chicagotribune--2020-02-12--Lyric Opera’s next season: A series of milestones from Andrew Davis’ departure and the Joffrey’s add

Lyric Opera’s next season: A series of milestones from Andrew Davis’ departure and the Joffrey’s addition

“ Lessons in Love and Violence.
” Five performances of a North American premiere , Sept. 27-Oct. 9 .
A @ @ @ @ @ with several other companies , the score is by George Benjamin , whom Freud considers @ @ @ @ @ contemporary opera composers .
I was blown away by ‘ Written on Skin , ’ @ @ @ @ @ hear that he was interested in writing a new piece , it seemed to me @ @ @ @ @ for Lyric to present the North American premiere of it.
” The work is a @ @ @ @ @ takes place in a contemporary totalitarian state , ” according to Lyric .

Next season will be an eventful one for Lyric Opera.
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Among the milestones: The 66th season will be conductor Andrew Davis’ last as music director and the Joffrey Ballet’s first as a resident company at Lyric Opera House.
In addition, once the current season ends, work will begin on installing new seats in the Ardis Krainik Theatre.
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As for repertoire, the 2020-21 season will feature the North American premiere of composer George Benjamin and librettist Martin Crimp’s “Lessons in Love and Violence” (opening Sept. 27); the Midwest premiere of composer Missy Mazzoli and librettist Royce Vavrek’s “Proving Up” (at Chicago Shakespeare Theater starting Jan. 16, 2021); and performances by sopranos Renee Fleming (Sept. 12) and Christine Goerke (March 7, 2021), among other events.
“Obviously, it’s a momentous year for us, with a new seating project taking place between the end of ‘42nd Street’ (June 21) and the opening of ‘Cavalleria Rusticana’ and ‘Pagliacci’ (Sept. 17),” says Lyric president and CEO Anthony Freud.
“We will have a 12-week window. It’s a tight window, given the scale of the work. The last performance of ‘42nd Street’ will be a matinee. Work will start on the evening of the last performance and will continue into the stage rehearsal period for ‘Cav’ and ‘Pag,’” adds Freud, using the opera world’s shorthand for the popular double-bill.
Enrique Mazzola being announced as new Lyric Opera music director in 2019. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
“And with Joffrey taking up residence in the opera house from the fall of this year, it will mark a major turning point for the Lyric.”
Equally significant, conductor Davis will pass the baton to music director designate Enrique Mazzola at the end of the 2020-21 season.
“He will have been music director for 21 years,” says Freud, who wanted a bright spotlight for the occasion.
“I was very keen that we make it very celebratory. … The final repertoire of the season is really anchored around Andrew.”
Davis will conduct Mozart’s “The Marriage of Figaro” (March 14, 2021); Stravinsky’s “the Rake’s Progress” (March 21, 2021); and a concert titled “A Knight to Celebrate” (April 10, 2021), with Davis leading the Lyric Opera Orchestra and Chorus in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 and a new a cappella work by composer Ed Frazier Davis, the conductor’s son.
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“The three productions that he’s conducting … couldn’t demonstrate more clearly his (Andrew Davis’) range. I’m also particularly thrilled that the ‘Knight to Celebrate’ is not what you would expect in an opera house. I think it’s wonderful for us to remember that he’s not only one of the great opera conductors, but he’s one of the great symphonic conductors.
“It’s a quite wonderful reflection of his years as music director.”
The next season also will mark conductor Mazzola’s second as music director designate. He’ll conduct Verdi’s “Attila” (opening Nov. 15) and Mazzoli’s “Proving Up” (Jan. 16, 2021).
“I think it’s very happy and comparatively unusual for someone who’s appointed music director but hasn’t yet started to have such a continual presence before he begins as music director in fall of 2021,” adds Freud.
Following is a chronological guide to the next season. All performances are at Lyric Opera, 20 N. Wacker Drive, unless otherwise noted. For details and tickets, phone 312-827-5600 or www.lyricopera.org.
“Opening Night 2020.” 6 p.m. Sept. 12. Lyric will open the season with something new. “We felt that the Lyric tradition of having an opera performance followed by the Opera Ball outside the opera house was something we wanted to rethink,” says Freud. So instead, this year soprano and Lyric creative consultant Renee Fleming will perform, followed by “dancing, champagne toasts and more” at the opera house, according to a Lyric statement.
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“Cavalleria Rusticana” and “Pagliacci.” Seven performances of an original Lyric production, Sept. 17-Oct. 10. The beloved double-bill will feature the Lyric debuts of Elena Pankratova and Evgenia Muraveva, plus the returns of Brian Jagde and Russell Thomas, conducted by Carlo Rizzi. “It’s a production that I feel very close to, because I originally commissioned it at the Welsh National Opera,” says Freud of his earlier tenure as that company’s general director.
“Lessons in Love and Violence.” Five performances of a North American premiere, Sept. 27-Oct. 9. A Lyric Opera co-commission and co-production with several other companies, the score is by George Benjamin, whom Freud considers “one of the greatest contemporary opera composers. I was blown away by ‘Written on Skin,’ and when I began to hear that he was interested in writing a new piece, it seemed to me that it would be wonderful for Lyric to present the North American premiere of it.” The work is a “political thriller, which takes place in a contemporary totalitarian state,” according to Lyric.
Sondra Radvanovsky as Floria in a previous performance of "Tosca," in Los Angeles. (Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times)
“Tosca.” Nine performances of a new-to-Chicago production, Nov. 7-29. The challenge of presenting a classic Puccini opera is “to find the right balance between providing audiences with what they expect ... and also injecting vitality, energy and a sense of imagination,” says Freud. Sondra Radvanovsky will star in one of her signature roles, with Joseph Calleja as Cavaradossi.
“Atilla.” Five performances of a new-to-Chicago production, Nov. 15-27. Music director designate Mazzola will conduct the second in Lyric’s series of early Verdi operas, all under his baton. “‘Atilla’ is a very different sort of piece, really early Verdi at its most energetic, most rhythmical, so much vitality,” says Freud. Russian bass Dmitry Belosselskiy will sing the title role, and Tamara Wilson will sing Odabella, which is “one of those impossible Verdi roles,” says Freud. “She has to dazzle with her vocal acrobatics and at the same time have vocal weight for really dramatic ensembles.”
“Proving Up.” Four performances of a Chicago premiere at Chicago Shakespeare Theater at Navy Pier, Jan. 16-23, 2021. Missy Mazzoli, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s composer-in-residence, has penned what Freud calls “a very intense chamber opera set in Nebraska in the 19th century. The title ‘Proving Up’ is the list of rules that settlers had to satisfy in order to be able to become homesteaders.” Though the story is historic, it has contemporary resonances, says Freud, because “it’s essentially about the American dream.” Lyric music director designate Mazzola will conduct.
“Samson and Delilah.” Seven performances of a new-to-Chicago production, Jan. 23-Feb. 13, 2021. Freud likens the spectacle of Saint-Saens’ opera to “a Cecil B. DeMille movie of a biblical story,” an apt comparison. “It involves enormous production forces, and the title roles are really demanding but absolutely thrilling when they’re done by artists who can really deliver them. It’s the kind of piece you only do if you have a great Samson and Delilah.” Lyric has Brandon Jovanovich as Samson and Clementine Margaine as Delilah.
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“The Elixir of Love.” Six performances of a new-to-Chicago production, Jan. 30-Feb. 14, 2021. Eun Sun Kim, the newly appointed music director of San Francisco Opera, makes her Lyric debut conducting Donizetti’s opera. In a season with “all this drama and all this tragedy, it’s important to inject some fun and humor and some romance,” says Freud. “And ‘Elixir’ is one of the most delightful of all Italian operas.”
“The Marriage of Figaro.” Ten performances of an original Lyric Opera production, March 14-April 11, 2021. These performances begin Andrew Davis’ farewell as Lyric music director. “‘Figaro’ was an obvious choice because it was the first opera he ever conducted at Lyric, before he became music director,” says Freud of Mozart and Da Ponte’s masterpiece. Chicago Shakespeare Theater artistic director Barbara Gaines will direct.
“The Rake’s Progress.” Six performances of a new-to-Chicago production, March 21-April 6, 2021. Davis will conduct Stravinsky’s 20th century classic, which hasn’t been seen at Lyric in over 25 years. “The synchronicity of the production is very meaningful to us,” says Freud. “It’s an iconic production that originated at Glyndebourne and is directed by John Cox, with whom Andrew has worked for about half a century. It’s David Hockney’s design, widely seen, but never here in Chicago.”
“Singin’ in the Rain.” Twenty-six performances of a new-to-Chicago production, June 4-27, 2021. The annual musical theater piece will be Theatre du Chatelet’s stage version of a film starring the singular Gene Kelly.
The season also will include:
“Sunday in the Park with Lyric’s Rising Stars.” 6 p.m. July 26. Changes in Lyric’s schedule, due partly to the Joffrey’s first season as a resident company, mean that “we can no longer schedule our (annual free) Millennium Park concert between Labor Day and opening night,” says Freud. Instead, it will take place this summer.
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“Christine Goerke in Recital.” Accompanied by pianist Malcolm Martineau, 3 p.m. March 7, 2021. The soprano who appears in Lyric’s production of Wagner’s “Ring” cycle will sing “repertoire that could not be more different,” says Freud.
“A Knight to Celebrate.” 7 p.m. April 10, 2021. Andrew Davis will conduct the Lyric Opera Orchestra and Chorus in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 and the world premiere of an a cappella piece by Ed Frazier Davis, his son.
Howard Reich is a Tribune critic.
hreich@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-02-13--Cubs closer Craig Kimbrel hopes a return to his normal spring routine will help him ‘put last year b

Cubs closer Craig Kimbrel hopes a return to his normal spring routine will help him ‘put last year behind us’

“ I just listened to my body ( in the offseason ) , ” Kimbrel said .
“ I ’ @ @ @ @ @ have to change a few things — run a little less , bike a little @ @ @ @ @ the knees and make sure my legs are still strong at the same time .
@

