chicagotribune--2020-10-14--Metra sues Union Pacific for breach of contract for refusing to allow conductors to collect tickets

Metra sues Union Pacific for breach of contract for refusing to allow conductors to collect tickets on trains during the pandemic

Metra and Union Pacific have been at odds over fare collection since June , when UP refused to allow conductors @ @ @ @ @ punch tickets on its three Metra lines , citing coronavirus safety concerns .
That essentially @ @ @ @ @ , which has been costing the commuter rail system $ 1 million a month in @ @ @ @ @ said .

The train conductor ticket collection dispute between Metra and Union Pacific has arrived in court.
Metra filed a breach of contract lawsuit Wednesday in Cook County Circuit Court alleging Union Pacific’s “arbitrary and capricious” refusal to send conductors back into passenger cars during the pandemic has damaged Metra’s bottom line, reputation and customer experience.
Advertisement
“We want the conductors back in the trains,” Metra CEO Jim Derwinski said Wednesday. “We felt it was time to get someone else involved, and that’s going to be the court system.”
Union Pacific operates the UP North, Northwest and West commuter lines for Metra under a purchase of service agreement. They represent the only Metra lines still operating without conductors in the passenger cars, according to the lawsuit.
Advertisement
“The conductors are on the trains, but we are not ready to have conductors walking through the train and interacting with the public, due to safety concerns,” Union Pacific spokeswoman Kristen South said. “We are prepared to vigorously defend ourselves in court.”
Metra and Union Pacific have been at odds over fare collection since June, when UP refused to allow conductors back into the aisles to punch tickets on its three Metra lines, citing coronavirus safety concerns. That essentially created a no-fare policy, which has been costing the commuter rail system $1 million a month in lost ticket revenue, Metra said.
In the lawsuit, Metra alleges Union Pacific caused “nearly a complete loss of fare revenue” from train lines that represent about 30% of Metra’s overall ridership.
Metra sent letters to Union Pacific in July and September demanding that conductors “walk the trains” to ensure passenger safety and collect tickets.
Last week, Union Pacific installed manned ticket verification booths at the Ogilvie Transportation Center in Chicago, where commuters have to show a valid ticket or their Ventra app when boarding or disembarking.
In addition to the ticket verification booths, Union Pacific resumed ticket sales operations at Ogilvie and outlying stations Sept. 28.
“The process is working well,” South said. “We’ve had people move through very quickly. The few people that haven’t had a ticket have walked over and purchased one.”
In the lawsuit, Metra alleges Union Pacific’s ticket verification process “fails to ensure that Metra receives the fares” it is entitled to under the service agreement. It is seeking monetary damages and a permanent injunction requiring Union Pacific conductors to resume walking the train cars to collect fares and promote “orderly conduct.”
Advertisement
Metra has been hard-hit by the pandemic, operating at about 10% of its normal ridership as people continue to work from home and attend school remotely. The transit agency projects $682 million in lost revenue through the end of 2021.
The Chicago area’s commuter rail system encompasses 11 lines across six counties. Three of the lines are owned and operated by Union Pacific Railroad under a purchase of service agreement with Metra.
Metra and Union Pacific have been in negotiations since last fall to either extend their service agreement or create a new one.
rchannick@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--Ballast Point closes Chicago brewpub due to expected winter downturn during coronavirus, eyes reopen

Ballast Point closes Chicago brewpub due to expected winter downturn during coronavirus, eyes reopening in 2021

Once a craft beer giant , Ballast Point has struggled in recent years since its founders sold the brewery to @ @ @ @ @ billion in 2015 at the height of a string of brewery sales .
Watters , @ @ @ @ @ brewery Kings & Convicts , shocked the industry by buying Ballast Point for an undisclosed @ @ @ @ @ help of wine industry magnate Richard Mahoney .

Ballast Point announced Wednesday it will close its Fulton Market brewpub through winter due to expected struggles during the COVID-19 pandemic, but aims to reopen in 2021. (Brian Cassella / Tribune File)
Ballast Point Brewing is shuttering its Chicago brewpub this month due to an expected downturn in winter business during the COVID-19 pandemic, but plans to reopen next year “when the weather is favorable and it is safe to dine indoors,” the brewery said Wednesday.
Fearing a marked downturn in business this winter, several Chicago bar and restaurant owners have speculated that some businesses will be best served by simply closing during the coldest months, just as bars and restaurants often do in resort areas.
Advertisement
Ballast Point is among the first to announce such a plan.
In an announcement on Twitter Wednesday, the San Diego-based brewery cited “the winter months ahead and our ability to generate revenue significantly impacted with limited capacity due to COVID-19” as the reason it will close its Fulton Market pub as of Oct. 24th.
Advertisement
All its Chicago employees would be laid off, the brewery said.
In a text message, Ballast Point owner Brendan Watters said the pub is “definitely reopening” at some point because it is in the midst of a long-term lease on the space launched in 2018, when Ballast Point was still owned by Constellation Brands, whose beer business is based in Chicago.
Ballast Point will continue to pay rent during the closure, Watters said. But paying rent while closed will cost the company less money than paying rent in addition to operating expenses, he said.
“It’s just too tough in Chicago for winter in our space,” he said.
Once a craft beer giant, Ballast Point has struggled in recent years since its founders sold the brewery to Constellation Brands for $1 billion in 2015 at the height of a string of brewery sales. Watters, the founder of tiny suburban brewery Kings & Convicts, shocked the industry by buying Ballast Point for an undisclosed sum in 2019 with the help of wine industry magnate Richard Mahoney.
jbnoel@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--Aurora police investigating two shootings

Police responded to the 1100 block of Terrace View on the city ’ s far East Side around 7:30 p.m. @ @ @ @ @ , according to officials .
Two people found there were taken to the hospital with @ @ @ @

Aurora police are investigating shootings in the city Monday and Wednesday that wounded a total of three people, officials said.
Police responded to the 1100 block of Terrace View on the city’s far East Side around 7:30 p.m. Monday for a shooting incident, according to officials. Two people found there were taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening gunshot wounds.
Advertisement
Just after 12:30 a.m. Wednesday, police responded to the 900 block of Bowditch Avenue after reports of a shooting. Officers found a man suffering from a gunshot wound, officials said.
The man was taken to a hospital in critical condition, but is expected to survive, officials said. Detectives believe Wednesday’s shooting was an isolated incident.
Advertisement
Anyone with information about the shootings is asked to call the Aurora Police Investigations Division at 630-256-5500.
mejones@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--City Mouse, a darling of the West Loop boom, closes permanently Sunday, but Alinea already has plans

City Mouse, a darling of the West Loop boom, closes permanently Sunday, but Alinea already has plans for the space

The splashy opening of City Mouse in a modern space with lots of glass and minimalist design elements marked a @ @ @ @ @ of the Fulton Market district .
Strategically located across the street from Google ’ s @ @ @ @ @ midst of expanding office , apartment and restaurant development , the restaurant offered brunch every @ @ @ @ @ become a key morning spot for residents , executive chef Pat Sheerin said at the @ @ @ @ @ two-star Tribune review that fall .

City Mouse, located in the Ace Hotel on North Morgan Street in Chicago, opened in 2017 across from Google's Chicago headquarters. (Terrence Antonio James)
City Mouse, the Ace Hotel restaurant operated by the team behind Giant and Chef’s Special, has closed after three years.
“Our hearts are heavy and our hearts are full,” read a statement from the restaurant. Oct. 18 was the last day of service.
Advertisement
Jason Vincent, one of the partners at Giant and Chef’s Special, declined further comment. Giant and Chef’s Special bar had just announced the launch of a food truck to get their creative cooking to a larger audience.
The splashy opening of City Mouse in a modern space with lots of glass and minimalist design elements marked a key moment in the evolution of the Fulton Market district. Strategically located across the street from Google’s Chicago headquarters and in the midst of expanding office, apartment and restaurant development, the restaurant offered brunch every day in an attempt to become a key morning spot for residents, executive chef Pat Sheerin said at the time.. The restaurant earned a two-star Tribune review that fall.
Advertisement
The statement also announced that the space is going to be occupied by the Alinea Group, starting in November; owner Nick Kokonas confirmed that Alinea has leased the space for a three-month residency, but offered no additional details.


