitter.com/A2lbjd5uJo — NWS Chicago (@NWSChicago) December 26, 2022
Based on climate normals from 1991-2020, the National Centers for Environmental Information predicts O’Hare International Airport (the city’s official recording site since 1980) had a 35 percent probability of a white Christmas this year.
Looking for an almost-guaranteed place to find snow on Christmas morning? Try Crested Butte, Colo., which is one of about a dozen locations in the continental U.S. that has 100 percent historical probability of a white Christmas.
Chance of a white Christmas
Historic probability of at least 1-inch of snow on Christmas, based on normals between 1991 and 2020. See an interactive version of the map.
(NOAA Climate.gov, NCEI)
Number of days when snow fell on Christmas in Chicago — and how much
The 8 years when 2 inches of snow or more fell on December 25 in Chicago
5.1 inches (1950)
An automobile abandoned by its owner after it stalled is covered in snow on Lake Shore Drive at 37th Street on Dec. 26, 1950. Snow plows later piled the snow higher around the car. Published in the Dec. 27, 1950, edition of the Chicago Tribune. (Chicago Tribune historical photo)
“The snow, which began about 10 a.m., caught weather forecasters off base. They had predicted snow for downstate Illinois, but none for the Chicago area. Varying wind conditions were blamed for the faulty prediction.” — Chicago Tribune, Dec. 26, 1950
5 inches (1909)
As published in the Dec. 26, 1909, edition of the Chicago Tribune. (Chicago Tribune Archives)
“The snow, which began to fall while the belated shoppers were still scrambling in a last endeavor to atone for their failure to ‘do it early,’ continued all night and throughout yesterday.” — Chicago Tribune, Dec. 26, 1909
4.3 inches (1933)
A group of skaters "cracking the whip" on a frozen pond at Welles Park on Dec. 25, 1933. Published in the Dec. 26, 1933, edition of the Chicago Tribune. (Chicago Tribune Archives)
“The snowfall began late in the afternoon, following a severe cold snap that dropped the mercury to an official 7 degrees above zero at 6 and 7 a.m. This made yesterday one of the coldest Christmases since 1903, when 3 below was recorded.” — Chicago Tribune, Dec. 26, 1933
4 inches (1951)
Drivers shovel to free their vehicles from clogged drifts on Beacon Street, looking south from Lawrence Avenue, in Chicago on Dec. 25, 1951. Published in the Dec. 26, 1951, edition of the Chicago Tribune.
“A ‘white Christmas’ beyond all expectations virtually paralyzed Chicago and much of the state yesterday, dotting streets and highways with thousands of stalled cars, and stranding thousands of hungry families miles from the holiday turkeys they were planning to eat with friends or relatives.” — Chicago Tribune, Dec. 26, 1951
3.9 inches (1935)
Willis Herman, right, takes Lillian Bertrang and Delores Koller for a sleigh ride in Lincoln Park aboard a 75-year-old cutter on Dec. 25, 1935. Published in the Dec. 26, 1935, edition of the Chicago Tribune. (Chicago Tribune Archives)
“Chicago florists complained that many of their Christmas flowers were frozen while being delivered through the zero weather, but in the subzero northwest flower dealers didn’t even bother to make deliveries.” — Chicago Tribune, Dec. 26, 1935
3.2 inches (1903)
As published in the Dec. 26, 1903, edition of the Chicago Tribune. (Chicago Tribune Archives)
“One death, numerous accidents, and delayed street car traffic have already resulted from the storm, which came unannounced and caught the city unawares.” — Chicago Tribune, Dec. 26, 1903
2.9 inches (1965)
Firefighters in Harvey aid Darlene Burton, left, her brother, Bernard, 3, and sister Donna, 7, after their home was flooded on Dec. 25, 1965. Published in the Dec. 26, 1965, edition of the Chicago Tribune. (Chicago Tribune Archives)
“Widespread flooding plagued the southern suburbs, where the weather bureau reported that 6.6 inches of rain fell on Christmas eve. The normal rainfall for the entire month of December here is only 1.9 inches.” — Chicago Tribune, Dec. 26, 1965
2 inches (2002)
Matthew Carney and his dog Ginger head downhill at Oz Park in Chicago on Dec. 25, 2002. (Nancy Stone/Chicago Tribune)
“Our Christmas Day snow has increased the city’s seasonal snow tally to 12.7 inches. That’s well ahead of normal and nearly one-third the normal amount of snow that falls over a full season.” — WGN-TV chief meteorologist Tom Skilling in the Chicago Tribune, Dec. 26, 2002
Sources: National Weather Service, National Centers for Environmental Information, Tribune archives


chicagotribune--2020-12-28--Rockford shooting: Judge denies bond for U.S. Army special forces sergeant charged in bowling alley

Rockford shooting: Judge denies bond for U.S. Army special forces sergeant charged in bowling alley shooting that killed 3 people, wounded 3 others

A bullet ripped through the shoulder of a 14-year-girl , and a 14-year-old boy was hit in the face .
@ @ @ @ @ , 65 , was on the first floor and began running toward the stairs to @ @ @ @ @ gunman fatally shot him in the torso , according to the complaint .
He managed @ @ @ @ @ floor before collapsing .