MESA, Ariz. — Craig Kimbrel’s 2019 season didn’t begin until June. It ended with a pair of late-game meltdowns as the Cubs collapsed in September.
So the Cubs and Kimbrel hope participating in spring training this year will be the first step in helping the seven-time All-Star closer regain his old form.
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“Terrible is kind of an understatement for what I felt I did last year,” Kimbrel said Thursday. “Going into this year, I’m going back to doing my job, getting on the mound and saving games.
“Time will tell. A lot of questions will be answered, but I have no doubt in my mind I’m going to get on the field and do my job this year. And I’ll put last year behind us.”
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Kimbrel, 31, has plenty to put in the closet. He didn’t sign until June 7 — reaching a three-year, $43 million deal with the Cubs — because teams were unwilling to compensate the Red Sox with a draft pick and waited until after the 2019 amateur draft to sign him.
Kimbrel made his Cubs debut three weeks later and allowed two home runs while mopping up a loss to the Pirates in his second appearance, setting the tone for a woeful season.
One month later, the Cubs placed Kimbrel on the injured list because of right knee inflammation that continued to nag him after he returned 15 days later. Two weeks after that, Kimbrel returned to the IL because of right elbow inflammation.
The lasting memories of the season, however, occurred during a crucial four-game series against the Cardinals at Wrigley Field. In the opener Sept. 19, Kimbrel allowed a game-winning home run to Matt Carpenter in the 10th inning after the Cubs had rallied with three runs in the bottom of the ninth.
Kimbrel on 2019: “Terrible is kind of an understatement” pic.twitter.com/e5KngNVlIH — Mark Gonzales (@MDGonzales) February 13, 2020
Two days later, with the Cubs up 8-7 entering the ninth, Yadier Molina and Paul DeJong hit Kimbrel’s first two pitches into the bleachers, essentially eliminating the Cubs from postseason contention for the first time since 2014.
Kimbrel, who didn’t pitch in the final week of the season, quipped that doubt crept in during “the times I was walking off the field and lost the lead.”
“I never run onto the field thinking I’m going to get beat or give up a run,” he said. “But too many times that was the case last year, and my job is to not make that happen.”
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The Cubs hope a normal spring training routine will allow Kimbrel to regain his sharpness and rhythm and will lead to improved health.
“I just listened to my body (in the offseason),” Kimbrel said. “I’m getting older. I have to change a few things — run a little less, bike a little more, take care of the knees and make sure my legs are still strong at the same time.”
Kimbrel said the right knee soreness caused him to open his delivery sooner and alter his mechanics, although he accepted full responsibility for his struggles.
“I knew what I was going through (during) the ups and downs of last year,” Kimbrel said. “At the time, I knew what I was struggling with and what I wasn’t getting to.
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“Right now I’m just putting it all together and making sure that I’m on top of everything, keeping my body healthy and be the best of me that I can be.”
Manager David Ross, who caught Kimbrel with the Braves and scouted Kimbrel’s workout last June that convinced the Cubs to sign him, stressed the need for “constant communication” during his pre-spring training meeting with players.
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“(Kimbrel) knows how to prepare for a season,” Ross said. “I’ll let him do his thing and work into it.”
Predominately a two-pitch pitcher, Kimbrel realizes he has little margin for error.
That was evident last season as his fastball dipped by 2 mph to 96.4 from its 2018 peak. Kimbrel allowed nine home runs in 20⅔ innings after allowing only 35 in 532⅓ career innings before joining the Cubs, and right-handed hitters batted .289 with five home runs in 38 at-bats against him.
“Right now I’m still building arm strength and getting my flexibility back and all those small things,” Kimbrel said. “It just takes a little time, and once I get there, the numbers will be looked at and played with. We’ll have time to look at that.”
As for the eye-opening spike in home runs, “I’m not going to make excuses,” Kimbrel said. “What happened, happened. We’ll try to keep it there.”


chicagotribune--2020-02-13--Chicagoans can ‘breathe a sigh of relief’: Friends and family of local couple with coronavirus are f

Chicagoans can ‘breathe a sigh of relief’: Friends and family of local couple with coronavirus are free of the illness

Health officials said they are no longer monitoring close contacts of the couple , though they declined to say how @ @ @ @ @ watching for symptoms .
Some health care workers who were in contact with the couple @ @ @ @ @ said Dr. Allison Arwady , commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health .
The @ @ @ @ @ Health St. Alexius Medical Center Hoffman Estates last week and have returned home , though @ @ @ @ @ .

Friends, family and community members who were in close contact with a Chicago couple who had the novel coronavirus are free and clear of the illness and the risk to the public remains low, local health officials said Thursday in Chinatown.
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Health officials said they are no longer monitoring close contacts of the couple, though they declined to say how many people they had been watching for symptoms. Some health care workers who were in contact with the couple are still being monitored, said Dr. Allison Arwady, commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health. The couple was released from Amita Health St. Alexius Medical Center Hoffman Estates last week and have returned home, though they are still being monitored.
“This is a huge milestone in terms of controlling this virus locally and should help everyone in the region breathe a sigh of relief,” Arwady said. “Right now, right here in Chicago and across the country, the risk is low."
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The Chicago woman who caught the virus, known as COVID-19, had recently traveled to Wuhan, China, and her husband caught it from her after she returned. The couple, both in their 60s, were the first instance of person-to-person transmission of the illness in the U.S. So far, there have been 15 cases in the U.S.
Health officials made the announcement during a morning press conference Thursday in Chinatown, which has seen business suffer as customers worried about catching the virus steer clear of the area, normally a bustling tourist destination. Business is down as much as 50% in some restaurants there.
Health officials and community leaders emphasized Chinatown is safe, and there’s no reason to avoid the neighborhood.
Arwady said she ate at a restaurant and went shopping in Chinatown, where tables were full during recent Lunar New Year celebrations, and Mayor Lori Lightfoot marched in the Lunar New Year parade.
“Please do not allow stigma, xenophobia or fear to control your decisions,” Arwady said. “Chinatown and all of Chicago are open for business.”
More than 60,000 cases have been reported worldwide, and more than 1,000 people have died, including two outside of China — in the Philippines and Japan, according to the World Health Organization, which has declared the virus an international public health emergency. About 14,840 cases were reported in Hubei Province overnight Thursday, though that spike is likely due to a new way of identifying those with the virus, through chest imaging, the World Heath Organization said.
Symptoms of the virus can include fever, cough and shortness of breath. It’s believed symptoms appear anywhere from two to 14 days after exposure.
O’Hare International Airport was among the first airports in the country to begin screening travelers for the virus and one of 11 where passengers are being routed if they’ve visited China within the prior 14 days. Those passengers are being asked about their health and travel and screened for fever, cough, or trouble breathing.
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Before the outbreak in Wuhan, thousands of passengers who’d recently traveled to China would pass through O’Hare each day, Arwady said. Now, that number is down to fewer than 100, she said. So far, none have showed symptoms of the sickness during screening, she said.
U.S.-based airlines stopped offering flights to and from mainland China after the U.S. government issued a “do not travel” warning for China. Foreign nationals who’ve visited China within 14 days are not allowed to enter the U.S. American citizens and lawful permanent residents who visited Hubei Province 14 days before entering the U.S. face mandatory quarantines for two weeks.
When asked if any travelers had been quarantined in the Chicago area, Arwady said, “We have used that process if we have someone who has come through Hubei Province.” She declined to say how many times.
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Americans who are returning from other parts of China and don’t show symptoms are being asked to monitor their health for two weeks, stay home and keep away from others as much as possible. The Chicago Department of Public Health is reaching out to those who’ve passed through O’Hare to make sure they’re checking for symptoms.
Initial screenings at airports won’t likely catch everyone with COVID-19, experts say.
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A University of Chicago epidemiologist recently released research showing airport screenings are likely to miss at least half of people with the virus.
Epidemiologist Katelyn Gostic was one of the lead authors on a 2015 study published in the peer-reviewed journal eLife that found airport screenings likely missed half to three-quarters of travelers with H1N1, MERS, SARS and Ebola. That rate of misses is likely similar for COVID-19, she found, in preliminary research submitted for peer review late last month.
“We know that screening is not all that effective,” Gostic said. “We know even if you screen, a lot of people will pass through undetected.”
Efforts to screen passengers for fevers aren’t always successful because people may not have developed symptoms yet, she said. And questionnaires aren’t always helpful because a person might not know he or she has been exposed, or might lie about their potential exposure out of fear their travel plans will be derailed, she said.
Still, she and other experts say there is some benefit to screenings. They may catch some people with the illness and could educate travelers about what to do if they develop symptoms after they leave the airport, she said.
“You can throw one or two sparks on the ground but it doesn’t guarantee that a fire is going to start," she said. "Airport screening is just one way we can try to stop those sparks from getting through, but it’s not the only way we can stamp them out or try to prevent a fire from spreading.”
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CDC officials have also said airport screenings are just one piece of what they’re doing to slow the spread of the sickness.
“We can and should be prepared for this new virus to gain a foothold in the U.S.," Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director for the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said during a call with reporters Wednesday. "The goal of the measures we have taken to date are to slow the introduction and impact of this disease in the United States but at some point, we are likely to see community spread in the U.S.”
Local health officials made similar comments Thursday, even after sharing the good news that the Chicago couple with the virus didn’t spread it to their friends or family.
“We expect it probably will get worse internationally before it gets better,” Arwady said. “If the level of risk to the general public changes, which it could further down the line, we will notify the public immediately.”


chicagotribune--2020-02-13--Undercover sting uncovers nearly $1 million in counterfeit sports merchandise at suburban business

Both police and private investigators made purchases of counterfeit caps , culminating in a purchase of 120 caps Tuesday and @ @ @ @ @ Gon-Kim , Costello said .
Investigators also seized large numbers of items in various stages @ @ @ @ @ , he said .

