chicagotribune--2020-10-10--Businessman named in federal corruption probe accused of fraud in bankruptcy court

In their emailed statement , the attorneys for Gauri and Black Dog said it was the subsidiaries of Black Dog @ @ @ @ @ in bankruptcy , that received the loans money , and that the money was used @ @ @ @ @ jobs .

The owner of a clout-heavy fuel distribution firm embroiled in an ongoing federal corruption probe has been accused in bankruptcy court of lying under oath, hiding assets and secretly cutting tens of thousands of dollars in checks to himself and family members.
The Department of Justice attorney assigned to monitor the bankruptcy petition of Black Dog Chicago LLC said in a filing with the court last month that owner Amit Gauri has “engaged in self-dealing” and used his company’s assets “as his personal piggy bank” to fund a lavish lifestyle.
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U.S. Trustee Ha Nguyen is also looking into whether Gauri fraudulently obtained hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal loans last spring that were aimed at helping small businesses stay afloat amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, court records show.
The developments scuttled an upcoming trial on Black Dog’s proposed plan to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Instead, a trustee was appointed earlier this week to take over the affairs of Black Dog Chicago, while three subsidiaries remained under Gauri’s control.
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Attorneys for Black Dog and Gauri countered on Friday that the company “voluntarily consented” to the appointment of the Chapter 11 trustee in an effort to open its books and records to a third party, who could investigate any alleged wrongdoing and monitor the finances going forward to put creditors at ease.
Black Dog has since filed amended reports with the court correcting any omissions, the attorneys said in an emailed statement to the Chicago Tribune.
“Any mistakes in the bankruptcy filing were readily admitted by Black Dog when it discovered them, and they have been corrected by amended filings,” the statement read. “There was no intent to hide anything from creditors who are going to be paid in full in any event.”
In a brief hearing Tuesday, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Janet Baer urged both sides to work together on a new plan — even as the investigation of Gauri’s alleged wrongdoing continues.
“Unfortunately, this case started out with principals that clearly don’t trust each other,” Baer said. The judge set a status hearing for Oct. 21.
Amit Gauri (Victor Powell)
Gauri and Black Dog have been under fire since they were each named in federal search warrants and subpoenas filed in September 2019 in a sweeping political corruption investigation of former state Sen. Martin Sandoval and a number of suburban mayors and industry heavyweights, including Illinois' so-called Asphalt King, Michael Vondra.
Gauri, 40, has not been criminally charged. Another lawyer representing him as the government conducts that probe, Daniel Collins, could not immediately be reached for comment.
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Last year, the Tribune reported on Gauri’s rise in the city’s business scene, from the hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign cash he’s showered on local politicians to the relationships he’s forged with several key players in the sprawling federal investigation.
Another controversy ignited earlier this year when a Florida fuel distributor that lost a bid for a $43 million contract to provide diesel to the city of Chicago filed an official protest alleging the process was skewed to take care of Gauri, who had the backing of an influential Chicago alderman. The protest was eventually denied.
But it’s Black Dog’s filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in October 2019 that could pose the most legal jeopardy for Gauri.
The bankruptcy petition was filed amid a legal fight with one of Black Dog’s former fuel suppliers over millions of dollars in allegedly unpaid bills, court records show.
When questioned about his petition under oath last November, Gauri acknowledged that he’d met with Sandoval and former state Rep. Luis Arroyo, who also has been charged in federal court with corruption, to discuss issues related to minority-owned business contracts.
Gauri also said he leased and later purchased his trucks directly from Vondra, a longtime player in state construction whose Bartlett offices were also visited by federal investigators last fall. Vondra has not been charged with wrongdoing.
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In early 2018, Gauri testified, he began paying Vondra under an asset purchase agreement for the rights to do business under the name Southwind RAS, an acronym for “recycled asphalt shingling.” By June 2018, Black Dog had moved its offices from Westchester to its current location in Lyons in a building owned by Vondra. Gauri testified that he pays Vondra about $12,000 a month in rent.
In his report to the court on Sept. 21, U.S. Department of Justice attorney Ha Nguyen steered away from any mention of Vondra or the ongoing corruption probe.
But he accused Gauri of defrauding the bankruptcy process from the get-go, hiding cash disbursements to himself, his father and his wife that occurred just weeks before Black Dog’s bankruptcy filing and should have been reported to the court, records show.
Among the questionable “self-dealing,” Nguyen said, were two disbursements totaling $32,000 to Gauri’s wife from Black Dog’s account at First Midwest Bank.
The main creditor in the bankruptcy case, Parent Petroluem, alleged in one recent court filing that some of those funds were used to pay for luxury personal vehicles for the Gauris, including a Range Rover and a Tesla. Gauri has vehemently denied those claims.
Gauri also allegedly failed to disclose payments he made from the same Black Dog account to cover personal expenses, including $63,300 to finance a vacation home in Michigan and $50,700 to purchase a luxury high-rise condo in Chicago, according to Nguyen’s filing.
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Nguyen said Gauri also kept hidden from creditors a bank account that was used to make more than $63,000 in disbursements this year, and failed to disclose on financial schedules “valuable contracts” Black Dog has with several government agencies, including Metra.
Several other lengthy paragraphs in the filing were blacked out.
The day after filing his objection, Nguyen made two discovery requests in court seeking records on more than $500,000 in Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster loans obtained by Gauri-affiliated companies amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Companies in bankruptcy are typically barred from applying for PPP loans and must seek court approval an pledge collateral for any EID assistance.
The Tribune first reported that a Black Dog subsidiary was given a PPP loan in April of up to $350,000 that Gauri claimed would save 22 jobs.
In his filing, Nguyen said the Small Business Administration reported two other Gauri-owned subsidiaries, Black Dog Foods LLC and Black Dog Solutions, received another $106,000 in PPP Loans that same month.
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A Tribune database of PPP loan disbursements shows that a fourth company affiliated with Gauri, AGPD Paving, received a loan of up to $350,000 in May.
AGPD, which does business under the name Cardi Asphalt, lists Gauri as its manager and has a business address in the same building in Lyons as Black Dog, records show. Like the Black Dog Petroleum loan, AGPD’s application also claimed that 22 jobs would be saved.
The AGPD loan was not listed in Nguyen’s discover request. However, Nguyen said Black Dog Chicago applied for and was granted an EIDL loan in June in the amount of $150,000.
As of Sept. 22, Nguyen said he had not been able to locate where Gauri deposited the EIDL funds or what they were used for.
In their emailed statement, the attorneys for Gauri and Black Dog said it was the subsidiaries of Black Dog Chicago, which are not in bankruptcy, that received the loans money, and that the money was used to pay employees to save jobs.
jmeisner@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-10-10--Boy, 3, dropped off at Far South Side hospital after  accidentally shooting himself: police

Yellow caution tape was wrapped around the doorway of the building , which had a cellphone store and beauty shop @ @ @ @ @ Apartments appeared to be on the second and third floors .