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--After a decade of insisting it was a botched suicide, city asks injured man to help them prove Chica

After a decade of insisting it was a botched suicide, city asks injured man to help them prove Chicago cop shot him

“ Mikey is being used by the city to fire someone they were never able to fire on their own @ @ @ @ @ jury used to conclude the city was at fault , ” Romanucci said .
“ @ @ @ @ @ who are also his legal guardians , are appalled their son would be used as @ @ @ @ @ city ’ s failure to implement police reforms , while at the same time the @ @ @ @ @ the judgment he won in a courtroom three years ago .
”

Michael LaPorta stretches with the assistance of neurofitness specialist Creighton Goss during a physical therapy session on March 20, 2017, at the Next Steps rehabilitation center. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
The subpoena arrived via a process server. Its intent was unequivocal.
After nearly a decade of insisting Michael LaPorta shot himself with a Chicago police officer’s gun, the city now wanted LaPorta’s help in proving the patrolman actually pulled the trigger in January 2010 and lied about it for years.
Advertisement
It was a stunning about-face from the city, which has spent a considerable amount of time and tax dollars arguing that LaPorta had fired the bullet that ricocheted around his brain and left him unable to walk, read or care for himself. The subpoena meant the city now wants LaPorta’s testimony — something its representatives scoffed at in the past — to secure the officer’s firing at an upcoming disciplinary hearing.
His mother, who has been his primary caretaker, said she stared at the document in disbelief. Then she began to cry.
Advertisement
“I was just floored by it,” Patricia LaPorta said. “They want our help now? Really? After all these years of saying it was Mikey’s fault and we were just looking for someone else to blame? I can’t believe the audacity.”
The city’s attorneys have offered little explanation for the shifting narrative and are seeking to compel LaPorta’s testimony at Kelly’s termination hearing set for later this month.
But their contradictory positions mean Chicago’s Law Department, at least at some point in the decade-old tragedy, has given the public an account it believed to be false about how a bullet from an officer’s gun ended up lodged in his childhood friend’s brain. Or, unsure of the truth, the lawyers have taken the ambiguous route of arguing whichever version of events serves the city’s best interest in the moment, no matter what that meant for the LaPorta family.
Michael LaPorta and his mother Patricia LaPorta talk to reporters on Oct. 27, 2017. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
One thing, though, is certain: Officer Patrick Kelly’s role in the shooting had never been called into serious question by the Law Department or its attorneys until the city suffered a resounding loss in a civil trial regarding the shooting.
“At issue is, was and always has been whether it was Officer Kelly or Michael LaPorta who pulled the trigger,” Kelly’s attorney Laura Morask wrote in a prehearing petition submitted to the Chicago Police Board. “That issue was settled in 2012 when (the Independent Police Review Authority) found the allegations that Officer Kelly were ‘not sustained’ and again in 2014 when the Chicago Police Department and Officer Kelly entered into a settlement agreement.”
In 2017, however, a federal jury found Kelly shot LaPorta toward the back of his head after a night of heavy drinking in January 2010. The panel awarded LaPorta — who now requires round-the-clock care — a record-breaking $44.7 million after it determined the Chicago Police Department’s lax disciplinary practices emboldened the officer and instilled the belief he could act with impunity.
It remains the highest jury award for a police misconduct case in Illinois history. Kelly’s personal insurance settled with LaPorta’s for $300,000, the maximum allowed under the policy, years before trial.
The Civilian Office of Police Accountability reopened an investigation into the shooting in 2017, following a Tribune investigation. Though investigators initially found in 2011 that there wasn’t enough evidence to hold Kelly responsible for the shooting, a reincarnation of that oversight agency determined last summer that Kelly had pulled the trigger and then lied about it for nine years.
Advertisement
Then-police Superintendent Eddie Johnson agreed with the revised findings and moved to fire Kelly in October 2019. The decision was based largely on the evidence presented at the civil trial, including testimony from law enforcement experts sought out and paid for by LaPorta’s defense team.
The city — which had spent more than $2.8 million in legal fees to defend the civil case built around the narrative that the shooting was a botched suicide attempt — now says it needs LaPorta, his brother, uncle and at least one of his trial experts to help prove their case at Kelly’s termination hearing, set for later this month.
The abrupt reversal is so stunning, it has allowed attorneys for LaPorta and Kelly to find common ground after years of angry finger-pointing.
Chicago police Officer Patrick Kelly, left, leaves the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse on Oct. 17, 2017, after testifying in the federal civil trial where he is accused of shooting friend Michael LaPorta while off-duty in Kelly's apartment. (Phil Velasquez / Chicago Tribune)
“What they’ve done is they’ve wasted time, wasted money and wasted the public’s resources. How can anyone believe a word of truth ever coming from the corporation counsel’s office again?” asked LaPorta attorney Antonio Romanucci. “The corporation counsel, its lawyers and the Chicago Police Department have now crossed the bridge of credibility. We now know that every thing they say is a lie and a continued false narrative, leading to bad faith, wasted taxpayer dollars and a continued festering of mistrust within the community.”
Kelly’s attorney also took aim at the Law Department’s integrity during a recent court hearing.
“The one thing Mr. Romanucci and I agree is on that the city has not operated in good faith in this case,” Morask said.
Advertisement
A Law Department spokeswoman would not answer many of the Tribune’s questions about the city’s changed position on the shooting, citing the pending termination hearing and anticipated appellate court ruling in the civil case.
Spokeswoman Kathleen Fieweger declined to say whether the city owed LaPorta an apology for its long-held insistence that he tried to killed himself. However, she said once the Civilian Office of Police Accountability made its determination that Kelly pulled the trigger and Johnson requested his termination, the city was obligated to defend those findings.
“Once that happened, the city was automatically required to file (administrative) charges,” she said. “There is no discretion allowed in this process.”
In a statement to the Tribune sent after this was story published online Wednesday morning, the Law Department denied “changing its position" on the shooting and objected to the criticism levied by the attorneys for LaPorta and Kelly.
“Regarding the attorneys you quote, who have specific agendas and enormous financial incentives, as saying the city has not acted in good faith, we simply could not disagree more,” Fieweger wrote in an email. “All appropriate procedures and laws have been followed and this type of commentary is deeply offensive.”
The city, however, quietly moved away from the suicide theory in summer 2019 before COPA’s findings were released publicly. In documents filed as part of its efforts to overturn the judgment in the civil case, the city did not argue that LaPorta tried to kill himself; instead it stated that the veteran patrolman shot his friend after the two argued over Kelly “hitting and yelling” at his dog.
Advertisement
During oral arguments in the appellate case late last year, city attorneys again stated that Kelly shot his close friend and, perhaps more remarkably, accepted the jury verdict that faulted the city for failing to investigate its officers and lacking an “early warning” system to identify troubled officers. However, it argued that it should not be held responsible for its employees’ actions outside of work.
The LaPorta jury found that the Chicago Police Department encouraged wrongful behavior by failing to seriously discipline and rein in Kelly, who has been found mentally unfit for duty twice, arrested two times, accused of beating a girlfriend and treated for alcohol addiction. The panel also determined the department had a pattern and practice of not investigating its officers.
Kelly repeatedly declined to answer questions on the witness stand during the trial, invoking his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination dozens of times. LaPorta testified the he was not suicidal and his former friend shot him after they argued about the dog.
The bullet entered toward the back of LaPorta’s head and no fingerprints were found on the gun. Experts testified that LaPorta would have needed to use his right hand to fire a bullet in that region of his skull, but he was a lifelong hunter who had always used his left hand to shoot.
Appellate judges, meanwhile, have signaled they could overturn the historic jury decision, but they have not released their decision yet. Judge Amy Coney Barrett — President Donald Trump’s nominee to replace the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the U.S. Supreme Court — was one of the three judges on the panel that heard oral arguments late last year and it’s unclear how the case would proceed if she joins the Supreme Court before the opinion is released.
When Justice Neil Gorsuch was appointed to the Supreme Court, his unfinished cases in the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals were left to the remaining two judges on the panel, the clerk’s office in that circuit said. If those judges were in agreement, the opinion was issued based on two votes and a footnote that Gorsuch was no longer on the appellate court. In cases where the two remaining judges did not agree, a third justice was brought in to review the case, listen to the previously held arguments and cast the deciding vote.
Advertisement
Citing Coney Barrett’s pending nomination, a spokeswoman for the 7th Circuit’s clerk’s office declined to discuss how the court handles cases in which a judge leaves before an opinion is published. However, one opinion handed down last week was decided by two judges, along with a footnote indicating Coney Barrett, a member of the panel who heard oral arguments, did not participate in the decision.
Kelly does not face criminal charges in connection with the shooting. Cook County prosecutors reviewed the case in 2010 and determined a jury was unlikely to find the longtime patrolman guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, which is higher than the preponderance standard required for termination or liability in a civil case.
The officer was stripped of his police powers after he refused to answer questions on the witness stand during the LaPorta trial. But he remained employed by the department at $87,000 a year until the COPA findings were released and the superintendent discharged him.
His attorneys have long argued that the shooting was investigated years ago, when another incarnation of the city’s police watchdog agency did not find him responsible for LaPorta’s injuries but recommended he be punished for other behavior that night. Kelly cut a deal with the city in 2014 in which he accepted a 60-day suspension for failing to secure his weapon, off-duty drunkenness, conduct unbecoming an officer and assaulting a sergeant who responded to the scene.
The officer’s attorneys argue Kelly simply cannot be disciplined twice for the same incident.
“By moving to terminate Officer Kelly, the Chicago Police Department would be complicit in violating its own settlement agreement with Officer Kelly,” Morask wrote.
Advertisement
The city now contends that new evidence has emerged, much of it involving testimony and expert witnesses from the civil trial, that prompted the then-superintendent to seek his removal. Johnson specifically accused Kelly of “discharging his firearm in the direction of Michael LaPorta without justification” and making multiple false statements when he told investigators that a suicidal LaPorta shot himself.
The Chicago police board denied Kelly’s petition to dismiss the case before the hearing, ruling agencies that investigate police conduct can reopen cases in which allegations were not sustained.
Kelly’s termination hearing is scheduled for Oct. 26. LaPorta’s brother and uncle are expected to testify, but it’s unclear if LaPorta will participate in the proceedings. His attorneys have told the city LaPorta will not appear as a witness, prompting the city to file documents to compel his testimony.
Romanucci said the decision to skip the hearing was based largely on LaPorta’s fragile health, as he often experiences periods when he tires easily and his recall becomes dull. But the city’s decadeslong defense of the shooting and its indifference to the family’s suffering also do not make him an enthusiastic — or trusting — participant in the current case, Romanucci said.
“Mikey is being used by the city to fire someone they were never able to fire on their own, with the evidence a jury used to conclude the city was at fault,” Romanucci said. “Mikey’s parents, who are also his legal guardians, are appalled their son would be used as a pawn to satisfy the city’s failure to implement police reforms, while at the same time the city refuses to pay Mikey the judgment he won in a courtroom three years ago.”
However it plays out, his family will be closely watching the proceedings. His mother says she wants Kelly fired, but she also wants the city to be held accountable as well.
Advertisement
“They want Mikey to prove their case,” Patricia LaPorta said. “But they don’t want to give Mikey justice.”
sstclair@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--State Board of Elections to hear complaint against Lake County Board member Mike Rummel’s campaign f