Authorities say two north suburban men ran a company called Mega Stitch II in Wheeling that made and sold caps emblazoned with NFL, MLB and NBA logos and other trademarked items. (Wheeling Police Department / HANDOUT)
Two north suburban men were charged Thursday with selling phony professional sports clothing after Wheeling police conducted an undercover sting and seized nearly $1 million in counterfeit items, authorities said.
June Lee, 54, of Buffalo Grove, and Hyung Gon-Kim, 63, of Gurnee, were each charged with violating the counterfeit trademark act, a class 1 felony.
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The two appeared at a bond hearing Thursday in Cook County Circuit Court in Rolling Meadows. Assistant state’s attorney Jack Costello said the two operated a company called Mega Stitch II in Wheeling that made and sold caps emblazoned with NFL, MLB and NBA logos and other trademarked items.
The company moved to a Des Plaines location last year and changed its name to Syke, Inc., he said.
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Costello said police seized 42,888 items worth $857,000 at the Des Plaines factory.
The company was selling the counterfeit materials on-line and in person-to-person transactions, Costello said. The undercover operation began last May and included a private investigation firm, Edward R. Kirby and Associates in Elmhurst.
Both police and private investigators made purchases of counterfeit caps, culminating in a purchase of 120 caps Tuesday and the arrest of Lee and Gon-Kim, Costello said. Investigators also seized large numbers of items in various stages of production and manufacturing machinery, he said.
Authorities say two north suburban men ran a company called Mega Stitch II in Wheeling that made and sold caps emblazoned with NFL, MLB and NBA logos and other trademarked items. (Wheeling Police Department)
Lee told police he had been in business for seven years and sold an average of 600 counterfeit caps a week, Costello said. Gon-Kim was the delivery driver for Lee, he said.
At the hearing, attorney David Kerstein said his clients posed no threat to the community and that the counterfeit charge is a non-violent crime.
Both men have lived in the area for more than a decade with their families and have no criminal history other than a misdemeanor DUI conviction Lee received in 2006, he said.
Judge Samuel Betar set a personal recognizance bond of $10,000 and granted Costello’s request that the men turn in their passports and have no contact with clothing production.
If convicted, the men could face up to 15 years in prison. Their next court date is March 11 in Rolling Meadows branch court.
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George Houde is a freelance reporter.


chicagotribune--2020-02-13--White Sox's Speed Pitch Challenge at Guaranteed Rate Field

The hillside home , which Garland , husband Vincente Minnelli , and daughter Liza Minnelli lived in from 1944–48 , @ @ @ @ @ for $ 6,129,000 .
But don ’ t let that price make you feel like @ @ @ @ @ , because the mansion is well worth the hefty price tag .
Real Estate News @ @ @ @ @

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chicagotribune--2020-02-13--3 takeaways from White Sox spring training Thursday, including Nomar Mazara’s fresh start

“ When he was up last year ( in June-July and again in September ) , he managed a few @ @ @ @ @ minimized damage from the other side , ” Renteria said .
“ It was his @ @ @ @ @ , ( he ) made in-game adjustments , continues to understand some of the things @ @ @ @ @ , moving in the box behind when he ’ s catching .
And I believe @ @ @ @ @ hit .
”

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Here are three takeaways from White Sox camp Thursday.
1. Nomar Mazara is ready for a fresh start.
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When the Sox acquired the right fielder from the Rangers in a trade for minor-leaguer Steele Walker on Dec. 10, Mazara’s reaction was “that’s baseball.”
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“That stuff is going to happen no matter what,” Mazara said Thursday. “It’s a little different when you’ve been with a team for a long time. I was there since I was 16 years old and it was a really good organization to me. But I can’t really get caught up in that. It’s baseball.
“This is a new beginning. I can’t look at that anymore. I have a fresh start with my team here. I’m with Chicago now.”
Mazara had a .268/.318/.786 slash line with 19 home runs and 66 RBIs in 2019. He hit .287 with seven homers in 34 games after the All-Star break and was on the injured list from Aug. 20 to Sept. 1 with a left oblique strain. Overall, he saw some positives to build on from his second half.
Nomar Mazara signs autographs on opening day of SoxFest at McCormick Place West on Jan. 24, 2020. (Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune)
“I’m ready to take that next step,” he said. “If you look back and see my second half, I had some really great approaches and I’m really looking forward to putting that in place this year.”
Mazara hit .288 in 302 at-bats against right-handers with 13 homers, 46 RBIs and an .844 OPS. He batted .220 in 127 at-bats against left-handers. Sox general manager Rick Hahn said Wednesday that Mazara will be the right fielder for the “bulk of the time.”
“Historically he’s had some struggles against lefties, but he’s now going to get the opportunity, at least early on, to show what he’s capable of doing,” Hahn said. "At the same time, we have guys like Leury Garcia in camp who can either spell him against lefties or just from time to time.
“Given the nature of our conversations we have in the front office, I caution against locking anything in before opening day. But that seems to be the direction this is heading at least to start the year.”
2. Rick Renteria’s advice to Nick Madrigal: ‘Just be himself.’
Second base is the one starting position up for grabs. The options include Leury Garcia, Danny Mendick and prospect Nick Madrigal.
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Madrigal is the No. 40 prospect in baseball, according to MLB Pipeline. He hit .311 at three minor-league levels last season.
When asked what it would take for Madrigal to make the opening roster, Sox manager Rick Renteria said, “He just has to be himself.”
“We’re not looking to try to make him do anything outside of himself,” Renteria said. “Just be himself, perform. We’ve said it before: They’ll tell you. They’ll tell you in their actions, in what they’re doing.
“How they perform speaks loudly. We just have to make sure that we make a good, sound decision. Draw good conclusions on everyone that we have in camp through the course of the spring.”
3. The 26th roster spot will be an ongoing discussion.
The Sox have two All-Star catchers on the roster in Yasmani Grandal and James McCann. Zack Collins, a first-round draft pick in 2016, is another option to fill in at catcher or designated hitter.
Zack Burdi (#62) among the White Sox pitchers throwing today. pic.twitter.com/wj2h4SXbok — LaMond Pope (@lamondpope) February 13, 2020
“When he was up last year (in June-July and again in September), he managed a few pretty good ballgames and he minimized damage from the other side,” Renteria said. “It was his awareness of the game plan, (he) made in-game adjustments, continues to understand some of the things that he has to do, moving in the box behind when he’s catching. And I believe he’s going to hit.”
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A third catcher could emerge as an option for the 26th roster spot.
“I don’t want to say that it is, and I don’t want to say that it isn’t,” Renteria said. “And I’m not going to lock myself into what we’re going to ultimately decide to do.
“As we start to see all the guys in camp and allow them to play and see how this roster ends up evolving and coming together, we’ll make a decision at that point. But I wouldn’t discount anything.”


chicagotribune--2020-02-13--Dallas Keuchel arrives at White Sox spring training ahead of schedule — and has already proved himse

Dallas Keuchel arrives at White Sox spring training ahead of schedule — and has already proved himself to be ‘valuable’

“ If they want to talk to me about anything , I ’ m more than open to talk to @ @ @ @ @ Keuchel said .
“ It ’ s one of those things where we ’ ve @ @ @ @ @ We ’ ve got to remember the past but we ’ ve got to look @ @ @ @ @ out what the best route is to go .
”

White Sox starting pitcher Dallas Keuchel follows through on a pitch against the Rays in the seventh inning June 15, 2021, at Guaranteed Rate Field. (Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune)
GLENDALE, Ariz. — Dallas Keuchel had his bullpen session Tuesday. On Wednesday, the left-handed pitcher watched some of his new White Sox teammates throw. And he came away impressed.
“I was very thankful that I threw mine on Tuesday,” Keuchel joked, “because some of these guys were coming out of the tank throwing 93 or 95 with little amount of effort.”
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The 2015 American League Cy Young Award winner was still a free agent at this time last year, so he didn’t go through a traditional spring training. He’s excited to have that chance this spring with the Sox.
“It’s fun for me to be out here, although I was in Newport Beach, Calif., (last season), so that’s a little slice of heaven in itself,” Keuchel said Thursday.
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“But just being around the guys early and knowing the things that are going to go on and waking up in the morning and getting here early and watching some video and having breakfast with the guys, it’s what it’s all about.”
The Sox signed Keuchel to a three-year, $55.5 million deal in the offseason, and his contract includes a team option for 2023.
Manager Rick Renteria is already noticing Keuchel’s impact.
“When you look at (a) Cy Young Award winner, (four)-time Gold Glove winner, he’s been in the battle and we talk about all that,” Renteria said. “Those are other things that you can’t really replicate. And he’s a bright man. He can articulate a message. When you’re able to put words to insight and connect with your teammates, it’s very valuable.
“And fortunately for us, we’re going to have not only Keuchel, but a couple of other guys that have been through those battles and be able to share information.”
Keuchel said he enters this spring training ahead of schedule.
“I’m not used to that the last couple of years, just kind of battling some nagging stuff here and there,” he said. “It really taxes you mentally to think about what it’s going to be like, if that’s the feeling you’re going to have every day.
“I really tried this offseason to take care of myself as much as possible with recovery, with diet, with everything. Honestly this is the best I’ve felt in a number of years. So that really helps out the mental edge coming in.”
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Dallas Keuchel on the start of spring training: pic.twitter.com/cwZkwSX1k2 — LaMond Pope (@lamondpope) February 13, 2020
Keuchel went 8-8 with a 3.75 ERA in 19 starts last season after signing with the Braves on June 7.
He spent his first seven seasons with the Astros and was a member of the 2017 World Series championship team. Keuchel addressed the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal last month at SoxFest and offered an apology.
“I chose the remorse route because, hey, personally, I felt like that was what was owed,” Keuchel said. “I owed it to my family and that’s how I was raised. I’m going to remember that, but at the same time, I’m going to try to help this organization win for the next three, hopefully four years down the road.”
He said he’s open to discussing anything with his new teammates.
“If they want to talk to me about anything, I’m more than open to talk to them about it,” Keuchel said. “It’s one of those things where we’ve got to move on. We’ve got to remember the past but we’ve got to look toward the future and figure out what the best route is to go.”
That future, Keuchel hopes, includes helping the Sox reach the postseason.
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“I told (general manager) Rick Hahn this: I said, ‘Four out of the last five years, I’ve made the playoffs, and I don’t expect any of these three years to be any different,’ ” Keuchel said. “He knows where I stand on that, and that was a big talking point before I signed. I liked where they were at, where they were headed. But ultimately it didn’t just stop with (catcher Yasmani Grandal) and myself. He’s made that point clear.
“It’s ultimately about performance on the field, but at the same time, if you don’t talk about it, I feel like you don’t really want it.”


chicagotribune--2020-02-13--United Airlines extends China flight cancellations amid coronavirus outbreak

The virus COVID-19 , which emerged late last year , has killed 1,367 people in mainland China , and three @ @ @ @ @ — one each in Hong Kong , the Philippines and Japan .
On Thursday , @ @ @ @ @ , up 15,152 from its previous figure .
More than 13,000 of the newly reported @ @ @ @ @ a new method of counting cases .
WHO said Thursday that there were 447 confirmed @ @ @ @ @

United Airlines said Wednesday it will suspend flights to China and Hong Kong through late April as the coronavirus outbreak continues to spread.
Chicago-based United had planned to resume flying between its U.S. hubs and Hong Kong on Feb. 20 before restarting flights to mainland China in late March. The airline typically has about 12 flights each day between the U.S. and China, including flights connecting Chicago to Beijing and Shanghai.
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The three U.S. carriers that fly to China halted flights between the U.S. and mainland China after the State Department issued a “do not travel” warning for the country Jan. 30. The U.S. government has since imposed travel restrictions and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention quarantines on travelers who have been in China within two weeks of attempting to enter the U.S.
American Airlines has already suspended flights to mainland China and Hong Kong through April 23 or 24, depending on the destination. Delta Air Lines’ cancellations extend through April 30.
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“We will continue to monitor the situation in China and evaluate our schedule as we remain in close contact with the CDC and other public health experts around the globe,” United said in a statement.
The virus COVID-19, which emerged late last year, has killed 1,367 people in mainland China, and three other fatalities have been reported — one each in Hong Kong, the Philippines and Japan. On Thursday, China reported 59,804 confirmed cases, up 15,152 from its previous figure. More than 13,000 of the newly reported infections were a result of a new method of counting cases. WHO said Thursday that there were 447 confirmed cases outside of China.
The Associated Press contributed.
lzumbach@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-02-13--Look up how many people in your town had their FOID cards revoked — and how many haven’t accounted f

Look up how many people in your town had their FOID cards revoked — and how many haven’t accounted for their guns

And as many as 36,600 weapons are unaccounted for , the data indicates , despite laws that require people who @ @ @ @ @ turn their guns in to police or transfer them to a legal owner .
Common @ @ @ @ @ domestic violence-related infractions , mental health concerns and felony convictions .