Winnebago County Sheriff Gary Caruana, center, listens Dec. 27, 2020, during a news conference as Rockford police Chief Dan O'Shea, left, identifies Duke Webb, of Florida, as the suspect in a triple homicide the night before. (Scott P. Yates / Rockford Register Star)
ROCKFORD, Ill. — An attorney for a U.S. Army special forces sergeant arrested in what authorities called an apparently random shooting at an Illinois bowling alley that left three people dead told an initial hearing on Monday that her client may suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder.
Duke Webb, 37, faces three counts of murder and three counts of first-degree attempted murder for injuring three other people in the shooting at Don Carter Lanes, in Rockford, on Saturday evening.
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According to Army service information, Webb had four deployments to Afghanistan, the most recent once ending in July.
His lawyer, Elizabeth Bucko, also told the hearing in a Winnebago County courtroom that Webb appeared to have issues with memory loss. She added that he will undergo mental health evaluations, the Rockford Register Star reported.
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The judge denied bond for Webb, meaning he will remain jailed. His arraignment was set for Feb. 16.
Duke Webb, a U.S. serviceman from Florida, has been charged in the deaths of three people and the wounding of three more in a shooting in Rockford. (Winnebago County Sheriff's Office)
Webb joined the Army in 2008 and was on leave Saturday. According to the Army, his first deployment to Afghanistan was from August to December 2009. His other deployments were from October 2013 to April 2014, from October 2014 to April 2015, and from January to July of this year.
Webb was taken into custody shortly after the shooting, Rockford Police Chief Dan O’Shea said Sunday. The suspect has no known ties to the victims and authorities “believe this was a completely random act,” O’Shea said.
A criminal complaint released Monday says Webb admitted to the shootings shortly after officers arrived on the scene, even showing officers where he’d placed two guns he had brought with him — a Glock .40 caliber and a Glock .380 caliber.
The complaint describes horrific scenes as the gunman opened fire just before 7 p.m. Saturday, first targeting a group of teenagers on the first floor of the two-story building.
A bullet ripped through the shoulder of a 16-year-girl, and a 14-year-old boy was hit in the face. Both survived. Thomas Furseth, 65, was on the first floor and began running toward the stairs to the second-floor bar when the gunman fatally shot him in the torso, according to the complaint. He managed to get to the second floor before collapsing.
The gunman then went up the stairs himself and opened fire in a bar area filled with up to 25 people. Dennis Steinhoff, 73, was fatally shot in the torso. Jerome Woodfork, 69, also was fatally shot and a witness later said they saw him falling from a second-floor balcony. His body was found below the balcony in a parking lot.
Tyrone Lewis, 62, survived, but was listed in critical condition. He was shot while in the bar area in the thigh, back, neck, groin and buttocks.
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Webb was twice awarded the Bronze Star. Among the other awards he has compiled was the Army Good Conduct Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Medal and the Combat Action Badge, according to the service information.
The Army has said Webb is a special forces assistant operations and intelligence sergeant assigned to Eglin Air Force Base in Florida. O’Shea did not explain why he was in Illinois.
The 14-year-old boy shot in the face was airlifted to a hospital in Madison, Wisconsin, in stable condition, and a 16-year-old girl who was shot in the shoulder was treated at a hospital and released.
Maj. Gen. John Brennan, commander of 1st Special Forces Command (Airborne), said in a statement Sunday night that Webb’s alleged actions were “shocking” and “completely out of character” with Webb’s 12 years of honorable service.
Rockford is a city of about 170,000 residents about 80 miles (130 kilometers) northwest of Chicago.
The bowling alley was closed when the shooting happened, in accordance with restrictions imposed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, O’Shea said. But a bar upstairs was open. The chief said the upstairs venue has double doors that open to the outside, ensuring the bar is in compliance with Illinois’ COVID-19 mitigation guidance.
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Most of the people at Don Carter Lanes escaped or hid, O’Shea said. The teens who were wounded were picking up food at the carryout section of the bowling alley, he said.
He said the suspect was apprehended without officers firing a shot.
Associated Press National Security Writer Robert Burns in Washington, D.C., and AP researcher Rhonda Shafner in New York also contributed to this report.
This story was first published on Dec. 28, 2020. It was updated on Dec. 29, 2020, to correct that one of the weapons was a Glock .380 caliber, not a .389 caliber, and that one of the injured victims was a 16-year-old girl, not 14.


chicagotribune--2020-12-28--Beavers make their home on the Northwestern University campus

Beavers , Illinois ’ largest rodents , are in city lagoons , rivers and streams .
They ’ re on @ @ @ @ @ Sometimes a nuisance , and at others a welcomed presence , beavers have found respite @ @ @ @ @ a switch from when they were wiped out by hunters and a sign that water @ @ @ @ @ long been on the upswing .

Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 6 A beaver swims through a lagoon on the Northwestern campus in Evanston on Dec. 24, 2020. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
Beavers, Illinois’ largest rodents, are in city lagoons, rivers and streams. They’re on Instagram, and TikTok. Sometimes a nuisance, and at others a welcomed presence, beavers have found respite all over the state, a switch from when they were wiped out by hunters and a sign that water quality and habitat possibilities have long been on the upswing.