State Board of Elections to hear complaint against Lake County Board member Mike Rummel’s campaign finance structure

The Rummel PACs major donors have been Lake Forest residents Dick and Liz Uihlein , prominent conservative activists who have @ @ @ @ @ Donald Trump and other statewide candidates and causes .
The Uihleins have donated more than @ @ @ @ @ since August of 2018 , according to campaign finance records .
The amounts are above @ @ @ @ @ an individual candidate committee , according to Reform for Illinois .

The Illinois State Board of Elections is scheduled to hear a complaint filed by a public advocacy group regarding the campaign finance structure of Lake County Board member Mike Rummel.
Reform for Illinois, a government watchdog group, filed a complaint against Mike Rummel Sept. 29, claiming he was attempting to bypass existing campaign finance contribution limits by using a political action committee instead of a candidate committee. Political action committees, or PACs, allow for higher contributions.
Advertisement
NPR Illinois first reported the complaint.
Reform for Illinois' complaint says Rummel, who joined the Lake County Board in 2012, changed his individual candidate committee known as Citizens for Rummel to a PAC that would support both Mike Rummel and his wife, Melanie Rummel, who was elected as Lake Forest’s Second Ward alderman in 2017.
Advertisement
“We’re concerned if this goes unanswered, candidates will just decide to have a PAC instead of a candidate committee,” said Alisa Kaplan, Reform for Illinois' executive director. “Candidate committees have lower contribution limits than PACs for good reason as the idea is to reduce the influence of any one donor. This would really undermine that principle.”
Matt Dietrich, a spokesman for the Illinois State Board of Elections, said candidates for office are not allowed to have more than one candidate committee per office, and those committees cannot be in support of more than one candidate. PACs, however, can be used to support more than one candidate.
Kaplan said the structure has transparency implications and could encourage other candidates to bypass the candidate committee system and its related reporting requirements and donation amount limitations. .
Michael Rummel (Michael Rummel photo)
“If it is allowed to continue it may become a broader problem because why should a candidate abide by the stricter contribution limits of the candidate committee if they can just have a PAC?,” Kaplan said. “We want them to send a message that this is not OK and nobody should be allowed to do this.”
Reform for Illinois describes itself as a nonpartisan “research and advocacy organization that empowers the public to participate in government, addresses the role of money in politics, and promotes integrity, accountability, and transparency in our political system.”
Brad Goodman, a spokesman for Mike Rummel, said he strenuously objects to the claims made by Reform for Illinois, especially as Rummel is running for reelection to the county board next month.
Advertisement
“It’s completely inaccurate and it is a politically motivated move to create a fictional narrative during the campaign season,” Goodman said. “When Melanie began running for alderman we contacted the Illinois State Board of Elections to determine if Mike and Melanie could share Mike’s campaign committee as many other candidates share committees. We were told it was allowed and so we filed a candidate committee amendment in January 2017.”
Goodman said they were later advised by the state they would have to file as a political action committee because there were two candidates.
“Throughout this entire process the Rummels have followed the Illinois State Board of Elections guidance to the ‘T’. If the state board directs us to either amend the committee structure, they’ll happily do so," Goodman said. "But this is all a huge political game and an attempt to put a mark on two public servants that have served Lake County and Lake Forest well for years.”
The Rummel PACs major donors have been Lake Forest residents Dick and Liz Uihlein, prominent conservative activists who have given large sums to President Donald Trump and other statewide candidates and causes. The Uihleins have donated more than $47,000 to the Rummels since August of 2018, according to campaign finance records. The amounts are above what would be allowed through an individual candidate committee, according to Reform for Illinois.
Dietrich said the complaint process starts with a hearing in front of an officer who will make a recommendation to the Illinois State Board of Election’s general counsel. That person will then make a recommendation on the justification of the complaint to the full board, which is composed of an equal number of Democrats and Republicans.
That board will then make a decision on whether the complaint was filed on justifiable grounds, Dietrich said.
Advertisement
He anticipated the process would start later this week and go before the full board at their Nov. 16 meeting.
The Rummels have long been active in local government. Mike Rummel was Lake Forest’s mayor from 2006 to 2009 and Melanie Rummel served on the Lake Forest School District 67 board before being elected to the city council in 2017.
Daniel I. Dorfman is a freelance reporter.


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--After state challenges lawsuit, winning pot applicants say license do-over process moving too fast

The arguments made this week came in legal briefings filed to the Supreme Court in connection to that suit , @ @ @ @ @ month by three of the winning license applicants .
The applicants argued it would violate @ @ @ @ @ marijuana to give losing applicants a second chance to qualify for a tiebreaking lottery .

Applicants who won a chance to receive a license to sell recreational marijuana in Illinois said Wednesday the state is trying to rush an illegal do-over of the cannabis licensing process before they can be heard in court.
State officials on Tuesday had asked the Illinois Supreme Court to dismiss a lawsuit applicants filed challenging the licensing process.
Advertisement
The arguments made this week came in legal briefings filed to the Supreme Court in connection to that suit, which was filed earlier this month by three of the winning license applicants. The applicants argued it would violate the state law that legalized marijuana to give losing applicants a second chance to qualify for a tiebreaking lottery.
But the Illinois attorney general’s office argued that rather than going straight to the Supreme Court for an immediate ruling, any challenges could be addressed by lawsuits in the circuit court.
Advertisement
“Nothing about this case justifies the unusual measure of allowing the filing of an original action in this (Supreme) Court,” the attorney’s general office wrote.
The state also said they have yet to send out new notices to applicants to resubmit application information, have yet to rescore applications and may again extend the time to award licenses beyond the current deadline of this Saturday.
Last month, the state named 21 finalists who got perfect scores on their applications and qualified for a tiebreaking lottery to win 75 new licenses to open recreational pot shops. Many of the finalists have qualified for multiple applications in various regions of the state.
That left most of the more than 900 applicants out of luck. Several companies filed suit to challenge the process, alleging the state gave different scores for identical information in different applications and failed to send out required notices alerting applicants to deficiencies they should correct in their applications.
In response, Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced that regulators would send out new deficiency notices, so applicants could correct their applications and get rescored, to see if they would qualify for the lottery.
By state law, the licenses were to be awarded by May 1, but Pritzker has indefinitely delayed the awarding of licenses, first due to the ongoing pandemic, then due to required rule changes and now due to the controversy over scoring.
Earlier this month, three companies who were named as successful finalists for the lottery filed suit, seeking a court order to stop the do-over and go ahead with the lottery. It’s not known when the court may rule.
Daywatch Weekdays Start each day with Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox. By submitting your email to receive this newsletter, you agree to our Subscriber Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy >
If the state goes ahead with its flawed do-over, the lottery finalists argued in their legal response, the entire licensing process will have to be redone.
Advertisement
The state already has a mechanism to correct any problems with the first round of licenses, they said, by making changes and allowing people to reapply in later rounds of applications.
Both sides agree the dispute affects the rights of many applicants, considering that more than 900 applicants applied.
Plaintiff David Scott, co-owner of Vertical Management, LLC, on Oct. 4, 2020, in Bellwood. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
One of the plaintiffs, David Scott, co-owner of Vertical Management, LLC, said the licensing delay is costing him thousands of dollars in real estate and legal costs. After being paralyzed in a shooting years ago, he said, he recently developed shingles, he believes partly from the stress of the licensing situation.
“To win, then lose?” he said. “C’mon, not only in my opinion is the governor violating the law, but this is morally wrong.”
The Illinois Department of Agriculture also has indefinitely delayed awarding licenses for craft growers, infusers and transporters, spokeswoman Krista Lisser wrote in response to questions by the Tribune.
“The Department remains committed to ensuring that scoring of applications is conducted in a fair and equitable manner and is currently in the final stages of completing the scoring process in accordance with the Act and rules,” she wrote. “We will announce the date licenses will be awarded in the near future.”