A Tribune analysis of updated Illinois State Police data shows that as many as 30,600 Illinoisans have failed to surrender or otherwise account for their guns after police stripped them of their firearm owner’s identification cards over the last five years.
And as many as 36,600 weapons are unaccounted for, the data indicates, despite laws that require people who lose their FOID cards to turn their guns in to police or transfer them to a legal owner. Common reasons for FOID revocations include domestic violence-related infractions, mental health concerns and felony convictions. Data below is as of Dec. 31, 2019, and numbers are subject to change over time.
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Read more: A man with a revoked gun license killed his 18-month-old son in Joliet. Here’s how he and thousands of others slipped through the system.
Don’t see the map and chart? That’s probably because you are on a custom link made for search or social platforms. Try this link.


chicagotribune--2020-02-13--Column: Humble? The Cubs? This should be interesting to see.

Asked what he took out of his 2019 season , Almora said : “ I don ’ t think it @ @ @ @ @ Obviously as a team we didn ’ t win .
We didn ’ t get @ @ @ @ @ ’ s a big no-no .
And for myself , it wasn ’ t up @ @ @ @ @ hold myself to a high standard and I definitely put in the work to try @ @ @ @ @ ’ m in a good mental spot right now , and that ’ s all @ @ @ @ @ .
”

MESA, Ariz. — As the Cubs begin their quest to erase the bad vibes from last year’s collapse, Anthony Rizzo informed the media there’s a different feeling in the clubhouse.
“It’s a new opportunity,” Rizzo said. “It’s going to be something that grows more and more, confidence-wise. We’re a confident group, but we’re also a humble group right now.”
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Humble? The Chicago Cubs? Theo Epstein’s Cubs?
Humble is a word I wouldn’t normally attach to the Cubs, one of the cockiest, most self-assured groups I’ve been around in more than three decades of covering baseball. The once-lovable losers changed their stripes for good several years ago, and it wasn’t just the players.
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It all starts at the top, and whether it was the Rickettses’ dealings with the city of Chicago during the Wrigley Field renovation plan, or business President Crane Kenney’s attempt to impose a “Cubs tax” on all Cactus League ballparks to fund the team’s spring training complex, or the constant calls from public relations employees to newspaper editors complaining about the coverage, this was one of the least humble organizations in professional sports.
Of course that attitude often worked to the Cubs’ advantage. Former Mayor Rahm Emanuel bent over backward to allow the Cubs to add a video scoreboard and other revenue-enhancing amenities to Wrigley. The Cubs got the city of Mesa to build Sloan Park and what’s now called the Nike Performance Center, both huge successes.
And the players’ overwhelming confidence in themselves was on full display during their championship run in 2016.
Rizzo, Jake Arrieta, Jon Lester, John Lackey and Javier Baez, among others, talked the talk and walked the walk, while manager Joe Maddon proved to be the perfect ring leader.
Lester on preparation for 2020: pic.twitter.com/2Il8ssZ9xu — Mark Gonzales (@MDGonzales) February 13, 2020
The Cubs retained that same brash attitude through 2018 — even after losing to the Dodgers in the 2017 National League Championship Series — only to blow a division lead in September, lose Game 163 to the Brewers and then succumb to the Rockies in the wild-card game.
“Sometimes you need to get your (bleep) knocked in the dirt to appreciate it,” Lester said after the wild-card loss. “Maybe we needed that.”
Maybe, but it didn’t seem to change things in 2019, when they blew another golden opportunity down the stretch.
So did this Cubs core need a humbling after missing out on the playoffs?
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“I already feel humble,” catcher Willson Contreras said. “I’m not going to disagree with Rizzo. If he feels like that, that’s good. But for me, I’m more realistic. I know we haven’t made the playoffs in the last two years, but that doesn’t mean we cannot make the playoffs this year.
"I’m already looking forward to winning as many games as we can this season, and hopefully we make it to the playoffs.”
Contreras can be forgiven for forgetting that cameo playoff appearance in 2018, which ended with the same empty feeling as not making it at all.
Certainly Maddon’s brash personality bled over into the clubhouse the last five years, so a change in attitude was inevitable. New manager David Ross is a bit more self-effacing, perhaps because of spending his career as a backup catcher, and knows the more success you have, the easier it is to lose sight of what’s most important.
“Sometimes success can bring a lack of things; the focus can get awry at times,” Ross said. “We tend to focus on some other details as our careers evolve. A lot of these guys have gone through a path of success. Still a lot of good talent and good numbers getting put up there, but the attention to detail and the winning ways I find important are what I’m going to hammer home.”
Nothing humbles a player like being demoted to the minors after a prolonged period in the majors. Albert Almora Jr., Ian Happ and David Bote were sent down to Triple-A Iowa last year, and all will be fighting to regain their status as major contributors in 2020.
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Asked what he took out of his 2019 season, Almora said: “I don’t think it was a positive one. Obviously as a team we didn’t win. We didn’t get to the playoffs. That’s a big no-no. And for myself, it wasn’t up to my standards. I hold myself to a high standard and I definitely put in the work to try and correct things. I’m in a good mental spot right now, and that’s all I can really ask for.”
Admitting you need to improve is the first step. There’s no shortage of Cubs players, like Almora, who have started off spring training with blunt assessments of their 2019 performances.
“Terrible is kind of an understatement for what I felt like I did last year,” said closer Craig Kimbrel, who imploded in living color during the collapse.
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“I feel like I let a lot of our guys down,” added Lester, who posted a 6.70 ERA in eight starts from August through mid-September. “I felt like I let our rotation down those middle months, not taking the ball and giving the innings I’m normally expected to give.”
The bottom line is the computers and oddsmakers now deem the Cubs a non-playoff team.
Last year a Cubs employee wrote the PECOTA projection of an 80-82 record and fifth-place finish on the daily bulletin board in case players missed it. But Ross has no interest in PECOTA. He said he doesn’t have the time to go on the internet and doesn’t want to deal with any kind of outside negativity.
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Still, for the first time in a while, the Cubs will enter a season as underdogs, a feeling many of the younger players have yet to experience.
“I don’t know how that room feels,” Ross said. “I don’t want to speak for the players, but from my perspective from how camp is going so far, there’s a lot of energy, a renewed focus I see.”
Maybe a little humbling was all the Cubs needed.
We’re about to find out.


chicagotribune--2020-02-13--Prosecutors considering charges in Deerfield hit-and-run that seriously injured boy with autism: pol

Prosecutors considering charges in Deerfield hit-and-run that seriously injured boy with autism: police

The person of interest , who was interviewed Wednesday and released sometime before Thursday afternoon , is the driver suspected @ @ @ @ @ crash , which happened during the evening Feb. 7 near Deerfield Road and Beverly Place @ @ @ @ @ deputy police chief for Deerfield .

Emergency service personnel on the scene of a hit-and-run crash involving a pedestrian at Deerfield Road and Beverly Place in Deerfield on Feb. 7. (Joe Shuman / Pioneer Press)
Lake County prosecutors are considering charges related to the hit-and-run crash that seriously injured a Deerfield boy with autism after a person of interest was questioned and released from custody, Deerfield police said Thursday.
The person of interest, who was interviewed Wednesday and released sometime before Thursday afternoon, is the driver suspected of being involved in the crash, which happened during the evening Feb. 7 near Deerfield Road and Beverly Place, said Tom Keane, deputy police chief for Deerfield.
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Keane said the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office is reviewing the case to determine what charges, if any, will be filed. No one, yet, has been arrested or charged since investigators started working the case, he said.
The crash happened after 12-year-old Chase Thompson, who is autistic and non-verbal, wandered into the street after leaving his family’s home nearby without the family’s knowledge and without a coat or shoes.
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Chase Thompson - Original Credit: News-Sun (Courtesy Of The Thompson Family / Handout)
Later that weekend, Chase’s father, Thad Thompson, offered a $10,000 reward for any information that led to a conviction of the driver, as police continued to investigate the incident.
On Wednesday, police said they were interviewing a person of interest in the crash and recovered a car that investigators believe was involved in the hit-and-run crash. Keane confirmed Thursday that Deerfield police received a tip that helped investigators identify the person of interest and the car.
Thad Thompson also told Pioneer Press on Thursday that his son is slowly improving but remains on a respirator in critical condition at Lurie Children’s Hospital.
“Each day, he’s improving a little bit,” Thompson said. “All the news is good. None of it is bad. We’re waiting for him to get off the respirator. That’s the hurdle we need to get over."
Steve Sadin is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.


chicagotribune--2020-02-13--A man with a revoked gun license killed his 18-month-old son in Joliet. Here’s how he and thousands

A man with a revoked gun license killed his 18-month-old son in Joliet. Here’s how he and thousands of others slipped through the system.