A 3-year-old boy shot himself in the foot after finding a gun at a Far South Side apartment, officials said Friday afternoon.
Shortly after 2:45 p.m., police were called to Roseland Community Hospital, 45 W. 111th St., where they met a 23-year-old woman who told them the 3-year-old was wounded in the foot, according to Officer Anthony Spicuzza, a Chicago police spokesman.
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Authorities learned the boy had found the gun, which was left unattended at an apartment in the 300 block of East 103rd Street, and shot himself, police said.
The boy was transferred to Comer Children’s Hospital, according to Chicago Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford.
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Chicago police and pedestrians appear around police tape outside an apartment building at 103rd Street and Calumet Avenue Oct. 9, 2020, where there was an unconfirmed report a child was shot. (Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune)
By 4:30 p.m., several police officers stood at the northeast corner of 103rd Street and Calumet, guarding the entrance to a three-story brick building.
Yellow caution tape was wrapped around the doorway of the building, which had a cellphone store and beauty shop on its first floor. Apartments appeared to be on the second and third floors.
Police said the shooting remains under investigation.
Check back for details.
rsobol@chicagotribune.com
jaanderson@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-10-09--The Columbus statues are gone, and there’s no parade or CPS holiday this year. But Chicago Italian A

The Columbus statues are gone, and there’s no parade or CPS holiday this year. But Chicago Italian Americans say Columbus Day will live on.

“ We took this step in response to demonstrations that became unsafe for both protesters and police , and to @ @ @ @ @ pull the Grant Park statue down in an extremely dangerous manner , ” Lightfoot said @ @ @ @ @ This step is an effort to protect public safety and to preserve a safe space @ @ @ @ @ public dialogue about our city ’ s symbols .
It also will allow us to @ @ @ @ @ they are most needed — particularly in our South and West Side communities .
”

The Christopher Columbus statue is transported after being removed in Grant Park in the early hours of July 24, 2020. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)
There will be a lot less fanfare on Columbus Day in Chicago this year.
As criticism of Christopher Columbus' place in history has grown, clashes erupted over the removal of statues in his honor this summer and Chicago schools officially dropped his name from the holiday.
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Traditionally, Monday would be marked with a parade that celebrates Columbus' voyage to America and Italian American culture. But this year, for the first time in decades, the parade has been canceled because the city isn’t issuing permits for such large-scale gatherings amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans, the parade organizers, instead plan a rally and car procession at Arrigo Park, the site of one of the now-removed statues. A small contingent of the group also held the traditional Italian flag-raising at Daley Plaza on Friday.
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“It will certainly be a different kind of year, and we’ll be having a toned down celebration,” said Pasquale Gianni, a member of the group’s executive board. He added that “we fully intend to have the parade next year” and blamed this year’s cancellation “solely” on the pandemic.
Mary May, a spokesperson with the Office of Emergency Management and Communications, issued a statement: “While there are no events organized by the City this weekend, the Office of Emergency Management and Communications (OEMC) will be monitoring weather conditions and any event or activity that should arise in relation to the holiday weekend. As always, OEMC and the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) encourage everyone to wear masks and for all activity organized by residents to follow the City’s COVID-19 precautions and rules.”
The site in Chicago's Arrigo Park where a Christopher Columbus statue once stood is now fenced off. The Italian American group that typically hosts the Columbus Day parade will now have a small rally and car procession at Arrigo Park on Monday instead. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
A number of large cities have made the switch from Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day in an effort to reframe the day in honor of Native American history and culture.
Some Italian Americans say celebrating Columbus is a celebration of their heritage. But activists around the country have condemned the explorer, pointing to his mistreatment of Indigenous people after he landed in the Americas in 1492.
For the first time, the second Monday in October will be marked solely as “Indigenous People’s Day” on Chicago Public Schools' calendar.
The Chicago Board of Education’s vote in February to stop observing Columbus Day drew praise from some educators and activists. But Sergio Giangrande, president of the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans, in February called it “a slap in the face of the more than 500,000 Italian Americans in Chicago, and the 135 million Italian Americans worldwide.”
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In dropping Columbus' name, the board held that the district would continue celebrating Indigenous Peoples Day. CPS previously used both names on its calendar, and board member Elizabeth Todd-Breland said it was their responsibility to lead on the issue.
Gianni, whose grandfather Dominic DiFrisco emceed the parade for years, said organizers have made a point to make it inclusive to all ethnicities and long ago stopped referring to Columbus as the discoverer of America. Gianni called Columbus “foundational to the American origin story,” and said the depiction of him as a villain and murderer is historical “revisionism.”
Long before CPS, South Dakota changed Columbus Day to Native American Day in 1990. The city of Berkeley, California, moved to Indigenous Peoples Day in 1992, and in the ensuing years many communities have made similar substitutions, including Evanston.
Earlier this summer, Mayor Lori Lightfoot ordered the statues of Christopher Columbus removed from Chicago’s Grant and Arrigo parks overnight, sparking continued debates among Italian American leaders and politicians about Columbus' legacy and how the city should proceed.
Lightfoot said in a series of tweets this summer that the statues were removed “until further notice.”
“We took this step in response to demonstrations that became unsafe for both protesters and police, and to efforts by individuals to independently pull the Grant Park statue down in an extremely dangerous manner,” Lightfoot said in the tweets. “This step is an effort to protect public safety and to preserve a safe space for an inclusive and democratic public dialogue about our city’s symbols. It also will allow us to focus public safety resources where they are most needed — particularly in our South and West Side communities.”
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Lightfoot has said she has no plans to eliminate Columbus Day at the city level, and that she thought it made sense when CPS “essentially celebrated both, Columbus Day and Indigenous Peoples Day.”
Ald. Daniel La Spata, 1st, said he hopes the city will recognize only Indigenous Peoples Day in 2021 and celebrate Italian American heritage — separate from Christopher Columbus.
“As we’re becoming more honest about who he was and more honest about where Italian Americans are now, I don’t feel like his legacy has a usefulness for Italian Americans,” La Spata said. “It would make me so proud to be able to march in a parade dedicated to Italian heritage, but I can’t march in a parade that has Columbus' name on the banner.”


chicagotribune--2020-10-09--Former Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke withdraws appeal of his conviction in slaying of Laquan

Former Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke withdraws appeal of his conviction in slaying of Laquan McDonald

Van Dyke was sentenced to 6 3/4 years behind bars ; given expected credit for good behavior , he is @ @ @ @ @ 2022 .
After a stint in a federal prison , he was transferred to state @ @ @ @ @ on Friday declined to specify exactly where .