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--Indiana governor adds a month to statewide COVID-19 mask mandate; Lake, St. Joe counties top state i

Indiana governor adds a month to statewide COVID-19 mask mandate; Lake, St. Joe counties top state in new cases Wednesday

“ We have seen the positive effects on Lake County ’ s health when being diligent in mask wearing , @ @ @ @ @ of us participating to see the positive effects again , ” Purdue University Northwest Nursing @ @ @ @ @ “ I am hopeful that the mask mandate will improve our county ’ s influenza @ @ @ @ @ the flu season this year which will be immensely helpful to our area ’ s @ @ @ @ @ continue to deal with Covid cases .
”

Indiana’s statewide mask order will remain in place, but tougher restrictions on businesses and crowd sizes aren’t being reinstated, despite recent sharp increases in COVID-19 hospitalizations and rates of new infections in the state, Gov. Eric Holcomb said Wednesday.
Holcomb, a Republican, said some people were showing disregard for the safety of others, putting the ability of schools to remain open and the health of those most at risk of severe illness from the virus in jeopardy.
Advertisement
“Those inactions are costing, just to be blunt, health care costs, lost wages, business failures. Don’t kid yourself, we’re all paying this bill,” Holcomb said. He went on to add, “Throwing caution to the wind, ultimately ends up costing us all. It is the literal definition of whistling past the graveyard, pretending this isn’t around us.”
Holcomb decided three weeks ago to lift nearly all of Indiana’s restrictions while extending the mask mandate, which was scheduled to expire Saturday. His new order will extend it for a month.
Advertisement
For the second time this week, Lake County has topped the state in new COVID-19 cases. In reporting Wednesday, the State Department of Health showed 103 new cases, the same as St. Joseph County. Marion County, with the most cases in the state with more than 23,000, was next at 101 new cases.
On Monday, Lake County led the state with 141 new cases. The new county total, the second highest in the state, is 12,189 with one new death, bringing that total to 340.
Porter County Health Department’s positive case total rose to 2,665 Wednesday with 49 deaths, according to the county’s dashboard.
The state’s health commissioner, Dr. Kristina Box, also announced that she, an adult daughter and young grandson tested positive for the coronavirus on Tuesday. Box said she didn’t yet have any symptoms, while her daughter and grandson have mild symptoms.
Holcomb wore a face mask during the online briefing from his Statehouse office for the first time, saying he would be undergoing a coronavirus test later Wednesday and planned to quarantine at the governor’s office until he has the results.
Democratic governor candidate Woody Myers, a former state health commissioner who is challenging Holcomb in November’s election, has said tougher restrictions needed to be reinstated. He has also repeatedly called for a more strict mask mandate, as the one Holcomb has issued includes no penalties for violators.
Indiana House Democratic Leader Phil GiaQuinta, D-Fort Wayne, called on Holcomb to do more, even if it is unpopular.
“Though I am relieved that Governor Holcomb made the right decision by extending the mask mandate, this alone will not be enough to fight against the rising hospitalization and positivity rates and fast approaching winter flu season,” GiaQuinta said. "It’s simply irresponsible to continue maintaining the status quo when numbers are steadily increasing statewide.
Advertisement
“I know it may not be the best political move for Governor Holcomb right now, but we may need to move a stage back to keep hospitals from becoming overwhelmed in the coming weeks,” he said. “We will not see change without changing our own behavior, and that starts with a bolder plan from Governor Holcomb.”
The state health department on Wednesday more than doubled the number of counties designated as higher-risk locations for coronavirus spread. Twenty-two of Indiana’s 92 counties were placed in orange or red levels under the agency’s weekly tracking map update, while nine counties were at those levels last week.
The highest-risk counties are scattered across the state, with clusters in northeastern Indiana, some rural counties west of Lafayette and those around Evansville in the southwestern corner.
Indiana’s remaining 70 counties received yellow or blue ratings based on the number of new cases per 100,000 residents and the percentage of tests confirming COVID-19 infections.
The 1,357 COVID-19 hospitalizations as of Tuesday put Indiana at its highest level since mid-May, the Health Department reported. Such hospitalizations have grown by two-thirds since Sept. 22 — the day before Holcomb announced lifted most statewide restrictions.
State officials added 14 more coronavirus deaths on Wednesday to raise the state’s death toll to 3,836, including confirmed and presumed coronavirus cases. That’s an increase of 109 deaths in the past week.
Advertisement
The Health Department’s daily update showed Indiana’s seven-day rolling average of newly confirmed COVID-19 infections was nearly 1,600 as of Tuesday, an increase of 85% increase from three weeks earlier.
“We have seen the positive effects on Lake County’s health when being diligent in mask wearing, but it does take all of us participating to see the positive effects again,” Purdue University Northwest Nursing Professor Jodi Allen said. “I am hopeful that the mask mandate will improve our county’s influenza numbers at the start of the flu season this year which will be immensely helpful to our area’s health care system as we continue to deal with Covid cases.”
Masks are a proven method to stem transmission, other experts agreed.
“I think it’s a great time to see our political leaders continue to emphasize mask wearing in all public spheres,” said Dr. Sadiya Khan, an epidemiologist with Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine.
“I think the bigger concern is that we’re not going back to the beginning of the pandemic,” Khan said, “when lockdowns were instituted, in part, because it was spreading so quickly and that was the only solution at the time.”
“I don’t think there’s an end in sight as we move into flu season. It’s so understandable to have this pandemic fatigue and this isolation fatigue and we all feel it,” Khan said. “Unfortunately, without maintaining vigilance of physical distancing, masking, handwashing, we are not going to make the progress we need before a vaccine. We have to take care of each other.”
Advertisement
Meredith Colias-Pete contributed.


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--Driver who prosecutors say ‘set off hail of gunfire,' turned Lake Shore Drive into 'shooting gallery

Driver who prosecutors say ‘set off hail of gunfire,' turned Lake Shore Drive into 'shooting gallery’ is denied bail

The attack was captured on a city camera , and Medina admitted to authorities she was driving the car on @ @ @ @ @ at first said she didn ’ t know her passengers , or where she had @ @ @ @ @ she said the other female in the Ford was her friend and the shooter was @ @ @ @ @ make out buddy , ” Murphy said .

A motorist turned Lake Shore Drive into a "shooting gallery'' Saturday afternoon when her passenger opened fire on another car, leaving a 19-year-old woman with only one eye, prosecutors said.
The shooting occurred at 1:20 p.m. in the 300 block of South Lake Shore Drive, police said.
Advertisement
Jennifer Medina, 26, of Bridgeview, charged with attempted first-degree murder, appeared Wednesday afternoon before Judge Susana Ortiz at the Leighton Criminal Court Building for a bond hearing, audio of which was broadcast on YouTube.
The 19-year-old woman who was shot was with her boyfriend and a 32-year-old woman taking a drive in a white Dodge Caliber on Saturday, prosecutors said.
Advertisement
“Basically, she turned Lake Shore Drive into a shooting gallery,” Assistant Cook County State’s Attorney James Murphy told Ortiz.
Medina set off a “hail of gunfire,” by staring at the three people in that car and then saying something to her own passengers.
Jennifer Medina (Chicago Police Department)
Medina was driving a white Ford Focus belonging to her parents when she pulled up on the right side of the other car near Jackson Drive.
The people in the Dodge noticed Medina staring at them and said ”something” to those in her car, but those in the Dodge could not hear what she said, Murphy said.
Medina’s passengers began yelling at the Dodge, throwing gang signs and asking the people in it where they were from, Murphy said.
When the young woman’s boyfriend, 20, asked why they were trying to “make a problem on the expressway,” a man sitting in the back seat of the Ford got out and said: “You can get it anywhere you want it,” Murphy said.
Then, as the light turned green, he got back in and fired a single shot, which hit the 19-year-old’s nose, and passed through her head.
Her boyfriend tried to apply pressure to the wound and drive away, but Medina drove after them, maneuvering in front of them, and blocking their car across multiple lanes, Murphy said.
Advertisement
After the Dodge tried to pass Medina several times, the gunman again “leaped out” of the back seat and "fired multiple more shots,'' and hit the car and its rear window.
“This defendant doesn’t stop there, she continued to weave in and out of traffic, trying to chase the victim down so her co-defendant could fire more gunshots,” Murphy said.
“They don’t care who gets in the way.”
The Dodge was able to exit near Navy Pier, where the people in the car asked a security officer there to call 911.
The 19-year-old woman was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where she her condition had been stabilized after surgery to remove her left eye, Murphy said.
The attack was captured on a city camera, and Medina admitted to authorities she was driving the car on Lake Shore Drive, but at first said she didn’t know her passengers, or where she had picked them up. Later she said the other female in the Ford was her friend and the shooter was the friend’s “make out buddy,” Murphy said.
Advertisement
Additionally, Medina’s parents confirmed with authorities she was driving their car and the people from the other car identified Medina in a photo array, Murphy said, adding that though Medina has no criminal background she shouldn’t have been driving, because her license was suspended out of state for tickets.
Medina was represented by a public defender, who said she completed 11th grade, was working on her GED and has been a volunteer in her community.
“She’s still innocent until proven guilty,” Medina’s attorney said. Medina, a mother to two children, works in a dietary position and does volunteer work, which shows that she has a “commitment to show up to her appointments,” her attorney said.
Medina wasn’t just a passenger in a car when someone decided to take violent actions, Ortiz said, before denying bond.
Lake Shore Drive was occupied by “innocent civilians” and whether this occurred on Lake Shore Drive, on the South Side, North Side or West Side, it was “this defendant” who maneuvered and used her car and “enabled the shooter to get those shots off," Ortiz said.
”Now she has lost her left eye."
Advertisement
Medina, arrested at 9:30 p.m. Sunday in the 9100 block of Windsor Lane in Bridgeview, will be in court next on Oct. 21 in Skokie.
rsobol@chicagotribune.com
pfry@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @RosemarySobol1
Twitter @paigexfry