“ The fact is without additional resources to be able to remove illegally possessed ( firearms ) … the odds @ @ @ @ @ another tragedy will occur , ” Kelly said .
“ We have been able to @ @ @ @ @ means we have to sacrifice in other areas .
But if we are going to @ @ @ @ @ anything close to 100 % compliance then we have to have additional resources .
”

Stacy St. Clair, Cecilia Reyes, Annie Sweeney, Sarah Freishtat

Cassandra Tanner Miller's 18-month-old son was shot to death by his father with a gun that he was no longer legally allowed to possess. Illinois State Police had ordered Christopher Miller to relinquish his weapons after they deemed him too dangerous to own a firearm, but he ignored the directive. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
By the time Christopher Miller showed up at his estranged wife’s backdoor in September 2019 with a pistol in his waistband, state authorities already had declared him too dangerous to own firearms.
He had lost his gun license 20 months earlier after being charged with aggravated battery for brutally beating a man in a Naperville parking lot. He disregarded orders to relinquish any weapons, and no one made sure he complied.
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Miller startled his wife that autumn afternoon as she moved around the kitchen making a snack for her daughter. With cocaine and alcohol in his system, he stared at Cassandra Tanner Miller with hazel eyes so dilated they appeared black.
“Are you all ready to die today?” he asked as he suddenly burst into the Joliet house.
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Within minutes, Miller had choked his wife until she lost consciousness and fatally shot his 18-month-old son, Colton, with a .22-caliber Ruger — one of at least three handguns in his possession despite orders from the Illinois State Police to relinquish any firearms in January 2018. Miller fired that illicit gun so many times, at least 10, the coroner could not definitively track the bullets that shattered the toddler’s skull.
Cassandra Tanner Miller shows a picture of her son, Colton, who was killed by her estranged husband with a gun he shouldn't have had. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
With his son dead, Miller, a captain in the Illinois National Guard, put the Ruger to his head and pulled the trigger.
The Miller murder-suicide serves as yet another indictment of the system’s failure to effectively reduce the growing backlog of people deemed too dangerous to possess firearms. The issue first came to light on Feb. 15, 2019, after a convicted felon fatally shot five co-workers and wounded several others, including five police officers, at the Henry Pratt Co. warehouse in Aurora with a pistol he never should have been allowed to keep.
Disgruntled employee Gary Martin had been ordered to relinquish that handgun five years earlier, after authorities discovered he erroneously had been issued a Firearm Owner’s Identification Card and purchased the Smith & Wesson despite a felony conviction for beating his girlfriend with a baseball bat. He never complied and authorities never followed through, leaving the weapon available for him to kill his colleagues before dying in a shootout with police.
[ Aurora mass shooting: Gunman opened fire after being told he was losing job ]
The tragedy prompted frightening admissions from police about the depth of the revocation problem and their difficulty addressing it without additional resources. A Tribune investigation in the months that followed found their warnings justified, with about 80% of revoked cardholders failing to account for their guns with local law enforcement.
Since the Aurora shooting and a year after officials sounded the alarms, the number of revoked FOID cardholders who have not accounted for their guns rose 14%, from 26,797 in February 2019 to 30,602 people in December.
Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 38 During a ceremony on Feb. 15, 2022 marking the third anniversary of the mass shooting at Henry Pratt Co. in Aurora, the family of Vicente Juarez, one of the victims, gathers in front of the five crosses honoring those who died that day in 2019. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
This increase means an additional 5,800 firearms may still be in the possession of people ineligible to possess them — a nearly 20% jump over the same time period. All told, at least 36,600 guns remain unaccounted for in Illinois, according to state records.
“We’ve made minimal progress at best,” said Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart, an early proponent for revocation reforms. “We need to get very serious about this. … When you see the numbers we are looking at, the public would be rightfully scratching their heads.”
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Just as Martin and Miller ignored orders to relinquish their weapons, the Illinois Senate ignored law enforcement’s pleas for help enforcing rescinded FOID cards.
Christopher Miller, 35, shot his 18-month-old son, Colton, and then killed himself with a gun that he was no longer legally allowed to possess. (Stickney Police Department)
And in doing so, those legislators ignored the risk posed to people such as Colton Miller, a little boy who loved monster trucks, Batman and his big sister.
When his mother held his body for the last time at the funeral home, Colton had a prosthetic skull to replace the one his father destroyed with bullets. It’s a fate no mother should have to endure, but one that seemed particularly cruel to Tanner Miller, who left her husband a year before so her children could grow up in a home free from domestic violence and drug use.
Five months after Colton’s death, Tanner Miller struggles to understand how a system that legally declares people too menacing to possess firearms does so little to ensure that they actually relinquish their weapons.
“A gun didn’t kill my son,” Tanner Miller said. “A criminal who was not supposed to have a gun anymore killed him.”
‘It’s not all hopeless'
In the wake of the Pratt shooting, Illinois State Police made major changes to how FOID card revocation details are shared among law enforcement, taking the unprecedented step of creating a portal listing every revoked cardholder statewide.
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The database, which is accessible to most police departments, includes crucial details about firearms purchasing history for each revoked cardholder and the reason for the revocation. It also states whether revoked FOID holders have turned in their cards and legally transferred their guns to someone else’s possession.
The new database has been accessed 13,000 times by some 600 law enforcement agencies, according to Illinois State Police Director Brendan Kelly, who has made revocation compliance a top priority since taking office shortly before the Pratt shooting.
The state also has led 200 revocation missions since May, Kelly said. The number of returned firearm disposition records — paperwork confirming revoked cardholders have legally transferred any weapons — has doubled in the past year from 2,039 in 2018 to 4,219 in 2019.
The Tribune found the compliance rate among revoked FOID holders improved from to 22% to 27% since the newspaper first reported on the state’s backlog in May. The updated records span nearly five years, from March 2015 to the end of 2019.
“It’s not all hopeless,” Kelly said. “Since the tragedy in Aurora, there has been real progress made.”
While police agencies improved compliance rates on new revocations, there has been little progress on those that existed prior to the Pratt shooting. The Tribune’s analysis of once closely held Illinois State Police data — including how often each rescinded cardholder made a serious inquiry about purchasing a gun from a licensed dealer — shows that the ballooning backlog poses a public safety threat to every county in Illinois.
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Statewide, about 7 of every 10 revoked FOID cardholders still failed to account for their firearms, the data shows. In some communities, that rate exceeded 90%.
The backlog changes almost daily, but there has never been time when those compliant with their revocation orders outpaced those who flouted them.
Among other findings in the Tribune’s investigation:
• Domestic violence-related infractions are still the most common reason for a resident’s card to be revoked, followed by mental health concerns and felony convictions.
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• The state rescinded more than 3,400 FOID cards for domestic violence-related reasons since the Pratt shooting. Of those former cardholders, 73% have not accounted for any guns.
“The fact is without additional resources to be able to remove illegally possessed (firearms) … the odds still remain too high that another tragedy will occur,” Kelly said. “We have been able to cobble this together but that means we have to sacrifice in other areas. But if we are going to have any chance of reaching anything close to 100% compliance then we have to have additional resources.”
To reduce the backlog, state Rep. Kathleen Willis, D-Addison, proposed legislation that, among other things, would have raised the FOID application fee from $10 for a 10-year FOID card to $20 for five years. Some of the additional revenue would have funded law enforcement teams to track down revoked cardholders and account for their weapons.
The legislation — which also included a fingerprint requirement for more thorough criminal background checks before applicants obtain a FOID card — sparked heated debate as members of the gun rights community objected to the fee increase as a Second Amendment infringement and vowed to sue if it passed. Many gun advocates told the Tribune they support keeping firearms away from those barred by law, but they object to FOID cardholders bearing the cost alone.
The Illinois House ultimately approved the bill in a 62-52 vote that followed about three hours of impassioned speeches on the House floor.
Despite optimism that it would move through the Senate, it stalled there with Democratic sponsors acknowledging they ran out of time to sway lawmakers who feared curtailing Second Amendment rights.
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“I was disappointed it didn’t pass in the Senate,” said Rep. John Connor, D-Lockport. “There’s no guarantee that the legislation would have prevented Colton’s murder. But it sure would have put some things in place that could have.”
[ Illinois gun licensing bill prompted by Aurora mass shooting fails, but supporters vow to bring it back ]
'It’s not about taking away anyone’s rights’
Two weeks after Miller’s arrest in 2018, Illinois State Police sent a letter to Miller, Joliet police and the Will County sheriff’s office informing them that Miller’s FOID card was revoked, an ISP spokeswoman said. Joliet police say they have no record of receiving the notification and Will County had no jurisdiction over the matter because Miller lived in neighboring Kendall County.
Christopher Miller, in his Illinois National Guard dress uniform. (Family photo)
Miller told his wife about the revocation notice and promised to take care of it. Tanner Miller, who was eight months pregnant with Colton and struggling in the abusive marriage, assumed police would ensure he complied or arrest him again.
The Joliet Police Department had one of the state’s few dedicated revocation compliance teams before the Pratt shooting, but the four-member task force only works on FOID cases about once a week. The bulk of the team’s investigations focus on burglaries, robberies and home invasions.
With a current backlog of about 600 rescinded cardholders who haven’t accounted for their guns, Joliet currently does not have the money or the personnel needed to clear the list and handle the incoming revocations, a department spokesman said. Most communities wouldn’t be able to do it either.