Former Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke and his attorney Daniel Herbert leave the courtroom after Van Dyke's sentencing hearing at the Leighton Criminal Court Building Friday, Jan. 18, 2019 in Chicago. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
An Illinois appellate court has allowed former Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke to withdraw his appeal of his conviction in the on-duty 2014 killing of Laquan McDonald.
The decision means Van Dyke will serve out the rest of his sentence without further court proceedings.
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Van Dyke decided to withdraw the appeal because “he’s trying to move on with his life and move forward,” attorney Jennifer Blagg told the Tribune Friday.
“He thought it was in the best interest of all the parties involved, including the McDonald family, that there be some finality.”
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The full appellate briefs had not yet been filed.
Van Dyke was sentenced to 6 3/4 years behind bars; given expected credit for good behavior, he is slated for release in February 2022. After a stint in a federal prison, he was transferred to state custody, but his attorney on Friday declined to specify exactly where.
In a statement Friday evening, Kane County State’s Attorney Joseph McMahon — who was appointed special prosecutor in the Van Dyke case — said the decision “prevents additional years of litigation, bringing finality to the thorough prosecution of this case in which his rights were protected and justice was served.”
Van Dyke shot McDonald in October 2014 as the 17-year-old walked away from police on a Southwest Side street while holding a knife.
Graphic police dashboard camera video of the shooting — ordered released by a judge more than a year later — sparked weeks of chaos and political upheaval, exacerbating the already fraught relationship between Chicago police and minority communities.
Van Dyke’s monthlong jury trial in fall 2018 ended in a historic guilty verdict, making him the first Chicago police officer in half a century to be convicted of murder for an on-duty incident.
Van Dyke was convicted of second-degree murder and 16 counts of aggravated battery, one for each shot he fired at 17-year-old McDonald.
After outcry about the relatively short prison term, McMahon along with state Attorney General Kwame Raoul unsuccessfully tried to get the Illinois Supreme Court to order a new sentencing.
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mcrepeau@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-10-09--Coronavirus in Illinois updates: 2,818 new known COVID-19 cases and 35 more deaths reported as Metro

Coronavirus in Illinois updates: 2,818 new known COVID-19 cases and 35 more deaths reported as Metro East region outside St. Louis to return to Phase 4 and Lake County added to warning list

The iO ( once ImprovOlympic ) only dates to 1981 , as compared to 1959 for Second City .
Nonetheless @ @ @ @ @ held , for-profit operations that share a parallel history , rivalry and centrality in the @ @ @ @ @ along with associations with now-famous talents like Tina Fey , Mike Myers and Amy Poehler @ @ @ @ @ of the entertainment business .
Each has been closed since March and thus starved of @ @ @ @ @ and state regulations limiting the size of indoor gatherings in response to the COVID-19 pandemic @