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--Father says Stacey Jones, 8 months pregnant when fatally shot, ‘was a daughter that you would be pro

Father says Stacey Jones, 8 months pregnant when fatally shot, ‘was a daughter that you would be proud of’

“ My daughter was a hardworking single parent .
She was a devoted mother .
She put ( her children @ @ @ @ @ activities , karate , baseball , wrestling .
She took them to the zoo .
@ @ @ @ @ for them with the money she had , ” Baker said .
“ When she @ @ @ @ @ August ) , she took the time to visit all the family members who had @ @ @ @ @ in the summer .
Family was everything to her , especially her boys .
”

So incomprehensible was the idea that anyone would want to harm Stacey Jones — a 35-year-old single mother of two boys thrilled to be pregnant with her third son — that when her father was told she’d been fatally shot, he was sure it was a case of mistaken identity.
“Stacey Jones is a common name,” said Jones’ father, Tommy Baker, hours before Chicago police announced a possible suspect was being questioned in Jones' killing.
Advertisement
“She was good. She made her father proud. She smiled all the time. I can’t see a reason why someone would shoot her," said Baker, a former Army Specialist who now serves as commander of VFW Post 5932 in Clinton, South Carolina. “At first, I thought it was mistaken identity — I was absolutely sure they had the wrong Stacey Jones. I still can’t believe it.”
Jones, who moved to Chicago about two years ago to put to work her criminal justice degree from Lane College in Jackson, Tennessee, by accepting a position as a Cook County probation officer, was standing just outside her home when she was shot repeatedly in the back early Tuesday.
Advertisement
Her two sons, ages 7 and 11, who were inside their Jeffery Manor home, were unharmed, according to a law enforcement source. Jones, a few weeks from turning 36, was pronounced dead at the University of Chicago Medical Center and her death ruled a homicide by the Cook County medical examiner’s office.
Doctors were able to save her unborn child, who a law enforcement source said had not been struck by any gunfire. He was taken to Comer Children’s Hospital and Baker said at last update, the infant remained in critical condition.
“Now I’ve got three grandboys without a mother,” Baker said, adding that whoever killed his daughter is a coward for shooting her in the back. “You took something from them. You took something from my family, from me. You took my heart, my firstborn, the sweetest little thing. It’s a loss that I’ll never get over.”
Baker said Jones was born in Alaska and grew up predominantly in Tennessee with her mother, who also was in the Army. Reached by phone Wednesday, she declined to be interviewed.
Jones was a go-getter who "always stayed happy,” and was overjoyed to be having another child, her father said. She was an excellent mother who wanted her sons to have every opportunity in life. The boys spent three months living with Baker in South Carolina while they were out of school for the summer, he said.
“My daughter was a hardworking single parent. She was a devoted mother. She put (her children) in all kinds of activities, karate, baseball, wrestling. She took them to the zoo. She did everything she could for them with the money she had,” Baker said. “When she picked them up (in August), she took the time to visit all the family members who had helped me care for them in the summer. Family was everything to her, especially her boys.”
That visit was the last time Baker would see Jones, the oldest of four children. Baker slept on his couch when Jones visited and he gave his daughter his room.
“She was the boss,” he said, “apparently even in my house.”
Advertisement
That was a common thread in their relationship, his daughter pushing his limits — and sometimes his buttons, he said with the trace of a laugh — holding her own with her dad the way only his confident and loving daughter could. She managed to get self-described “pork chops and chicken guy” Baker to try healthy foods, like when she saw a recipe online, took some zucchini he was growing in his garden and turned it into a pizza crust (“Came out OK,” he said).
She got him to sit still and not complain—much—about watching hour after hour of home improvement shows because her dream was to begin buying and flipping houses.
“She took notes because she wanted to be able to do it all herself,” he said.
When it came to what was important, like seeing family, she was a meticulous planner. Since she expected to spend Christmas with her mother and the new baby, Jones — who once burned the turkey prepping a holiday meal for Baker — said she was still considering driving to see him for Thanksgiving, although she’d be nearing her due date. Since she was unsure, she decided they should plan their 2021 visit too.
But when it came to the pursuit of fun, Baker said Jones, who “never really grew up (and) stayed a kid at heart,” was as adventurous as anyone he knew.
“If somebody told her they did something, she wanted to do it too. She was just spontaneous,” he said.
Advertisement
“If she had lived to make 60 I think she would’ve done everything in the world.”
Baker said he spoke with Jones on the phone at least once a week. They last spoke about six hours before she was shot, he said. They talked about their plans to use a Veterans Administration loan to jointly purchase homes, ideally one in Chicago and one in South Carolina, since her family was growing and they each needed more space for visits.
Before she took the job in Chicago in spring 2019, Jones, who was a Sigma Gamma Rho sorority member, had spent years working jobs related to counseling. She previously worked with an agency in Tennessee that helped provide immigrants job training and other skills, matching clients with applicable services.
“Every job she had was helping people. That was her goal in life, to help people," Baker said. “She grew up with a respect and appreciation for the military and law enforcement. She was in the VFW Auxilliary.”
A police source said Jones, who had her a concealed carry license, had a loaded gun in her pocket when she was shot. Baker said he gave her a gun not long after she turned 18 and it was something she would have been comfortable using, but that she never carried. He also said she was typically asleep by 10 p.m., so he doesn’t understand why she was awake and outside when she was shot.
“She never would’ve picked up a gun and walked outside, that’s not my child. I’m still trying to figure out why would she do that,” he said. “Evidently she was worried, which is why she took the gun. But the coward shot her in the back.”
Advertisement
kdouglas@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @312BreakingNews


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--Naperville police seeking public’s help in finding teen girl missing since Sunday

Mallory Glass was last seen about midnight in the area of downtown Naperville and is believed to be with an @ @ @ @ @ news release said .

Mallory Glass, 15, of Naperville, was reported missing Sunday night by her parents, and police are seeking the public's help in locating her. (Naperville Police Department / HANDOUT)
Naperville police are seeking the public’s help in locating a 15-year-old girl who’s been missing since Sunday.
Mallory Glass was last seen about midnight in the area of downtown Naperville and is believed to be with an unidentified man, a police news release said.
Advertisement
Her parents contacted police about 8:15 p.m. Sunday to report Mallory missing, the release said. A second girl who ran away with her was located Tuesday and returned to her family.
Mallory was last seen wearing a black T-shirt, black pants and tennis shoes, the release said.
Advertisement
Anyone with information on the teen’s whereabouts is asked to call 630-420-6666 and ask for the Investigations Division.


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--At least five officers, including a commander, face suspension after probe of former police boss Edd

At least five officers, including a commander, face suspension after probe of former police boss Eddie Johnson’s conduct

Ferguson opened the investigation into Johnson ’ s conduct shortly after he was found asleep at the wheel at 34th @ @ @ @ @ the Bridgeport neighborhood on the night of Oct. 16 , 2019 .
Johnson publicly blamed @ @ @ @ @ to take blood pressure medication but privately told Mayor Lori Lightfoot he had “ a @ @ @ @ @ dinner that evening , which she disclosed in an interview with the Sun-Times .