“Having funding for a dedicated multijurisdictional task force — state, county and city — that exclusively focuses on FOID revocations could help address the backlog and address new revocations within a given area,” Joliet police Sgt. Christopher Botzum said. “Most departments do not have the manpower to dedicate a person to address the issue.”
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And that’s how Miller ended up armed with a pistol at his wife’s backdoor on that warm Saturday afternoon in September.
After barging into the home, he punched Tanner Miller repeatedly in the face, hit her with a 3-foot candleholder and then choked her until she lost consciousness. He also attacked his 9-year-old stepdaughter, biting and pinning her down until she managed to break his hold and pull her mother outside the house to safety.
Cassandra Tanner Miller's estranged husband burst into her home, strangled her until she became unconscious, attacked her daughter and fatally shot their 18-month-old son before turning the gun on himself. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
Tanner Miller and her daughter, Camryn, made it as far as the next door neighbor’s garage when they heard gunshots coming from the second story of her home.
“Colton just didn’t die that day,” she said with a sob that sounded closer to a howl. “We all died in that house.”
Tanner Miller, who has a FOID card but does not own firearms, has not read the pending revocation legislation. But she says something has to change and it need not devolve into a debate over the Second Amendment.
“It’s not taking away anyone’s rights. It’s taking guns away from people who legally shouldn’t have them," she said. “It’s about addressing the crime of (not complying with) a revoked license before it turns into a crime scene.”
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Cassandra Tanner Miller wears a necklace containing a lock hair from her son Colton, who was fatally shot by her estranged husband with a gun he did not legally possess. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
The Senate could vote on the so-called Fix the FOID legislation during the current session, with the support of Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Senate President Don Harmon, D-Oak Park. Pritzker went to Aurora hours after the Pratt shooting and publicly promised change, but instead saw the revocation backlog significantly increase in his first year.
“As we mourn,” the governor said in a statement Wednesday, “we must honor the memories of our fellow Illinoisans and do everything in our power to prevent future tragedies and enact common sense reform.”
Even still, the legislation likely will face even stronger opposition from gun rights advocates, who are currently suing state police over a backlog of the more than 60,000 FOID applicants who are waiting for approval.
[ Gun rights groups sue Illinois State Police, saying delays in FOID and concealed carry applications infringe on right to bear arms ]
The Second Amendment lobby also questions whether the extra money would go directly to revocation teams. They’re skeptical of any additional funding following the release of a Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability document showing that between 2015 and 2018, $13.2 million had been swept from the State Police Firearms Services Fund and into the general fund.
Illinois State Police acknowledge the money was moved under the previous administration to fill budget holes but pledged the FOID fee increase would be used for its intended purpose. The gun advocates remain unmoved.
“You’re talking about a fundamental constitutional right,” longtime gun rights lobbyist Todd Vandermyde said. “If it’s a public safety issue then the state needs to fund it on its own. … We’re not going to pay more for our rights.”
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Senate sponsor Julie Morrison, D-Deerfield, says the bill remains a top priority, though there is no timetable for its potential passage.
“Sitting around and wringing our hands doesn’t do anything,” Morrison said. “Feeling sorry for the victims’ families doesn’t get us anywhere. We need to take action and that’s what this bill does. It fixes a major flaw that we have recognized due to that tragedy.”
State Sen. Julie Morrison talks with gun control supporters at a rally outside the State Capitol. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)
Meanwhile, families of Pratt victims are seeking their own relief, filing lawsuits against the ISP.
The state currently faces two complaints from victims’ families and four others from survivors of the Pratt shooting for issuing Martin a FOID card and then failing to enforce its subsequent revocation. The pending suits allege Illinois State Police knowingly created a public safety risk by allowing the revocation backlog to grow so large.
Those killed were union chairman Russell Beyer; human resources manager Clayton Parks; plant manager Josh Pinkard, forklift operator Vicente Juarez and college student Trevor Wehner, who had started his internship that day.
Juarez’s family said it would mean a lot to the family to see lawmakers take action.
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“Other families wouldn’t have to go through what we went through if they (do) this faster and get that settled,” Juarez’s son, Christian, said.
Several missed opportunities
ISP Director Kelly says the agency has been looking at how other states handle revocations, including California, which resolved 53,000 cases in five years. The effort came after the state legislature earmarked $24 million for the state attorney general’s office to manage the list of prohibited gun owners and train law enforcement teams to locate them and account for any weapons.
Dr. Garen Wintemute, an emergency room doctor by training who also researches gun violence at University of California at Davis, said the California approach is the only one of its kind in the country.
But Wintemute said there is no reason Illinois can’t take a similar tack.
“It’s a big investment, but, yes, it can be done,” he said. “They key question is what will it take for Illinois leadership and Illinois citizens to develop a sense of imperative to make this happen?”
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Even without the changes to state law, there were several opportunities to force Miller to relinquish his guns. The Tribune could find no record of any public servant trying.
Tanner Miller says she contacted the Illinois National Guard for help after leaving her husband and told them about his arrest, which should have disqualified him from service. Miller, who served for a decade and never deployed, remained with his unit. An Illinois National Guard spokesman declined to comment, citing an ongoing internal investigation into the matter.
When Miller surrendered to the Naperville Police Department on Jan. 10, 2018, following the battery charge, he posted $5,000 and was released with an order to go to the DuPage County courthouse for his arraignment six weeks later.
That less common circumstance — his posting his bond immediately — meant Miller did not appear before a judge at a bond hearing, so no conditions of his release were set. Facing a felony charge, Miller, per the long-standing practice in DuPage, likely would have received an order to turn in his FOID card and account for any weapons.
When Miller appeared for his arraignment, prosecutors did not ask to revisit his bail or consider his revoked status.
Christopher Miller fatally shot his toddler son, Colton, and then himself with this .22-caliber Ruger pistol. Illinois State Police had ordered him to relinquish his weapons after they deemed him too dangerous to own a firearm, but he ignored the directive. ( Joliet Police Department)
More than a year after his arrest, and months after the Pratt shooting, Tanner Miller says she called DuPage County prosecutors as they were prepping for the trial, and told them her estranged husband still owned guns despite having a revoked FOID card. She had been listed as a possible witness and was concerned for her safety if she testified against him.
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DuPage County State’s Attorney’s spokesman Paul Darrah confirmed that Tanner Miller raised this concern, and said prosecutors instructed her to get an order of protection. Darrah said he couldn’t “speculate” whether prosecutors should have notified the judge or local law enforcement about Miller’s illegal gun possession.
In August 2019 while still out on bail, Miller was arrested for felony cocaine possession in Stickney and booked into Cook County Jail. Police reports do not mention his FOID revocation.
Cook County prosecutors made no mention of possible firearms at his bond hearing — even though every state’s attorney’s office in Illinois has been given access to the revocation database as part of ISP reforms last year.
A representative of Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx said in an email that prosecutors look at FOID revocation status “where it is relevant to the case,” including charges that involve guns or violent crimes. Prosecutors knew Miller was facing trial for felony battery in DuPage, but they determined his FOID status was not germane to his drug case and did not check.
Miller was released on a personal recognizance bond and walked out of Cook County Jail, where a defendant’s revocation status is not part of the background check conducted prior to release.
In the fierce debate over gun rights, the courts seem to be one of the few places where both sides find common ground. Most agree prosecutors and judges need to be doing more to address FOID revocations, so the burden doesn’t rest solely with law enforcement.
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“When they’re brought into the system with a disqualifying factor, that’s the chokepoint,” the gun lobbyist Vandermyde said. “The prosecutors in the courtroom and the judges should be cognizant of the role they play.”
‘A reminder of when my life stopped’
In the five months since the murder-suicide, Cassandra Tanner Miller has become an advocate for both stronger FOID revocation enforcement and domestic violence awareness. She is currently working with state lawmakers on the passage of “Colton’s Law,” which would create a task force to examine gaps in existing domestic abuse laws.
The work offers a much-needed distraction from the relentless grief she fights. She and her daughter have moved to a different suburb, and she’s in the process of selling her Joliet home. It’s a necessary part of their healing process, but bittersweet because it means giving up the place where Colton played, sang and gardened alongside her in the final year of his life.
Colton Miller's Batman costume hangs in the laundry room of his mother's house in Joliet. He was shot to death by his father before he had a chance to wear the costume. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
His Halloween costume — a full Batman suit — still hangs, never worn, in the laundry room. He had picked it out at Costco during a regular Monday trip there with his mom a few days before the shooting.
“It hangs there as a reminder of when my life stopped,” Tanner Miller said. “We had 56,400 beautiful minutes in this house and 30 minutes destroyed the rest of my life.”
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Still, she pushes on, advocating for reforms and calling attention to shortcomings in the law. She does it partly to prevent future tragedies and partly to make sure Colton isn’t forgotten.
“He doesn’t have a voice anymore. The victims of the Aurora shooting don’t have a voice anymore," she said. “But I still have a voice and I need to use it.”
sstclair@chicagotribune.com
creyes@chicagotribune.com
asweeney@chicagotribune.com
sfreishtat@tribpub.com