We have lifted the paywall on this story. To support essential reporting, please consider becoming a subscriber .
Paca Kujtim of Arlington Heights self-administers a COVID-19 test in his car at the Arlington International Racecourse on March 31, 2021 in Arlington Heights. Kujtim was getting testing as a precaution for upcoming travel. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
After more than a month under tighter restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of COVID-19, the Metro East region will return to phase four rules that allow indoor dining and bar service and gatherings of up to 50 people, state officials said Friday.
The region outside St. Louis was the first in Illinois to see a scaled back reopening in August after it passed a state-set threshold of an 8% positivity rate for three consecutive days.
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Meanwhile, the Illinois Department of Public Health on Friday reported 2,818 newly confirmed cases of coronavirus, as well as 35 more confirmed fatalities.
The total number of known infections now stands at 313,518 and the death toll to 8,945 statewide since the pandemic began. Officials also reported 71,599 new tests in the last 24 hours. The seven-day statewide positivity rate is 3.8%.
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Additionally, Lake County has been added to the list of counties under warning for a potential resurgence of the coronavirus, state health officials said Friday. The weekly list from the IDPH includes 26 counties, down from 28 a week earlier.
On Thursday, the daily number of new known coronavirus cases announced by Illinois officials was the highest in nearly five months, except for a day in early September when the state caught up on a testing backlog. The 3,059 new known cases on Thursday represented the first time the daily count has topped 3,000 since May 14, when IDPH reported 3,239 cases.
Here’s what’s happening Friday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area and Illinois:
5:40 p.m.: Gen Z college grads struggle to launch careers in pandemic economy. ‘I chose the worst year to get my life together.’
Kevin Zheng had big plans lined up as he prepared to graduate in the spring with a degree in criminal justice from the University of Illinois at Chicago.
The 23-year-old thought he’d enter the job market well-prepared, with an internship at the Chicago Police Department on his resume.
But the COVID-19 health crisis upended that plan. His internship was canceled, his graduation was delayed until August, and he sat in his bedroom for the virtual commencement ceremony. Now he’s looking for a job in a pandemic-induced recession.
“I chose the worst year to get my life together,” said Zheng, a first-generation college graduate who lives in Chicago’s McKinley Park neighborhood.
As the coronavirus pandemic wears on, Zheng and other recent college graduates are grappling with a tight job market, high unemployment rates and pressure to find work to pay off student loans.
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Read more here. —Abdel Jimenez
5:20 p.m.: FitzGerald’s closes temporarily after employee tests positive for coronavirus
FitzGerald’s Nightclub in Berwyn, one of the few local venues still programming live music during the pandemic, said Friday it will close temporarily for a “wellness break” because an employee tested positive for COVID-19.
The worker was last on site 12 days ago, said the statement posted early Friday afternoon on the club’s website, “so we believe this club member was not contagious during their last shift.”
“We just know it’s the right thing to do,” owner Will Duncan said. “A staff member tests positive, you wait to verify that everyone is negative before you reopen.”
Lost will be a busy weekend, at minimum, including shows by Expo ’76 and the Waco Brothers and a guest stint on the grill by chef Stephanie Izard of Girl and the Goat that was planned for Saturday night.
“It would be easy to be tempted by trying to preserve everyone’s good time,” Duncan said. “But I believe very strongly in our safety protocols and in being open and honest with each other as work colleagues and being super transparent with our public.”
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Read more here. —Steve Johnson
1:41 p.m.: High schools in Northbrook, Glenview report at least two COVID-19 cases during first week of hybrid learning
Just days into its new hybrid learning plan, Glenbrook High School District 225 temporarily moved back into e-learning Friday after reports of at least two positive COVID-19 cases in the schools, according to officials.
The district designated Friday as an e-learning day to deep clean the schools, but officials expect to move forward with hybrid learning again next week, Superintendent Charles Johns wrote in a letter to families on Thursday.
After operating completely virtually for the first month and a half of school, the district recently moved forward into the hybrid phase of its return-to-school plan. The hybrid model, when fully implemented, will bring back all interested students on a staggered schedule in which half attend school each morning and the other half attend each afternoon.
To ease into this hybrid model, the district began a two-week phased approach on Oct. 5, bringing only one grade level into the building each day while the others continued learning remotely. It was expected by district officials to be fully implemented with all students by Oct. 20.
According to Johns in the letter to families, the district learned on Wednesday evening that a Glenbrook South student had tested positive. On Thursday, the district learned that a second-shift staff member at Glenbrook North had also tested positive.
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Johns said the district is also “currently monitoring multiple suspected and probable student and staff cases in the district” but did not specify how many.
Read more here. —Kaitlin Edquist
1 p.m.: Lake County added to warning list
Lake County has been added to the list of counties under warning for a potential resurgence of the coronavirus, state health officials said Friday.
Lake County was added to this week’s list because there have been 90 coronavirus cases per 100,000 and because there has been a recent surge in emergency room visits for COVID-19-like illness, which accounted for 4.3% of all visits for the week ending Oct. 3, more than double the rate two weeks earlier.
The weekly list from the Illinois Department of Public Health includes 26 counties, down from 28 a week earlier. Counties are added to the list when they reach two or more bench marks indicating the virus that causes COVID-19 is spreading locally, such as more than 50 new cases per 100,000 residents or when the death toll increases by more than 20% for two straight weeks.
The other counties on this week’s list are: Case, Christian, Clay, Clinton, Coles, Crawford, Effingham, Fayette, Henderson, Jackson, Jefferson, Johnson, Knox, Lee, Mason, Massac, Pulaski, Richland, Saline, Shelby, Union, Vermilion, Whiteside, Winnebago, and Warren.
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Public health officials continue to warn that some businesses are “blatantly disregarding” restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of the virus, including mask requirements and social distancing guidelines.
State health officials continue to warn of outbreaks connected to large gatherings, bars and clubs, weddings and funerals, college and sports teams, family gatherings, long-term care facilities, prisons and jails, and schools. There also are continued cases of community spread, especially among people in their 20s, health officials said.
—Dan Petrella
12:03 p.m.: 2,818 new known COVID-19 cases and 35 additional deaths reported
The Illinois Department of Public Health on Friday reported 2,818 newly confirmed cases of coronavirus, as well as 35 more confirmed fatalities.
The total number of known infections now stands at 313,518 and the death toll to 8,945 statewide since the pandemic began. Officials also reported 71,599 new tests in the last 24 hours. The seven-day statewide positivity rate is 3.8%.
—Chicago Tribune staff
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Noon: After ending negotiations, Trump now says he wants bigger relief package than Democrats as McConnell says deal ‘unlikely’
The White House is boosting its offer in up-and-down COVID-19 aid talks Friday in hopes of an agreement before Election Day, even as President Donald Trump’s most powerful GOP ally in the Senate said Congress is unlikely to deliver relief by then.
Trump on Friday took to Twitter to declare, “Covid Relief Negotiations are moving along. Go Big!” A top economic adviser said the Trump team is upping its offer in advance of a Friday conversation between Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
A GOP aide familiar with the new offer said it is about $1.8 trillion, with a key state and local fiscal relief component moving from $250 billion to at least $300 billion. The White House says its most recent offer was about $1.6 trillion. The aide requested anonymity because the negotiations are private.
Pelosi’s most recent public offer was about $2.2 trillion, though that included a business tax increase that Republicans won’t go for.