Jeremy Gorner, Annie Sweeney, Gregory Pratt

At least five Chicago police officers — including a commander — face suspension after city Inspector General Joseph Ferguson’s investigation into the October 2019 incident where then-police Superintendent Eddie Johnson was found asleep at the wheel of his city-issued SUV, the Tribune has learned.
Deering District Cmdr. Don Jerome, the highest-ranking officer of the five, was to receive up to a 28-day suspension for his role in the incident, according to sources familiar with the matter. Reached by telephone Tuesday afternoon, Jerome declined to comment.
Advertisement
At least four officers facing punishment from the Chicago Police Department included a lieutenant who was to receive up to a 21-day penalty, sources said. Details about their roles in the case will likely be disclosed as soon as Friday, when Ferguson releases a summary of his investigation in his office’s quarterly report.
The city of Chicago released bodycam footage related to an October incident where former police Superintendent Eddie Johnson was found asleep in a car. (Chicago Tribune Handout)
Chicago police officials had no comment, and a spokeswoman for the IG’s office did not immediately comment on the case. The conduct that brought Jerome the suspension was not immediately disclosed.
Advertisement
Among the officers under investigation by Ferguson in the Johnson case was an officer who went drinking with Johnson hours before he was found slumped over in his SUV.
The security detail officer, who was Johnson’s driver, was accused of removing a SIM card from a cellphone that had been sought as evidence by Ferguson’s office. SIM cards store data on cellphones. It has not been disclosed whether the officer faces a suspension or any other punishment.
Chicago police 9th District Cmdr. Don Jerome participates in a march in the Back of the Yards neighborhood, May 18, 2019. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
Jerome, a 26-year veteran of the department, was promoted to commander of Deering in 2019, where the Johnson incident took place, several months prior.
In 2012, he was honored at the White House by President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden for capturing two armed robbery suspects in Chicago’s Hermosa neighborhood and freeing six victims, three of them children, who had been bound by duct tape in a store. The efforts earned Jerome an award from the National Association of Police Organizations.
Ferguson opened the investigation into Johnson’s conduct shortly after he was found asleep at the wheel at 34th Place and Aberdeen Street in the Bridgeport neighborhood on the night of Oct. 16, 2019. Johnson publicly blamed the incident on his failure to take blood pressure medication but privately told Mayor Lori Lightfoot he had “a couple of drinks” with dinner that evening, which she disclosed in an interview with the Sun-Times.
The following month, Johnson announced his intention to retire during an emotional ceremony attended by Lightfoot at police headquarters, the same event where the mayor acknowledged to reporters she would likely be interviewed by the IG’s office. But weeks later, Lightfoot announced she was firing Johnson because he’d lied to her about the incident.
At the time, Ferguson continued to investigate the case and did not give Lightfoot a full report until earlier this year. The city so far has declined to release it, citing legal reasons.
An ordinance backed by the mayor last fall allowed the city’s corporation counsel to decide whether to release full inspector general reports in investigations that involve a death, or that involve or could involve a felony, and that are “of a compelling public interest.” Kathleen Fieweger, the Law Department’s spokeswoman, has defended the city’s withholding the report on Johnson, saying that it covered no conduct that rose to a felony.
Advertisement
Lightfoot has also said the full report in the Johnson case does not meet the standard to be publicly released.
After Ferguson provided the mayor’s office with a copy of his report, Lightfoot released some body camera footage in June showing that the incident leading to Johnson’s firing started when an unidentified man called 911 to report someone asleep in a vehicle at a stop sign at 34th and Aberdeen, not far from Johnson’s home.
The caller told officials that the vehicle’s lights were off but the engine was running and smoke was coming out of the exhaust.
In footage from a responding officer’s bodycam, also released by Lightfoot, Johnson is at the wheel when the officer asks, “You just sitting here or you wanna go home?”
“I’m good,” Johnson replies.
The officer responds, “You good? All right, sir. Have a good night.”
Advertisement
Ferguson released a summary version of his July quarterly report, which offered a fuller picture of that night’s events. The report said Chicago police trailed their boss home as he ran a stop sign and briefly drove in the wrong lane. Ferguson’s quarterly report raised the possibility of discipline for other officers and said Johnson’s driver also drove home in a city vehicle after drinking with the superintendent that night.
Earlier during the night, Johnson and his driver drank at Ceres Cafe in the Loop, according to details previously reported and Ferguson’s summary of events. Ferguson reported that both drank rum at the bar, famous for its generous pours.
Ferguson’s report does not say when they left the bar. But he wrote that Johnson drove, and around 10:30 p.m. he dropped his driver off at police headquarters in the Bronzeville neighborhood. The inspector general reported that she drove away in her city vehicle.
Johnson then drove toward his home. Security footage showed he parked illegally at 34th and Aberdeen at 10:39 p.m., Ferguson wrote. He remained there with the SUV running until a member of the public called 911 to report someone asleep in a vehicle and officers arrived at 12:33 a.m., according to the report.
jgorner@chicagotribune.com
asweeney@chicagotribune.com
Advertisement
gpratt@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--COVID-19 test positivity rates rising statewide as officials ask residents to consider changes to ho

COVID-19 test positivity rates rising statewide as officials ask residents to consider changes to holiday tradition

While Illinois has done relatively well in slowing the spread of the virus compared with its Midwestern neighbors , it @ @ @ @ @ low levels seen in New York and New England , Murphy said .
He attributed @ @ @ @ @ school , employees returning to workplaces in greater numbers , the politicization of the pandemic @ @ @ @ @ and other precautions urged by public health officials .

CTU workers direct vehicles lined up for COVID-19 testing outside of the Chicago Teachers Union on Dec. 30, 2021, in Chicago. CPS starts back to school on Monday following their holiday break. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
Illinois' top public health official urged residents on Wednesday to prepare for holiday celebrations differently this year as the state continues to see an uptick in newly-diagnosed cases and hospitalizations of people with COVID-19-like symptoms.
To avoid having “our holidays marred by tragedy on the back end,” Dr. Ngozi Ezike said people who are sick around the holidays need to avoid gatherings entirely. Her comments came as the state released guidance for holiday travel and parties that included limiting the number of guests and seating arrangements aimed at curbing the spread of COVID-19.
Advertisement
All 11 regions in Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s statewide reopening plan saw increases in COVID-19 test positivity rates within the past week and the statewide positivity rate climbed by more than 1 percentage point during that period, Pritzker said Wednesday at his weekly pandemic briefing. Most regions also have seen an increase in hospital admissions, which Pritzker called a “concerning direction."
The state reported 2,862 newly diagnosed cases of coronavirus and 49 additional deaths on Wednesday, raising the state-reported totals to 327,605 known cases and 9,074 deaths throughout the course of the pandemic.
Advertisement
The seven-day statewide positivity rate was 4.6% for the period that ended Tuesday, up from 3.5% a week earlier.
Ezike urged people planning holiday celebrations to spend as much time outdoors as possible, to limit the number of people, increase air circulation indoors and limit potential exposure to illness in the two weeks leading up to a gathering.
“The safest way to celebrate with the members of your household is to connect with people outside of your household virtually, but I know, we all know, that many people will be gathering and getting together with family and friends,” Ezike said Wednesday.
Ezike also said if people are hosting others or attending a gathering outside their home for the holidays, “I think we have to get used to the idea of even in our home, wearing masks, as unnatural as that may feel."
The state’s guidance also asks Illinois residents to consider gift shopping online rather than visiting stores in person and opting for delivery or curbside pickup grocery options, and to avoid potluck or buffet serving for meals, with seating arrangements that space out people from different households.
Dr. Robert Murphy, executive director of the Institute for Global Health at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, said in an interview this week that he’s extremely concerned about the recent resurgence of COVID-19 in Illinois.
While Illinois has done relatively well in slowing the spread of the virus compared with its Midwestern neighbors, it never reduced spread to the low levels seen in New York and New England, Murphy said. He attributed this to students returning to school, employees returning to workplaces in greater numbers, the politicization of the pandemic and fatigue with social distancing and other precautions urged by public health officials.
With vaccines and treatments in development, Murphy said he believes that “a year from now, we’re going to be in a very different and much better place.”
Advertisement
But first, there is a difficult winter ahead.
“Wait till it gets really cold here,” Murphy said. “This is going to be a nightmare. And the public health people are ringing the bells, but I don’t think people get it. … We never got rid of wave one, but this winter is going to be, I think, very challenging.”
The latest daily count of newly diagnosed cases of COVID-19 came from a batch of 52,669 tests conducted during a 24-hour period.
As of Tuesday night, 1,974 people with COVID-19 were hospitalized in Illinois, with 390 patients in intensive care units and 153 on ventilators.
A week earlier, the state reported that 1,679 people were hospitalized with coronavirus. A month ago, the state reported that 1,431 people in Illinois were in the hospital with COVID-19.
One region, the nine-county northwest region of the state that includes Rockford and Galena, remains subject to stricter rules for bars and restaurants and a smaller gathering size cap than the rest of the state. That region’s positivity rate had bloomed to more than 10% as of Sunday, the state Public Health Department reported Wednesday.
Advertisement
Pritzker warned Wednesday that far southern Illinois could soon fall under the same tightening rules, if it surpasses the state-set threshold of 8% positivity rate for three consecutive days.
That region reached 8% earlier this week, but dipped back below that mark in the numbers the state reported Wednesday.
jmunks@chicagotribune.com
dpetrella@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--Chicago man killed, California woman critically injured in I-57 crash in Oak Forest

Roosevelt Logan , 23 , of the 9700 block of South Wentworth Avenue , was pronounced dead at 12:04 a.m. @ @ @ @ @ near Cicero Avenue and 171st Street in Oak Forest , according to the Cook County @ @ @ @ @ .
A 20-year-old woman from Santa Rosa , California , suffered “ life-threatening injuries '' @ @ @ @ @ in was hit by the car Logan had been in , according to a release @ @ @ @ @