chicagotribune--2020-02-13--Shedd’s famous otter Luna goes under the knife to prevent cancer

Although the species is endangered in the wild , zoos , aquariums and the federal government that form a kind @ @ @ @ @ agreed not to breed the animals in human care .
They want to be sure @ @ @ @ @ in the pups who are found stranded every year , separated from their mothers , @ @ @ @ @ ’ s story , but also the story , with slight variations , of all @ @ @ @ @ southern and Alaskan sea otters at the Shedd .

A special tag is placed on the surgery room where a sea otter named Luna is having surgery at Veterinary Specialty Center on Wed. Feb. 12, 2020 in Buffalo Grove. Luna belongs to the Shedd Aquarium and was in to be spayed. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
Luna, probably the most famous southern sea otter in America, lies on her back, out cold, nestled in a foam body support and draped in shroud-like blue sheeting in an operating room at a northwest suburban veterinary clinic.
During the first part of the anesthesia, the tail of the Shedd Aquarium marine mammal twitched between her rear legs in that kind of dream state that precedes the knockout dose. Now, she is fully under, and Dr. Mitch Robbins is almost ready to begin a new kind of treatment for captive sea otters, one that required government approval to perform, the removal of her ovaries and uterus designed to prevent later-in-life reproductive tract tumors.
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“It makes a surgeon very anxious to have this much fur,” says Robbins, an experienced animal doctor at the Veterinary Specialty Center.
In the rooms surrounding Luna at the bustling Buffalo Grove facility, dogs are being prepped for surgery with a clean shave, for sterility’s sake. A small, curly-haired pooch will wheel by on a gurney with its entire belly laid bare; a golden retriever getting an ACL tear fixed will have a hind leg similarly denuded, looking like an elongated drumstick.
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Luna’s dense coat, though, demands a different protocol. With the animal’s lower abdomen exposed, the Shedd’s Dr. Matt O’Connor applies a sterilizing solution to the spots where the two incisions will be made. An assistant with a gentleman’s black comb and sterile lube carefully parts the hairs to at least allow a clean line for the scalpel.
“You can’t shave them like you would a dog or a cat,” explains the Shedd veterinarian, who traveled to the northwest suburban clinic early Wednesday morning with about a dozen fellow aquarium staffers. “They’ll destroy a pair of clippers.”
Sea otter Luna at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago on Monday, Feb. 26, 2019. (Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune)
More than that, you can’t tell an otter not to go in the water during the recuperation period, and losing even a little patch of fur would hinder the animal’s ability to maintain body temperature in the 55-degree waters of its habitat. “Even with, like, a little spot,” he says, “they would lose a ton of heat.”
But considering that the fur has to stay, Dr. Robbins pronounces himself very pleased with the tissue surface. “Look at that,” he says. “You guys did a great job prepping.”
Some 15 people are in the operating room: Shedd veterinary staff, animal trainers and PR representatives; Specialty Center surgical staff; and a visiting reporter and photographer. Video monitor towers flank the operating table so that Robbins can see inside the animal later, when the laparoscope, the camera, goes in.
“Okay, ready?” he says. “Cutting.”
He makes the first of two small incisions, and a few drops of blood ooze onto the sea otter’s brown coat.
When Luna came to the Shedd Aquarium, rescued from being found alone and hungry and weighing less than 2 lbs. on a central California beach in Sept. 2014, she became an instant star, her fuzzy mug splashed across Internet screens and in front of the cameras of “Good Morning, America.”
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Such videos as “Welcome Pup 681!” and "Playtime With Pup 681” lured the cute-seeking web hordes to Shedd’s YouTube site, and the contest that saw her named “Luna,” after her discovery site near Half Moon Bay, drew more than 10,000 votes.
Now five years old and about 45 lbs., she is just one of the Chicago lakefront aquarium’s posse of southern sea otters. Younger, temporarily cuter otters have joined the group. Meanwhile, one of the things that can happen in captive female sea otters, the Shedd and other institutions have learned, is they can develop tumors in their reproductive tract as they age.
Although the species is endangered in the wild, zoos, aquariums and the federal government that form a kind of sea otter cooperative have agreed not to breed the animals in human care. They want to be sure there is capacity to take in the pups who are found stranded every year, separated from their mothers, which is not only Luna’s story, but also the story, with slight variations, of all but one of the six southern and Alaskan sea otters at the Shedd.
Instead of giving the females birth control — as happens in, say, captive gorilla populations, where the procedure is similar to human contraception — the institutions typically just neuter the males.
And the theory, Dr. O’Connor, the Shedd veterinarian, explains to Dr. Robbins when the latter asks in the OR, is that because the females are not going through a steady cycle of pregnancies and nursing through their lives, tumors have a chance to develop.
“The cells in their uterus can get out of whack, basically,” O’Connor says. “They’re supposed to constantly be sloughing off that uterine lining every time they give birth. When they’re not doing that, that’s what can promote these tumors to form.”
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This was only discovered in older females in recent years, he explains, in animals at Shedd and at aquariums in Vancouver and Monterey Bay. “It wasn’t until recently that we determined that this type of tumor was really an issue,” he says.
Shedd specialists did a presentation on the issue a year ago at an international veterinary conference and also sought and received permission to perform preventive hysterectomies from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife department, which oversees care in animal facilities.
“To my knowledge, no one else has started spaying them yet,” O’Connor says.
A few weeks ago, the Shedd team and Dr. Robbins did the procedure on Ellie, a 4-year-old rescued near Carmel, Calif., in 2016. The surgery and recovery went so well that they decided to go ahead with the slightly older Luna, whose age is essentially otter adolescence, and to invite the Tribune to observe.
“There were less people in the room” for Ellie’s preventive hysterectomy, says Robbins, standing over the animal. “Definitely no reporters.”
He is good natured throughout, trying to recall, for instance, the other exotic animals he has operated on through relationships with Shedd, where he is on a medical advisory board, and Brookfield and Lincoln Park Zoos.
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“A sea lion, a sawfish, two electric eels, a snake,” he says. “Did they bring a shark here one time?”
“It’s 99 percent dogs and cats,” though, Robbins, 55, says. Operating on an animal like a sea otter is “fun,” he says. “It’s infrequent so it makes it very — what’s the right word? — cool.”
Veterinary Specialty Center — which does the work for the non-profit aquarium pro bono — has not only the staff expertise but the laparoscope that allows the surgery to be performed by using its camera to peer in and find and remove the organs via on-screen visuals.
That means no opening of the abdomen to look in, much smaller incisions — 12 mm and 2.3 cm, Robbins measures — and therefore almost no blood loss and much quicker recovery.
For all the people on hand, using instruments to monitor temperature and heartbeat and help the otter breathe, the procedure moves efficiently, finishing in about two hours overall, about an hour for the surgeon’s work.
“I’ve only had one lion wake up on the table,” jokes Katie Bennett, the VSC anesthesiologist.
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Before the actual surgery, though, comes an important otter bodily function. As Luna lies insensate, a liquid starts to dribble out her bottom end.
“You want urine?” says Steve Aibel, Shedd’s senior director of animal behavior and training. “Anyone want some urine? Cause we’ve got it.”
O’Connor steps in and massages Luna’s bladder to help in the expression. “Four years of veterinary school,” he says, and, after a sample is collected for the otter’s yearly physical, the liquid lands on a towel placed on the floor.
At the animal’s other end, a Shedd veterinary resident takes advantage of the anesthesia to scrape tartar off of Luna’s teeth.
Veterinarian Julie Sheldon cleans Luna's teeth before the otter has a medical procedure. Luna was in to be spayed. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
Once the incisions are made, and the camera inserted through a tube, or port, pushed into the animal’s torso, Robbins calls for CO2 gas to be pumped in.
This, O’Connor explains, inflates the area and makes the reproductive organs easier to find. “He’s going to look around for the ovaries and uterus, go in and grab it,” he says. A branded instrument called LigaSure lets the surgeon cut and cauterize the blood vessels in one process.
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The gas is doing the job. “You can see now how nice and distended the abdomen is,” says Robbins.
Christy Sterling, a supervisor on the Shedd’s otter care team, notices, “She’s got a little more fat in her than Ellie.”
Robbins calls for the room lights to be turned off so he can better see the monitors. “There it is,” he announces. “There’s her ovary.”
He’s probing with the tip of the LigaSure, and when he finds the right spots, cuts connective tissue.
“Amazing,” he says, pointing out that the LigaSure logo is now visible on the operating-room screens — which is why, Robbins says, the company puts it there.
“Next time, we write ‘Shedd’ on it,” he jokes.
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The otter gets rolled from one side to the other via the mechanical table she’s on to aid in the organ quest. At one point, the surgeon flips an organ around to “make sure it’s not a kidney,” he says, probably smiling under the surgical mask.
“Nervous laughter,” says the Shedd’s Aibel.
“Alright,” Robbins says. “Here’s the second ovary.” Luna’s temperature is holding in a normal range, at 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit.
A few more snips and soon, the surgeon pulls the connected reproductive organs out and drops them into a sterile sample container. They’ll be analyzed for disease by a cooperative Illinois zoo pathology program, O’Connor says, and then sent to Michigan State University for study and comparison versus other otter organs.
The large incision was in a better place this time than for Ellie, Robbins says to O’Connor. “Now we know,” he says. “We can put it in our textbook chapter on sea otter laparoscopic surgery.”
The denouement goes quickly: Luna is stitched up with sutures that will eventually dissolve. Her tail twitches again as she is moved back into her travel crate and given a shot that reverses the anesthetic. Within minutes she begins to stir, very groggily.
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Robbins peers in at his exceptional patient through the crate’s grated door, talking the kind of baby talk people might to their dogs or cats. “Ohmigod,” the doctor says to Luna. “Did somebody get the license plate of that truck?”
The Shedd team packs Luna back into her van for the ride back to Chicago. By the end of the day, they report, she will be back in the water, eating and otherwise doing well.
Dr. Robbins, meanwhile, steps into the operating room where the golden’s shaved leg is trussed up in the air.
“Back to the routine,” he says.
sajohnson@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @StevenKJohnson


chicagotribune--2020-02-13--Purple reign: In its new digs, Jimmy Bannos has turned The Purple Pig into one of the city’s essenti

Purple reign: In its new digs, Jimmy Bannos has turned The Purple Pig into one of the city’s essential restaurants

The less-adventurous will find plenty of other options .
Among vegetables , the artichoke composition , presenting grilled , fried @ @ @ @ @ Greek-style potatoes , is a keeper , though I tend to prefer the aggressive flavors @ @ @ @ @ with garlic and anchovy vinaigrette .
Pastas are a strength , though they be few @ @ @ @ @ always find the ricotta gnocchi in neckbone gravy , and the recently added bucatini , @ @ @ @ @ pepper and guanciale , is pure , creamy indulgence .
On the seafood side , @ @ @ @ @ sweet and tart accents from raisins and preserved lemon ; octopus a la plancha , @ @ @ @ @ and salsa verde , is a Spanish classic .