But GOP Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told an audience in Kentucky that he doesn’t see a deal coming together soon out of a “murky” situation in which the participants in the negotiations are elbowing for political advantage.
Read more here. —Associated Press
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11:07 a.m.: Illinois U.S. Rep. Mike Bost of Murphysboro says he’s tested positive for the coronavirus
In a statement posted Friday morning on Facebook, U.S. Rep. Mike Bost announced he has contracted COVID-19.
Bost, a Republican from Murphysboro, wrote that he was made aware of his diagnosis Thursday night.
“Despite taking my temperature regularly and having no evidence of a fever, I experienced a mild cough and a rapid loss of both taste and smell and recognized it was important to get tested immediately,” Bost wrote.
Read more here. —The Southern Illinoisan
11:02 a.m.: iO Theater of Chicago is for sale
At the end of what has been a stunning week for Chicago comedy and improvisation, the venerable iO Theater announced Friday that it, too, has put itself up for sale.
The announcement came just days after news that its much bigger rival, Second City, declared itself also to be on the block.
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The iO (once ImprovOlympic) only dates to 1981, as compared to 1959 for Second City. Nonetheless, both theaters are privately held, for-profit operations that share a parallel history, rivalry and centrality in the history of American comedy, along with associations with now-famous talents like Tina Fey, Mike Myers and Amy Poehler and reputations for making stars of the entertainment business. Each has been closed since March and thus starved of box-office revenue due to city and state regulations limiting the size of indoor gatherings in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Both also have been buffeted by internal accusations of racial inequity and demands for change from some former students in comedy classes and also from past performers.
Read more here. —Chris Jones
10:56 a.m.: State returns Metro East region outside St. Louis to Phase 4 reopening rules after weeks under tighter restrictions
After more than a month under tighter restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of COVID-19, the Metro East region will return to phase four rules that allow indoor dining and bar service and gatherings of up to 50 people, state officials said Friday.
The region outside St. Louis was the first in Illinois to see a scaled back reopening in August after it passed a state-set threshold of an 8% positivity rate for three consecutive days.
The region can return to phase four of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s reopening plan at 5 p.m. Friday, after its percentage of positive tests fell below 6.5% this week for three days in a row.
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The region reached a high 10.5% rolling positivity rate Aug. 27, and now sits at 5.8%, Pritzker’s office said Friday.
Read more here. —Jamie Munks
7:20 a.m.: Chicago businesses cited for violations of masking rules, 3 ordered shut down long-term after alleged violations of COVID-19 rules
The most frequent citation issued to Chicago businesses by city officials under COVID-19 rules since the lifting of tight coronavirus restrictions in June has been for failure to follow rules requiring masks, while only three businesses have been ordered shut long-term, according to the city.
A total of 149 businesses have had tickets issued by the city’s business affairs department for allegations of violating reopening guidelines, 114 of the citations citing violations of mask rules, according to a city news release. Another 72 businesses have had citations issued related to failure to enforce social-distancing rules, according to the city.
City “investigators will continue to hold businesses accountable to all of the reopening guidelines, especially as we approach Halloween, with a particular focus on the most common violations: failure to ensure proper social distancing, and failure to ensure that employers and customers are wearing face coverings,” the city said.
Long-term closure orders have been issued to three businesses “for egregious and repeated violations of the reopening guidelines,” according to the release. All three were drinking establishments: Wise Owl Drinkery & Cookhouse, 324 S. Racine Ave., Cork & Kerry, 10614 S. Western Ave., and The Lotus Black, 1540 W. North Ave. There have been 42 other businesses issued one-day closure orders because of violations, according to the city.
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Of the mask citations, 86 involved failure to ensure customers wore face coverings and 70 involved employees failing to wearing face coverings, according to the city.
—Chicago Tribune staff
6:45 a.m. 3 new COVID-19 cases in Highland Park, Deerfield high schools; officials stop saying if those infected are staff or students, say uptick isn’t an outbreak
Township High School District 113 officials announced Thursday that three individuals in the district have tested positive for COVID-19 – following other such notifications in recent weeks – but officials say it won’t hinder plans to move students to a hybrid learning mode.
“We’ve had cases every now and then since we’ve been back in school,” Superintendent Brue Law told Pioneer Press. “It’s a part of life right now.”
The latest positive COVID-19 cases include two individuals at Highland Park High School and one at Deerfield High School. Each of the notifications sent to parents and guardians, students and staff – one sent Thursday morning from Deerfield Principal Kathryn Anderson and the other distributed later that afternoon from Highland Park Principal Deborah Flynn – state that the individuals involved are now in isolation and that the district is working closely with the Lake County Health Department on contact tracing.
SD113 spokeswoman Karen Warner said she would not give out any information about the individuals who tested positive, including their identities or whether they are students or staff members.
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Though previous district notifications of positive COVID-19 incidents have never explicitly identified the affected person, citing privacy laws, there had been an indication as to whether the individual was a student or staff. District leaders said they are now advised by the county health department to no longer reveal that, and the notices now only state that an “individual” has been infected.
Read more here. —Graydon Megan
5 a.m.: No parade on Columbus Day amid pandemic concerns and controversy over explorer’s legacy
There will be a lot less fanfare than usual on Columbus Day in Chicago this year.
As criticism of Christopher Columbus' place in history has grown, clashes erupted over the removal of statues in his honor this summer and Chicago schools officially dropped his name from the holiday.
Traditionally, Monday would be marked with a parade that celebrates Columbus' voyage to America and Italian American culture. However, the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans, facing a reckoning over Columbus' legacy and concerns amid the COVID-19 pandemic, dropped plans for the parade.
The organization plans to host a rally and car procession Monday, according to its website. Organizers did not immediately return requests for comment. The city has no scheduled events.
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Read more here. —Jessica Villagomez and Hannah Leone
5 a.m.: Researchers surprised: 20% of Chicagoans in blood-test study came up positive for coronavirus antibodies
Nearly 1 in 5 Chicago residents who sent blood-spot samples to Northwestern University researchers tested positive for antibodies to the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, according to preliminary results of an ongoing study.
That 20% infection rate is higher than the scientists anticipated based on earlier research, said Dr. Elizabeth McNally, director of the Center for Genetic Medicine at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. One study by other Northwestern researchers tested hospital workers from across the Chicago region and found antibodies in less than 5%.
The latest project, called Screening for Coronavirus Antibodies in Neighborhoods, or SCAN, is examining infection rates in five pairs of adjoining Chicago ZIP codes where rates of previously reported COVID-19 cases differed widely. Though the research is continuing, McNally said enough testing has been done to draw some initial conclusions.
Read more here. —Hal Dardick
Breaking coronavirus news Stay up to date with the latest information on coronavirus with our breaking news alerts.
In case you missed it
Here are five things that happened Thursday related to COVID-19:
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An IHSA doctor said high school basketball could happen in Illinois if players wear masks.
A Winnetka businessman was charged with price gouging in the sale of protective masks during the pandemic.
The daily count of newly confirmed COVID-19 cases in Illinois topped 3,000 for the first time since mid-May.
Wisconsin surpassed 3,000 new COVID-19 cases for first time as the Upper Midwest and Plains emerge as troubling hot spots.
Orland Park dropped a lawsuit against Gov. J.B. Pritzker challenging COVID-19 restrictions.