A Chicago man died on Interstate 57 in Oak Forest overnight when the car he was in rear-ended another car that was stopped on the road after becoming disabled, critically injuring a passenger in the first car, police said.
Two state transportation workers also were injured in a later crash when someone hit two state trucks helping with traffic control on the highway, according to officials.
Advertisement
Roosevelt Logan, 23, of the 9700 block of South Wentworth Avenue, was pronounced dead at 12:04 a.m. at the scene on I-57 near Cicero Avenue and 171st Street in Oak Forest, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office. A 20-year-old woman from Santa Rosa, California, suffered “life-threatening injuries" when the car she was in was hit by the car Logan had been in, according to a release from Illinois State Police.
The two-vehicle crash happened about 11:20 p.m. Tuesday, and all southbound lanes of I-57 were closed at 167th Street for about five hours, according to state police.
Advertisement
The two cars were heading south on I-57 when the one the woman was in, a silver 2005 Nissan Altima, became disabled in the right lane and the car Logan was in, a white 2016 Nissan Sentra, moved from the center lane into the right lane, rear-ending the Altima, police said in a release.
The driver of the Sentra, a 44-year-old man from Lockport, suffered minor injuries and was taken to a hospital for treatment. The driver of the car the woman was in, a 22-year-old Chicago man, as well as another passenger in his car, a 19-year-old Sacramento, California, woman, were not injured, police said.
About 2:10 a.m., a passenger car hit two Illinois Department of Transportation trucks whose drivers were helping with traffic control, injuring the two drivers, state police said. The drivers were taken to a local hospital with minor injuries, police said.
No information about charges or citations was immediately released.
Check back for updates.


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--Recreational marijuana tax revenue passes $100 million in Illinois

A planned lottery to award 75 new recreational licenses is on hold after more than 70 unsuccessful marijuana dispensary applicants @ @ @ @ @ state , alleging the process unfairly excluded the minority applicants it had sought to include @ @ @ @ @ lawsuit last month after Gov .
J.B. Pritzker announced a second chance to qualify for @ @ @ @ @ ,

Illinois has collected more than $100 million in recreational marijuana tax revenue since legalizing sales Jan. 1, according to the state’s Department of Revenue.
The tax revenue, which includes a cannabis tax, as well as state and local sales taxes, reflects growing recreational marijuana sales as dispensaries continue to open across the state. In September, adult-use cannabis tax revenue topped $20 million — rivaling the state’s liquor tax revenue for the month.
Advertisement
“We’ve always assumed that as the market matures, tax revenue will go up,” Sam Salustro, an Illinois Department of Revenue spokesman, said Wednesday.
When Illinois legalized recreational marijuana in January, it allowed each of the 55 existing medical cannabis dispensaries to open a second location for selling recreational weed.
Advertisement
There are now 67 licensed recreational dispensaries in Illinois, according to the state. If all of the allowable dispensaries open, including 75 licenses yet to be awarded by lottery, there will be 185 recreational dispensaries in Illinois.
Recreational dispensaries sold more than $68 million worth of marijuana in September, topping August sales by nearly $4 million, according to a monthly state report.
Daywatch Weekdays Start each day with Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox. By submitting your email to receive this newsletter, you agree to our Subscriber Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy >
The nearly $20.2 million in September recreational marijuana tax revenue collected reflects sales in August, the state said. Illinois collected $26.2 million in liquor tax revenue for the same month.
Recreational marijuana is taxed at multiple layers, including a 7% wholesale tax, a retail cannabis excise tax of 10%, 20%, or 25%, depending on the THC concentration, a 6.25% state sales tax and a variety of local taxes. THC is the main psychoactive chemical in marijuana that produces the high feeling.
The state collected about $106 million in adult-use cannabis taxes through September. That is less than half the $227 million in liquor tax revenue this year, but the state’s weed tax revenue is “catching up,” Salustro said.
Liquor tax revenue for September is actually up slightly year-over-year, and Salustro said it will take a “long time” to determine if there is a relationship between alcohol and marijuana sales.
The state is expecting weed revenue to continue growing “as a function of people buying more, there being more supply and there being more places to buy the product,” Salustro said.
A planned lottery to award 75 new recreational licenses is on hold after more than 70 unsuccessful marijuana dispensary applicants filed a lawsuit against the state, alleging the process unfairly excluded the minority applicants it had sought to include. The applicants dropped the lawsuit last month after Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced a second chance to qualify for the as-yet unscheduled license lottery,
Advertisement
rchannick@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--St. Louis couple who waved guns at protesters outside their home plead not guilty; lawyer says Trump

St. Louis couple who waved guns at protesters outside their home plead not guilty; lawyer says Trump ‘contacts them semi-frequently’

The protest on June 28 came in the midst of national racial injustice demonstrations that followed the death of George @ @ @ @ @ few hundred marchers were on their way to St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson ’ s @ @ @ @ @ a private street made up of million-dollar homes in St. Louis ' posh Central West @ @

ST. LOUIS — A St. Louis couple celebrated in some circles and vilified in others for waving guns at protesters marching on their private street pleaded not guilty to two felony charges at a brief hearing Wednesday.
Mark and Patricia McCloskey, who are both attorneys in their early 60s, were indicted by a St. Louis grand jury last week on charges of unlawful use of a weapon and tampering with evidence. They will appear in court again Oct. 28.
Advertisement
St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner originally filed the weapons charge in July. The grand jury added the evidence tampering charge. The indictment states that a semiautomatic pistol was altered in a way that “obstructed the prosecution of Patricia McCloskey” on the weapons charge.
The McCloskeys have blamed the “leftist” Democrats in St. Louis for their plight and have become folk heroes among some conservatives. They have received support from President Donald Trump and they spoke on video at the opening night of the Republican National Convention.
Advertisement
In fact, the McCloskeys' attorney, Joel Schwartz, indicated that Trump remains interested in the case.
“They have spoken with the president,” Schwartz said after the hearing. “The president contacts them semi-frequently.” He declined to elaborate and the McCloskeys declined to be interviewed.
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson has defended the couple’s right to protect their home and said he will pardon them if they are convicted.
Armed homeowners Mark and Patricia McCloskey, standing in front of their house, confront protesters marching to St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson's house on June 28, 2020. (Laurie Skrivan/AP)
The protest on June 28 came in the midst of national racial injustice demonstrations that followed the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. A few hundred marchers were on their way to St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson’s home when they veered onto a private street made up of million-dollar homes in St. Louis' posh Central West End.
The McCloskeys claimed the protesters not only ignored a “No Trespassing” sign but also broke down an iron gate. Protest leaders said they did not damage the gate.
Mark McCloskey emerged from his home armed with an AR-15 rifle and Patricia McCloskey came out with a semiautomatic handgun. It wasn’t immediately clear if that gun was the same one that was the subject of the evidence tampering charge.
Cellphone video captured the tense confrontation between the McCloskeys and protesters. The couple said they felt threatened but protest leaders said the demonstration was peaceful on their end. No shots were fired and no one was hurt.
Gardner, a Democrat, said the display of guns risked bloodshed. A police probable cause statement said protesters feared “being injured due to Patricia McCloskey’s finger being on the trigger, coupled with her excited demeanor.”
Advertisement
Nine people involved in the protest were charged with misdemeanor trespassing, but the city counselor’s office later dropped the charges. The city counselor’s office handles lesser crimes and is not affiliated with the circuit attorney’s office.
Mark McCloskey, after a brief court hearing last week, expressed anger that he and his wife faced criminal charges while those who trespassed on his property did not.
“Every single human being that was in front of my house was a criminal trespasser,” McCloskey said. “They broke down our gate. They trespassed on our property. Not a single one of those people is now charged with anything. We’re charged with felonies that could cost us four years of our lives and our law licenses.”


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--Daily Illinois coronavirus graphs: 49 new deaths, 2,862 new confirmed cases and 52,669 new test resu

Daily Illinois coronavirus graphs: 49 new deaths, 2,862 new confirmed cases and 52,669 new test results

Illinois announced 2,862 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 Wednesday for a total of 327,605 .
The state also announced 49 @ @ @ @ @ of 9,074 and 52,669 new test results for a total of 6.46 million .

Johns Hopkins University & Medicine tracked coronavirus cases, deaths and test totals from Jan. 22, 2020 through March 10, 2023, but is no longer providing this data. These charts will no longer be updated.
Check the Illinois Department of Public Health for the most up-to-date data for Illinois.
[ Remembering the lives of those in Illinois who died from coronavirus ]
Can’t see these charts? Go here.


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--Bourbon County beer release migrates online due to COVID-19 — and could signal a long-term shift

Starting at 10 a.m. Friday , Binny ’ s , which stages the city ’ s largest Bourbon County release @ @ @ @ @ registration for its 2020 Bourbon County drawing .
Two packages will be available : one @ @ @ @ @ other with eight .
Prices will be revealed after the drawing is concluded , a @ @ @ @ @ .