I find it difficult to believe that The Purple Pig has been around for a decade; it seems so much fresher to me. Nevertheless, it’s true: Jimmy Bannos Jr.’s lively, pork-centric restaurant opened in 2009, and the place has been packed ever since.
“They still come, thank God,” he said. “It’s been a pretty phenomenal 10 years. We’ve been pretty lucky with our clientele.”
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The little-told secret is that Bannos did it all — chef awards, Best New this and that, 10 consecutive Bib Gourmand designations, repeated inclusions in my Phil’s 50 list — with an electric kitchen. Not to mention a prep area that was an elevator ride away from the dining room.
The dining room at The Purple Pig has 125 or so seats, about the same number as the original location, but with lots more elbow room. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
Bannos can laugh about that now. Six months ago, he moved Purple Pig to the building immediately south of his original address. His dining capacity is about the same (125 or so seats), but without the elbow-to-elbow um, intimacy, of the old place. The kitchen is larger, the prep area is just steps away and, these days, Bannos is literally cooking with gas.
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“The new place is way less stressful,” he said. “We can focus on the food, and our level of efficiency is that much higher.”
Efficiency is crucial with a menu like this. On any given day, Purple Pig’s menu lists 40 savory dishes, all of them small to medium plates. Proteins dominate the offering, naturally — my wife, on our last visit, dubbed the place (admiringly) as a “temple of meat” — but there are plenty of seafood choices, and I counted more than a dozen vegetable dishes on the menu.
“The new place is way less stressful,” says chef and partner Jimmy Bannos Jr. “We can focus on the food, and our level of efficiency is that much higher.” (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
Though managing such a massive menu is no doubt daunting, the upside is that Bannos can experiment with new dishes (which he does constantly) while keeping fan favorites around. On my last visit, I ordered the chicken-thigh kebabs with fried “smashed” potatoes and tzatziki sauce (a menu mainstay since the beginning of Bannos’ purple reign), along with a just-added dish of beef cheeks with parsley-root, goat cheese and piquillo peppers. The two concepts are a decade apart, yet mirror Bannos’ fondness for rustic, flavor-intense cooking.
Though he doesn’t make much mention of it, Bannos has been a farm-to-table proponent his entire career, and he applies an everything-but-the-squeal approach to all things porcine. One could easily fashion a snout-to-tail menu progression of crispy pig’s ear (a popular snack enlivened by pickled cherry peppers), smoked pork tongue (done in the matter of veal tonnato), ginger-glazed pork belly with pork tenderloin and mushroom ravioli in pork-tail brodo.
On the house platter you'll find more than a dozen salumis and sausages, typically including coppa, pancetta, guanciale, ’nduja and more. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
You’ll want to start, however, with the house platter, a groaning board of a charcuterie platter. You’ll find more than a dozen salumis and sausages here, typically including coppa, pancetta, guanciale, ’nduja and more, all made in-house.
Pork tripe sausage is served with mung beans, lentils and sweet-and-sour cabbage. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
Or you could order individual items, such as a terrine of pheasant, veal sweetbreads and truffle, dotted with bits of pistachio, or the I-dare-you sausage of pork tripe, served over mung beans, lentils and sweet-and-sour cabbage. Tripe is a tough sell for a lot of people, but this mild, soft-textured sausage is a revelation, not to mention an ideal introduction.
“I did pork spleen a month ago,” Bannos said, and he wasn’t joking. “Our guests don’t flinch.”
Bucatini pasta is tossed with pecorino cheese, black pepper and guanciale. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
The less-adventurous will find plenty of other options. Among vegetables, the artichoke composition, presenting grilled, fried and cream-poached artichokes tossed with Greek-style potatoes, is a keeper, though I tend to prefer the aggressive flavors of Bannos’ grilled broccoli with garlic and anchovy vinaigrette. Pastas are a strength, though they be few in number; one can always find the ricotta gnocchi in neckbone gravy, and the recently added bucatini, with pecorino cheese, black pepper and guanciale, is pure, creamy indulgence. On the seafood side, grilled Portuguese sardines pick up sweet and tart accents from raisins and preserved lemon; octopus a la plancha, with fingerlings, green beans and salsa verde, is a Spanish classic.
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Foie gras is seared then served with brioche ice cream, with pistachio butter and raspberry jelly. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
Bannos gets cheffy with his foie gras dish, pairing the seared liver with brioche ice cream, on a plate striped with thick lines of pistachio butter and raspberry jelly — a PB&J riff with a great flavor payoff. (For more along those lines, try the hot dog with foie gras butter, pear mustard and black truffle, a dish I first had two years ago and, I’m glad to see, still on the menu.)
Desserts range from simple sorbets and classic Italian affogato to more elegantly composed dishes, such as a pink guava and fromage blanc mousse set alongside raspberry meringue, white chocolate and caramelized honeybee pollen. Even the chocolate brownie gets the magazine-cover treatment, the brownie cubes separated by coconut sorbet, blood-orange-Campari sorbet and puffs of coffee foam.
The wine list by sommelier Alan Beasey is a formidable collection of about 800 bottles. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
With so many dishes flying about, it’s easy to overlook Purple Pig’s immense, impressive wine list. Sommelier Alan Beasey has assembled a formidable, food-friendly document, clocking at about 800 bottles (working its way to an even thousand) and more than 100 by-the-glass pours. You could spend hours contemplating your options; happily, Beasey and the servers can offer excellent, budget-friendly suggestions, and every menu item is listed with a suggested pour.
The only thing missing from the new Purple Pig is outdoor space. The old space had a patio; although it was so shielded from the elements it was only slightly different than eating indoors.
“People miss the patio,” Bannos said. “They ask all the time. The building has told us it might build out a patio on the side, which would be a game changer. If it happens, it happens.”
The Purple Pig
444 N. Michigan Ave.
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312-464-1744
thepurplepigchicago.com
Eat. Watch. Do. Weekly What to eat. What to watch. What you need to live your best life ... now. By submitting your email to receive this newsletter, you agree to our Subscriber Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy >
Tribune rating: ★ ★ ★
Open: Lunch and dinner daily
Prices: Small plates $13-$32
Noise: Conversation challenged
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Other: No reservations
Ratings key: ★ ★ ★ ★ outstanding; ★ ★ ★ excellent; ★ ★ very good; ★ good; no stars: unsatisfactory. The reviewer makes every effort to remain anonymous. Meals are paid for by the Tribune.


chicagotribune--2020-02-13--Trump Fed nominee Shelton faces skepticism at Senate hearing

With three Republicans leaning against her or undecided , Shelton 's nomination is at risk of remaining stuck in the @ @ @ @ @ need all the Republican votes on the committee to recommend her nomination to the full @ @ @ @ @ a slim Republican majority of 13 to 12 .
Republicans also control the Senate .

One of President Donald Trump's nominees to the Federal Reserve, Judy Shelton, appears Feb. 13, 2020, before the Senate Banking Committee for a confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington. In written testimony, Shelton said she would “work collegially” if approved. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP)
Washington — One of President Donald Trump's nominees for the Federal Reserve came under sharp questioning Thursday from senators over her unorthodox economic views, including from two Republicans whose doubts about her nomination could imperil it.
The nominee, Judy Shelton, sought to make her unconventional views an asset by promising to bring “intellectual diversity” to the Fed. Shelton has previously expressed support for a wide range of out-of-the-mainstream perspectives, including tying the dollar's value to gold. She has also raised concerns among economists and Fed watchers by questioning the need for the central bank's independence.
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After the hearing, two key Republicans — Sens. Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania and Richard Shelby of Alabama — reiterated their misgivings about her nomination. A third, Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana, said he was undecided.
With three Republicans leaning against her or undecided, Shelton's nomination is at risk of remaining stuck in the Banking Committee. She would need all the Republican votes on the committee to recommend her nomination to the full Senate. The committee has a slim Republican majority of 13 to 12. Republicans also control the Senate.
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During the hearing, Toomey criticized Shelton's view that the Fed should consider acting to lower the value of the dollar if other nations appeared to be manipulating their own currencies.
“I think that's a very, very dangerous path to go down,” Toomey said. “It's not in the Fed's mandate.”
Economists generally consider such policies, sometimes referred to as “beggar thy neighbor,” as risky and ineffective. Toomey later told reporters that Shelton's answers failed to satisfy his concerns.
In the aftermath of his impeachment trial, Trump has appeared emboldened to confront and even attack Republicans who oppose his policies or nominees for federal positions. In answer to a question Thursday, Toomey said he wasn’t concerned about opposing a Trump nominee if he or she were “unqualified.”
Likewise, Sen. Richard Shelby, Republican from Alabama, told Shelton, “I do have trouble with some of your writings and some of your articles.” After the hearing, Shelby said he was still “concerned.” Shelby is a former chairman of the Banking Committee who recently became its longest-serving member.
Democrats on the committee highlighted Shelton's previous criticism of the Fed for cutting interest rates to nearly zero in the aftermath of the Great Recession, which it did amid a global financial crisis and soaring unemployment rate. Democrats noted that Shelton, like Trump, has reversed herself and now supports lower rates despite a much more robust economy.
“Ms. Shelton has too many alarming ideas and has flip-flopped on too many important issues to have this job,” said Sen. Sherrod Brown from Ohio, the top Democrat on the committee.
The nominee also said she now strongly supports government insurance for bank deposits — a key pillar of the U.S. banking system since the Great Depression — even though she had questioned the value of such insurance in a 1994 book.
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“The only pattern I see here is a political one, not an economic one,” said Sen. Chris Van Hollen, a Democrat from Maryland.
Diane Swonk, chief economist at Grant Thornton, said that putting Shelton on the board could send confusing signals to investors, who already view her as a potential Fed chair-in-waiting if Trump were to win re-election and decide not to offer Powell a second term.
“It sets up a communication challenge,” Swonk said. “Financial markets are already looking at her as the Fed chair-in-waiting.”
Shelton recently served as U.S. executive director for the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, a multilateral institution set up in 1991 to help former communist countries transition to market economies. She was previously a scholar at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University.
Besides Shelton, Trump has nominated Christopher Waller, director of research at the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank, for a second vacancy on the seven-member Fed board. If both nominees were to be confirmed by the Senate, Trump will have installed six of the seven Fed governors.
Waller, who drew much less attention from the committee's senators Thursday, is seen as a far more conventional choice than Shelton. Some of his research examines the benefits of the central bank's independence from political interference.
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Waller said he has attended more than 60 meetings of the Fed's policy-making committee. Before joining the St. Louis Fed, he worked as an academic, researching monetary policy, for 25 years.
The hearing “suggests that Waller will easily be advanced by the committee to a full Senate vote,” said Kathy Bostanjic, chief U.S. financial economist for Oxford Economics, a consulting firm. “The full Senate is likely to quickly confirm him.”
The members of the board to which Trump has nominated Shelton each have a permanent vote on the Fed's policy-making committee, which gives them significant influence over interest rates.
The president of the New York Federal Reserve Bank also holds a permanent vote on the rate-setting committee. The remaining four votes on the committee rotate annually among the Fed's 11 other regional bank presidents. Governors rarely dissent from the Fed's policy decisions, though the regional bank presidents sometimes do.
The Fed's board members, who are called governors, also help shape the Fed's approach to financial regulation. Currently, five of the seven Fed governor seats are filled.
In sharp contrast to the current board members, Shelton in the past has been a skeptic of the need for the Fed's independence. Most economists regard such independence as vital to allowing the central bank to make delicate decisions on interest rates and inflation that elected officials might otherwise oppose or block.
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Many Fed watchers worry, in fact, that Trump himself is weakening the Fed's independence with his frequent public attacks on its chairman, Jerome Powell, for not cutting rates more aggressively.
“It would be in keeping with its historical mandate if the Fed were to pursue a more coordinated relationship with both Congress and the president,” Shelton wrote last fall in the Wall Street Journal.
At Thursday's hearing, Shelton said she does support the Fed's independence, but she defended Trump's attacks. She noted that previous presidents had criticized Fed chairs behind the scenes; she called it "refreshing” that Trump has done so publicly via Twitter.
Shelton has broadly supported more open trade and immigration policies, including among the United States, Canada and Mexico — a position sharply at odds with the Trump administration's hard line on immigration.
In a Wall Street Journal column from 2000 titled “North America doesn’t need borders,” Shelton endorsed the vision of then-Mexican President Vicente Fox that North America’s economic integration should be deepened, partly through looser immigration laws.
The AP’s Martin Crutsinger contributed.
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