chicagotribune--2020-10-09--Gen Z college grads struggle to launch careers in pandemic economy. ‘I chose the worst year to get m

Gen Z college grads struggle to launch careers in pandemic economy. ‘I chose the worst year to get my life together.’

“ If you are able to find a good job early on , that leads them to more growth in @ @ @ @ @ Whereas if you are starting your careers at a time when there aren ’ t @ @ @ @ @ that seems to be associated with not just worse outcomes right away but worse outcomes @ @ @ @ @ recovered , ” Rothstein said .

Kevin Zheng had big plans lined up as he prepared to graduate in the spring with a degree in criminal justice from the University of Illinois at Chicago.
The 23-year-old thought he’d enter the job market well-prepared, with an internship at the Chicago Police Department on his resume.
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But the COVID-19 health crisis upended that plan. His internship was canceled, his graduation was delayed until August, and he sat in his bedroom for the virtual commencement ceremony. Now he’s looking for a job in a pandemic-induced recession.
“I chose the worst year to get my life together,” said Zheng, a first-generation college graduate who lives in Chicago’s McKinley Park neighborhood.
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Kevin Zheng, 23, a first generation college graduate from the University of Illinois at Chicago, poses for a photo in the backyard of his parents' home, Oct. 9, 2020. (Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune)
As the coronavirus pandemic wears on, Zheng and other recent college graduates are grappling with a tight job market, high unemployment rates and pressure to find work to pay off student loans.
At the start of the year, Generation Z, typically defined as those born after 1997, was headed into the workforce during the longest economic expansion in U.S. history. But now the unemployment rate in Illinois for those ages 20 to 24 is 15.5%, one of the highest among all age groups in the state, according to data from the U.S. Department of Labor.
With more employers cutting jobs and some boosting qualifications for open positions, recent college graduates are worried they’ll fall behind in their careers. Some are saving money for student loan payments by cutting expenses, while others are applying for part-time and low-wage jobs. Many still live with their parents.
Zheng, who lives with his parents and owes about $30,000 in student loans, said he is considering picking up part-time work, but he’s seen how difficult it can be. Both his parents work in the restaurant industry, often cobbling together shifts at different dining establishments to make a stable income. Zheng said he’s scared of taking a job that may expose him to the coronavirus and then potentially infecting his parents.
“My parents are on the older side. I’m afraid if I get the virus, I won’t be the one getting hurt. They’re going to be the ones seriously harmed by the virus. That’s also really deterred me from going out there too much,” he said.
Another UIC graduate, Serge Golota, 22, who earned a biochemistry degree in May, is moving from his Chicago apartment back to his parents' Glenview home because he hasn’t found a job.
According to a study by the Pew Research Center, 52% of young adults ages 18 to 29 reported in July they were living with one or both parents, an increase from a decade ago when 44% of young adults lived at home.
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Golota, who has about $17,000 in student loan debt, said he applied to lab positions and broadened his search to include pharmaceutical sales, but potential employers aren’t calling back, or they’re asking for several years of experience. If he doesn’t find a job in the coming months, he might apply at retailers like Target or clothing stores to make money.
“I’ve felt really discouraged with the hiring process,” Golota said.
Experts say 2020 graduates could face similar challenges to millennials, those born between 1981 and 1996, who graduated at the height of the 2008 financial crisis.
Research on past graduates suggests Gen Z workers could face lower earnings in the future, persistently low employment rates and fierce competition for jobs once the economy recovers.
Millennials who graduated during the 2008 recession saw their earnings for the next three to four years remain low compared with earlier graduates and those who graduated after the recession, said Jesse Rothstein, an economist at the University of California, Berkeley.
“If you are able to find a good job early on, that leads them to more growth in the next few years. Whereas if you are starting your careers at a time when there aren’t that many good jobs, that seems to be associated with not just worse outcomes right away but worse outcomes even after the economy has recovered,” Rothstein said.
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Rothstein said employment rates for each group that graduated during and after the 2008 recession were about 2% lower relative to older workers despite the labor market steadily growing throughout the 2010s.
It remains to be seen how dramatically the pandemic-related downturn will hurt 2020 graduates, but experts say if the economy doesn’t bounce back quickly, the effects could linger.
Eliza Forsythe, assistant professor of labor and employment relations at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, said companies tend to hire current-year graduates for entry level positions over those who graduated a year or two earlier. Employers view current graduates as having sharper skills right out of college compared with past graduates, especially those who didn’t picked up relevant experience after getting their degrees, she said. Such decisions could further hinder the ability of people who graduated during a recession to find work within their field.
The job market could become even more strained in the coming months without federal relief as President Donald Trump and Congress grapple over a new coronavirus relief bill.
Airlines, hotels and other businesses are cutting more jobs, asking employees to take buyouts and pay cuts after federal aid for many companies expired last month.
For some area graduates, finding work outside their field is better than no work at all.
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Jesus Mendoza, 23, graduated in the spring with a business administration management degree from Chicago State University. He took a full-time job as a production line worker at car parts manufacturer Flex-N-Gate on the city’s Southeast Side that pays $15 an hour.
Jesus Mendoza, 23, graduated from Chicago State University in May with a business administration degree. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
Mendoza, who lives with his parents in Chicago’s East Side neighborhood, said he cut back on spending and going out to eat with friends in order to save money.
"I’ve been saving money to pay for bills,” he said.
Since graduating, Mendoza said he spent countless hours applying for jobs within his field, but hasn’t had any luck. He owes about $30,000 in student loans, which he has to start paying next year.
The average student loan debt nationwide for 2019 graduates at public and private colleges was $28,950, according to an October report from The Institute for College Access & Success, an Oakland, California-based nonprofit that works to improve college affordability.
A federal moratorium on education debt payments was set to expire Sept. 30. In August, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to suspend federal student loan payments through Dec. 31 without penalty or accrual of interest.
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The order excludes students whose loans are held by private companies and universities.
Many recent graduates are turning to their colleges' career counseling centers for help. But even after their resumes get spruced up and they hone their interview skills, it’s still hard to get a job offer.
Part of the issue is that employers are adding more criteria to job postings because they don’t have the time or resources to train early-career candidates, said Julia Pollak, a labor economist at job site ZipRecruiter.
“The amount of energy there is available to focus on training up young, new green employees isn’t there at the moment,” Pollak said.
The pandemic-related downturn also has caused some companies to cut jobs crucial to early career entrants, Pollak said.
Job postings for entry-level positions that require a college degree were down by 57% since mid-February nationwide, according to ZipRecruiter.
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Postings for entry-level software engineers, which were in high demand before the pandemic, had one of the biggest declines in the past few months as technology companies scaled back their research and development departments, she said.
“When companies face a huge shock and need to become as efficient as possible, they are really just concerned with survival and generating revenue today, not with coming up with widgets for future demand,” she said.
Jobs in marketing, advertisement and design also have been severely affected by the pandemic, she said.
Even those who went back to school to earn master’s degrees are having trouble tapping into higher-paying jobs.
Adriana Valdez, 29, finished her MBA program at DePaul University in August, hoping her new skills and degree would open more doors.
“I’ve been looking since the springtime, and it’s really tough as far as what’s out there,” Valdez said. “Sometimes it’s very common for you to hear nothing at all.”
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Valdez, who graduated with a marketing degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2014, said she has been told by companies that she doesn’t have enough experience.
“How am I supposed to gain experience if I’m not given a chance to pursue an opportunity?” Valdez said.
Valdez, of Chicago’s Humboldt Park neighborhood, works as a full-time risk management officer for an insurance company, and her employer paid half of her tuition costs. But her company implemented a hiring freeze that made it challenging to seek a better-paying job and move up there, she said.
With her MBA, Valdez said she is looking at management and legal consulting roles that would pay about $10,000 to $20,000 more than her current role, which she needs to start paying off her student loans and move out of her parents' home.
As the first person in her family to earn an undergraduate and a master’s degree, there is some expectation from them for her to find a better-paying job, she said.
“It’s also the pressure of just wanting to make their sacrifices mean something,” she said.
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For now, Zheng is attending virtual career fairs through UIC and applying for positions in fields like social work and child welfare services as he reconsiders his future in police work.
“I do have hope that I’ll find a job within this year, but it’s wishful thinking," he said.
abjimenez@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @abdel1019


chicagotribune--2020-10-09--The Spin:  Pritzker focusing on ending no-knock warrants | COVID-19 exposure in Chicago higher than

The Spin:  Pritzker focusing on ending no-knock warrants | COVID-19 exposure in Chicago higher than researchers thought | Princeton to name building for Chicago’s Mellody Hobson

The dizzying week in national politics shows no signs of abating .
President Donald Trump continued making the rounds on @ @ @ @ @ stations where he ’ s blasted the very cabinet members he appointed , called for @ @ @ @ @ reportedly dropped an F-bomb on Rush Limbaugh ’ s show as he talked about tensions @ @ @ @ @ , the White House and congressional leaders are offering conflicting signals , sometimes by the @ @ @ @ @ of a new stimulus bill as local governments , businesses and individuals who ’ ve @ @ @ @ @ the pandemic watch and wait .