No more waiting in the cold? Bundled up customers wait in a long line Nov. 25, 2016, to buy the newly released Bourbon County Stout beers at Binny's Beverage Depot, 1720 N. Marcey St., in Chicago. The annual release will happen online this year. (Chris Walker / Chicago Tribune)
Bad news, Chicago: You don’t get to stand in line in the dark hours of a cold November morning to buy beer this year.
The good news: You get to do it online instead.
Advertisement
As has seemed inevitable for months, the COVID-19 pandemic is pushing sales of Goose Island’s Bourbon County beers from lines wrapped around stores to online drawings, lotteries and preorders.
The change follows Goose Island’s shift of its annual Prop Day event — traditionally the first Bourbon County release of the year — to a multiday, contact-free pickup event at the United Center. Three Floyds Brewing has also shifted its annual Dark Lord Day, where the Munster, Indiana, brewery releases its Dark Lord imperial stout, into an online lottery.
Advertisement
Stores large and small are moving Bourbon County sales online to replace what have traditionally been crowded, in-person events.
However, Chris Quinn, owner of The Beer Temple bar and bottle shop, said the comfort and ease of online ordering — as well as increased competition from other breweries making barrel-aged beer — may make a shift back to long lines and in-person sales less than intuitive for both the Bourbon County lineup and similar beers from competing breweries.
“Unless you give people an experience, like Dark Lord Day or Prop Day, there’s a better way, and people will start wanting that,” he said.
Starting at 10 a.m. Friday, Binny’s, which stages the city’s largest Bourbon County release every year, will open registration for its 2020 Bourbon County drawing. Two packages will be available: one with six beers and the other with eight. Prices will be revealed after the drawing is concluded, a Binny’s spokesman said.
Jewel-Osco has also launched an online lottery in which winners can buy a package of all seven of the 2020 Bourbon County beers. According to Jewel-Osco’s contest rules, the seven beers range in price from $12.99 (Bourbon County Stout) to $29.99 (Anniversary Bourbon County Stout and Birthday Bourbon County Stout) for a total cost of $164 plus tax.
The Beer Temple is also shifting to full online sales. Quinn said his store will offer preorders of all seven Bourbon County beers packaged together, available for pick up and delivery. The cost of the package isn’t yet known, he said.
A shift to online sales was probably inevitable for The Beer Temple, Quinn said.
Advertisement
“For us, the demand hasn’t been what it was in recent years so it’s very natural to do an online sale,” he said. “If it hadn’t been this year, we would have probably been doing it next year regardless.”
Goose Island did not say whether it would host its usual Black Friday Bourbon County tappings and tastings at its locations.
However, in a statement on its website, the brewery said it is offering “safety recommendations and resources to our retail partners across the country and urging them to implement these measures to get Bourbon County Stout safely into the hands of our fans.”
“You’ll see lottery systems, prepurchasing the beer and having select pick-up times is going to replace the overnight parking lot camping and the waiting in long lines of years past,” the brewery said. “We are asking that our retail partners put the safety of our fans first and communicate safety protocols as early and as clearly as possible.”
This year’s crop of Bourbon County beers, all of which are aged in various whiskey barrels, ranges from a mix of old-school classics, playful flavored variants and beers meant to highlight the barrels in which they were aged.
Goose Island began staging Bourbon County beer releases at the Binny’s location in Lincoln Park in 2011, turning what had previously been an innocuous moment — the release of a new beer — into an event drawing large crowds. The event grew in size, scope and popularity for several years and was gradually exported to other markets. Such high profile beer releases are now standard.
Advertisement
jbnoel@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--Watch live: Gov. J.B. Pritzker delivers a COVID-19 update

Illinois Gov .
J.B. Pritzker is expected to deliver a COVID-19 update at noon .
Get the latest updates here @

This website stores data such as cookies to enable essential site functionality, as well as marketing, personalization, and analytics. By remaining on this website, you indicate your consent.


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--McHenry County man gets 7 years for 7th DUI

Romero-Morales worked in a factory and supported his girlfriend and two young girls , Stevens said .
He had been @ @ @ @ @ monitoring since his arrest in 2018 in McHenry .
He was stopped for a lane @ @ @ @ @ was harmed , Stevens said .

A man in McHenry County was sentenced to seven years in prison for his seventh conviction of driving under the influence, attorneys said Tuesday.
Because of the multiple cases in which he has been found guilty, Danilo Romero-Morales, 47, was convicted of aggravated driving under the influence, a class X felony punishable by six to 30 years in prison.
Advertisement
Judge Robert Wilbrandt handed down the sentence Friday, when he also found the defendant guilty of his 15th conviction for driving while his license was revoked.
Romero-Morales repeatedly apologized to the judge, saying that he had a drinking problem, but had changed since getting treatment and joining Alcoholics Anonymous and helping other members of the group, his attorney, Brian Stevens said.
Advertisement
“He realized he needed help and got it, and indicated how much it changed him,” Stevens said.
Romero-Morales worked in a factory and supported his girlfriend and two young girls, Stevens said. He had been out on bond on electronic monitoring since his arrest in 2018 in McHenry. He was stopped for a lane violation, and no one was harmed, Stevens said.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant State’s Attorney Mary Ann Scholl, who could not be reached immediately for comment. Under sentencing guidelines, Romero-Morales is expected to serve about half of his sentence.
rmccoppin@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-10-14--Wisconsin judge temporarily blocks governor’s order limiting capacity at bars and restaurants

Earlier this year , the conservative-controlled Wisconsin Supreme Court ended Evers ' “ safer at home ” order .
Republican @ @ @ @ @ end the governor ’ s statewide mask mandate , arguing as the Tavern League has @ @ @ @ @ the order exceeded Evers ' authority .
A judge on Monday upheld the mask mandate @ @ @ @ @ the power to strike it down if it wants to .

MADISON, Wis. — A Wisconsin judge on Wednesday temporarily blocked an order from Gov. Tony Evers' administration limiting the number of people who can gather in bars, restaurants and other indoor places, a move that comes as the state breaks records for new coronavirus cases, deaths and hospitalizations.
Sawyer County Circuit Judge John Yackel, who blocked the order a day after the Tavern League of Wisconsin sued, set a court date for Monday. The judge said that hearing will give attorneys for the defendant, Wisconsin Department of Health Secretary Andrea Palm, a chance to argue why the order should not be put on hold while the lawsuit plays out.
Advertisement
The Democratic governor’s order, issued by Evers-appointee Palm last week, limited the number of customers in many indoor establishment to 25% of capacity. Gatherings in indoor spaces without an occupancy limit were limited to 10 people. The order does not apply to colleges, schools, churches, polling locations, political rallies and outdoor venues.
The limits were to run through Nov. 6, with violators facing fines of up to $500.
Advertisement
Evers said he was making the move to curb the spread of the virus as it spikes in Wisconsin. The state was opening a field hospital near Milwaukee on Wednesday to handle an overflow of patients from hospitals that hit a record-high number of COVID-19 patients on Tuesday.
The Tavern League, the powerful lobbying group for the state’s 5,000 bars, restaurants and taverns, argued in its lawsuit that the order amounted to “defacto closure.” It said that Palm didn’t have the legal authority to issue the order, which instead should have gone through the Legislature’s rule-making process.
A Republican-controlled legislative committee on Monday met to begin the process of creating the rule, which would then allow the Legislature to strike it down.
Evers on Tuesday defended the order, saying it was unnecessary to issue a rule as the Tavern League and Republicans say is necessary.
A spokeswoman for Evers did not immediately return a message seeking comment Wednesday on the ruling.
But Democratic lawmakers said the attempt to undo the capacity limits order would hurt the state’s pandemic response.
“Make no mistake, if this dangerous decision stands, Wisconsin will be choosing full bars over full classrooms,” tweeted state Sen. LaTonya Johnson, of Milwaukee. “What a pathetic set of priorities to teach our children.”
Earlier this year, the conservative-controlled Wisconsin Supreme Court ended Evers' “safer at home” order. Republican lawmakers are currently suing to end the governor’s statewide mask mandate, arguing as the Tavern League has done in this lawsuit that the order exceeded Evers' authority. A judge on Monday upheld the mask mandate, saying the Legislature has the power to strike it down if it wants to.
Advertisement
Evers has argued that Republicans are making it more difficult for the state to deal with the pandemic.
The Tavern League, the Sawyer County Tavern League and the Flambeau Forest Inn in the village of Winter brought the lawsuit. It argues that the Flambeau Forest Inn would be forced to limit its capacity to 10 people under the state order, which would include five customers and five employees needed to operate the restaurant.
“Flambeau could not operate profitably under these conditions and would be forced to discontinue its business operations,” the lawsuit said.
The state Department of Health Services on Tuesday reported 3,279 confirmed new coronavirus cases, breaking a record of 3,132 set just five days earlier. There were 34 deaths reported, also a new high, bringing the total number of people who have died to 1,508. To date, more than 155,000 people in Wisconsin have tested positive.