The dizzying week in national politics shows no signs of abating. President Donald Trump continued making the rounds on conservative radio and cable TV stations where he’s blasted the very cabinet members he appointed, called for rivals to be indicted and reportedly dropped an F-bomb on Rush Limbaugh’s show as he talked about tensions with Iran. Beyond that, the White House and congressional leaders are offering conflicting signals, sometimes by the hour, about the fate of a new stimulus bill as local governments, businesses and individuals who’ve seen their finances decimated by the pandemic watch and wait.
And just to keep things equal parts weird and ugly, Republican Trump and Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi are questioning one another’s mental health.
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Reminder: 25 days until the Nov. 3 election.
The Tribune’s Hal Dardick reports that nearly 1 in 5 Chicago residents who sent blood-spot samples to Northwestern University researchers tested positive for antibodies to the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, according to preliminary results of an ongoing study.
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“It’s telling us that exposure was higher than we thought, that it was higher than we thought throughout Chicago,” said Dr. Elizabeth McNally, director of the Center for Genetic Medicine at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced this week he’ll push ahead with legislation banning controversial no-knock warrants, which allow law enforcement to enter a home unannounced.
The use of such warrants has been called into question by police reform advocates in the wake of the Breonna Taylor case in Louisville, Kentucky, this year. Pritzker said he hopes to introduce a measure that would prohibit their use in the upcoming fall legislative veto session.
In Chicago, Ald. Raymond Lopez, 15th, proposed this week an order calling for a six-month moratorium on no-knock warrants, which has become a rallying cry for police reform advocates.
And the residential hall at Princeton University named for Woodrow Wilson will be rebuilt and named for Chicagoan and Ariel Investments CEO Mellody Hobson, marking the first time the Ivy League school has named a residential college — the dorms where freshmen live — for a Black woman, The Associated Press reports.
Welcome to The Spin.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker at the Illinois State Capitol in Springfield on May 20, 2020. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)
Working in conjunction with the Legislative Black Caucus, Gov. Pritzker said this week he hopes legislation can be passed to end no-knock warrants in next month’s fall legislative veto session.
As the Sun-Times' Rachel Hinton writes, the governor is “(t)rying to follow the protests with policy,” by proposing a series of criminal justice reforms that include ending no-knock warrants, ending cash bail, licensing police officers and updating sentencing laws. Read the rest of the story here. As Sam Charles reminded us in this Sun-Times piece, in “Illinois, no-knock warrants are legal and are issued at the discretion of a judge.”
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U.S. Rep. Mike Bost (Campaign photo)
llinois U.S. Rep. Mike Bost of Murphysboro announced he’s tested positive for the coronavirus.
“Despite taking my temperature regularly and having no evidence of a fever, I experienced a mild cough and a rapid loss of both taste and smell and recognized it was important to get tested immediately,” Bost wrote in a social media post announcing he’d tested positive for the virus. The GOP congressman is opposed in the November election by Democrat Ray Lenzi. Read the story here.
IHSA doctor says high school basketball could happen in Illinois if players wear masks: One official says it’s being considered by the Illinois Department of Public Health, whose COVID-19 guidelines place restrictions on high school and youth sports, the Tribune’s John Keilman reports. He writes: “As of now, basketball is considered a medium risk for virus transmission, meaning athletes can scrimmage but not compete against other schools.” Read the rest of the story here.
State returns Metro East region outside St. Louis to phase four reopening rules after weeks under tighter restrictions: The Tribune’s Jamie Munks has the details there.
First Second City, now iO on the block: A sad week for Chicago comedy - The Tribune’s Chris Jones has the story here.
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Lake County Democrats blast local Republicans for fundraising ‘without fear and without masks’: Read The Associated Press story here. The north suburban county has been added to the list of counties under warning for a potential resurgence of the coronavirus, state health officials said a short time ago.
Winnetka businessman charged in federal court with price gouging in sale of protective masks during pandemic: Krikor Topouzian, 60, owner of a Skokie-based medical supply company is alleged to have accumulated in March and April a stockpile of nearly 80,000 respirator masks, including N95 masks, for roughly just over $5 per mask. He allegedly sold nearly 40,000 of the masks to customers for as much as $19.95 per mask — and kept selling them at inflated prices despite repeated law enforcement warnings that it was illegal. Story via the Tribune’s Jason Meisner.
Wisconsin surpasses 3,000 new COVID-19 cases for first time as Upper Midwest and Plains emerge as troubling hot spots: Read the story here.
Outdoor dining winterization money comes as some push for tougher Chicago requirements on third-party delivery apps: John Byrne has the story here.
Rep. Sean Casten, left, and Jeanne Ives, both shown in 2018, are vying for the Illinois 6th Congressional District seat in Chicago's western and northwest suburbs. (Photos by Terrence Antonio James, left, and Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune) (Terrence Antonio James and Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune))
Democrat Sean Casten “used criticism of President Donald Trump, his expertise on climate issues and an appeal to moderate voters on social issues to defeat (Republican) Peter Roskam, locking up a crucial swing district for Democrats during the 2018 midterms as they took control of the U.S. House,” the Tribune’s Patrick O’Connell reports.
The rookie congressman from Downers Grove is trying to hold on to his seat in the 6th Congressional District against an opponent much different from the polished Roskam to represent the west and northwest suburbs, O’Connell notes. Now he’s facing blunt-speaking social conservative Jeanne Ives, a former Illinois state lawmaker from Wheaton who gave then-Gov. Bruce Rauner a run for his money in the 2018 Republican primary for governor when she ran to his right.
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O’Connell offers a close look at the two candidates who offer stark differences on the handling of the coronavirus pandemic, issues of racial justice, how to address climate change and America’s path forward. Read the story here.
TONIGHT: Casten vs. Ives debate — WGN-TV is hosting the 7 p.m. showdown, which will be moderated by WGN News political reporter Tahman Bradley and political analyst Paul Lisnek. More details and information on other debates the station is hosting, here.
Voting Snapshot: Chicago — The number of Chicago voters who have requested mail-in ballots has hit nearly 500,000 — clearly surpassing previous records, according to data provided by the elections office today. In March, as the pandemic set in here, Chicago broke a World War II-era record with 118,000 voters requesting ballots.
Since Chicago’s Loop voting “super site” opened for early voting Oct. 1, some 8,827 residents have cast a ballot there. More voting sites here and across the region will open later this month.
Vice President Mike Pence requested absentee ballot in home state of Indiana: The Indianapolis Star is reporting that Vice President Mike Pence and wife Karen Pence requested mail-in ballots in their home state of Indiana. “A senior Pence administration official told IndyStar this morning the Pences had intended to vote in person with those ballots today, before he abruptly canceled his trip to Indianapolis.” Read the full story here
Lake County, Indiana, shatters record for first day early in-person voting, on track to beat previous totals: Alexandra Kukulka has the details in the Post-Tribune.
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Crews remove the Columbus statue in Grant Park in the early hours of July 24, 2020. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)
The Tribune’s Jessica Villagomez and Hannah Leone write: “Traditionally, Monday would be marked with a parade that celebrates Columbus' voyage to America and Italian American culture. However, the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans, facing a reckoning over Columbus' legacy and concerns amid the COVID-19 pandemic, dropped plans for the (annual) parade” in Chicago.
Instead, the organization plans to host a rally and car procession on Monday, according to its website. This comes amid “criticism of Christopher Columbus' place in history has grown, clashes erupted over the removal of statues in his honor this summer and Chicago schools officially dropped his name from the holiday.” Read the full story from Villagomez and Leone here.
Thanks for reading The Spin, the Tribune’s politics newsletter. Sign up here to have it delivered to your inbox weekday afternoons. Have a tip? Email host Lisa Donovan at ldonovan@chicagotribune.com.
Twitter @byldonovan


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A caption for a photograph that accompanied a story Thursday about COVID-19 outbreaks in 44 Illinois schools did not make clear that five student cases at New Trier happened before the campus reopened and New Trier does not have an outbreak.
Publishing information quickly and accurately is a central part of the Chicago Tribune’s news responsibility and a value shared in all our publications. Our editorial code of principles governs professional behavior and journalism standards. Everyone in our newsroom must agree to live up to this code of conduct. Download the file.
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chicagotribune--2020-10-09--Want to vote by mail in Illinois? Here’s how.

You ’ re allowed to vote in person only if you haven ’ t yet cast your ballot by mail @ @ @ @ @ ’ d rather vote in person , you ’ ll need to bring your mail-in @ @ @ @ @ site or your election precinct polling place and surrender it to an election judge .
@ @ @ @ @ give you a standard ballot , which you can fill out to vote in person @

Election Day is scheduled for Nov. 3, but many Illinois residents already have requested mail-in ballots, an option state officials encourage for all registered voters this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
By early October, Illinois election authorities had received more than 378,000 returned mail-in ballots of the more than 2 million applications, indicating the state likely will break its record for voting by mail set two years ago, when 430,000 votes, or 9.3%, of the total ballots were cast by mail.
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[ Map: Where to securely drop off your mail-in ballot in Chicago and the suburbs ]
Here’s what you need to know about voting by mail in the general election:
Applying for a mail-in ballot
If you plan to vote by mail, you have to apply first. Voters can download the application for a vote-by-mail ballot.
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The form may be completed online or printed and mailed to your county clerk’s office. Under a state law passed in May, some 5 million Illinois residents who have voted since November 2018, as well as anyone who registered for the first time or updated their registrations since March 18, are receiving applications in the mail.
If you apply online, you’ll need either your driver’s license, state identification number or Social Security number. You’ll also have to include an email address and address where the ballot should be mailed. If you mail a paper application, you’ll need to sign the form.
The earliest that applicants can receive their mail-in ballot is Sept. 24. Voters can track their application and ballot in numerous ways through their local election office. In Chicago, they will receive emails confirming their applications and can track their ballot through the U.S. Postal Service.
By early October, the Chicago Board of Elections said it had received more than 484,000 applications for mail-in ballots this year. That’s more than four times the board’s all-time record of about 118,000, for this year’s primary election.
[ About three-quarters of American voters can cast ballots by mail this November, despite President Trump’s objections ]
What’s on the ballot?
Candidates for president and vice president of the United States, candidates for U.S. senator and U.S. representative, candidates for state senator and state representative, as well as county state’s attorneys and county court clerks, and judicial candidates. The state board of elections has a rundown of all candidates who have filed.
The ballot also will include a proposal on whether to allow varying income-tax rates based on income levels, retention of judges and, in Chicago only, three referendums on expanding internet service, creating a plan for sustainability and the regulation of assault weapons.
Ballots should be completed in black or blue ink to be most legible, election officials said.
Mailing in your ballot
Once you’ve filled out your ballot, you can return it through the U.S. Postal Service or licensed couriers, or bring it to the election board that has jurisdiction over your area, such as the Chicago Board of Elections or the Cook County clerk.
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Voters will be able to drop off their ballots at various locations in Illinois starting in mid-October. In Cook County, drop boxes will be at every early voting site. Chicago locations will be listed in September.
Before mailing their ballot, voters must seal and sign their postage-paid return envelope wherever indicated. Ballots must be received within 14 days after Election Day. Any ballot postmarked after Election Day, Nov. 3, will not be counted.
Voters should receive an email confirming the ballot was received by the election board, and another when the vote officially has been counted. There are no takebacks; once a mail ballot has been received by the election board, it can’t be retrieved or withdrawn.
What if I decide to vote in person after receiving a mail-in ballot?
You’re allowed to vote in person only if you haven’t yet cast your ballot by mail. If you decide you’d rather vote in person, you’ll need to bring your mail-in ballot to an early voting site or your election precinct polling place and surrender it to an election judge. The election judge should then give you a standard ballot, which you can fill out to vote in person.
Keep in mind it’s illegal to vote more than once in an election, so only choose one method. In Illinois, knowingly voting more than once or attempting to do so is a class 3 felony.
What dates do I need to know for voting early?
Registered voters may cast a ballot before Election Day without having to provide a reason for wanting to vote early. For mail-in ballots, you can drop it in the mail as early as Sept. 24. Early voting at the local election authority or designated early polling places also begins Sept. 24. Early voting by those methods ends Nov. 2.
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Are mail-in ballots a COVID-19 health risk?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization have indicated that there is currently no evidence that COVID-19 is being spread through the mail.
Scientists generally agree that the main way COVID-19 spreads is through the tiny droplets that are sprayed into the air with each cough or sneeze. Still, the Postal Service has undertaken several protective measures for its employees in the Chicago district and around Illinois.
Even if you choose to vote in person, there are ways to stay safe. The CDC recommends reducing crowd size at polling stations and using voting methods to minimize direct contact with other people. If you do choose to vote in person, the CDC recommends going to your polling place at off-peak times, when the crowds might be lighter.
How will COVID-19 affect mail-in voting?
Chicago election officials don’t anticipate the Nov. 3 election date changing because of COVID-19. Even so, they said nearly everything has been affected by the pandemic, including poll worker recruitment, employee training and vote-by-mail services.
The Chicago Board of Elections urged all registered voters to vote by mail as early as possible this year to reduce in-person traffic and to prevent delays.
If voters are admitted to a hospital, nursing home or rehabilitation center 14 days or fewer before Election Day, they can have their ballot delivered directly to them. They’ll just need to sign a legal affidavit with their doctor, then arrange to have it sent to the clerk’s office to receive their ballot (which someone can then return for them before 7 p.m. on Election Day).
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Is mail-in voting more susceptible to fraud?
Nationally, efforts to expand mail-in voting because of the coronavirus pandemic have become a focus of partisan debate, with Republicans led by President Donald Trump opposing voting by mail, based in part on unsubstantiated claims that it leads to fraud. Numerous investigations have found no evidence that voting by mail results in increased voter fraud.
For more on the 2020 elections, check the Tribune’s Elections Page.
Editor’s note: Earlier versions of this story incorrectly referred to “online voting” beginning Sept. 24. There is no online voting in Illinois.


chicagotribune--2020-10-09--LaSalle County man sues prosecutor and police after being found not guilty of drowning his wife in a

LaSalle County man sues prosecutor and police after being found not guilty of drowning his wife in a toilet

“ Following his acquittal , Mr. Cusick was not simply able to resume his normal life , ” they write @ @ @ @ @ forever known in LaSalle County , the place he lived his entire life , as @ @ @ @ @ wife .
Some friends and even family members have been turned against him as a @ @ @ @ @ false and unfair characterization he will never be able to shed thanks to the ( @ @ @ @ @

A LaSalle County man who beat accusations that he drowned his wife in a toilet is suing the prosecutor who put him on trial, saying she conspired with local police in a frame job meant to boost her political fortunes.
A jury in December found Kenneth Cusick not guilty of murdering his wife at their Ottawa home, ending a bizarre case that began when Tracy Cusick was found unresponsive in the couple’s home on Jan. 17, 2006. Cusick told police he had found his wife, who had a history of drug and alcohol problems, with her face in a toilet.
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The initial probe found no sign of foul play, but the lawsuit contends another set of investigators reopened the case and “entered into a conspiracy to frame Ken Cusick for Tracy’s purported murder.”
Tracy Cusick’s body was exhumed in 2010 for a second autopsy, which detected injuries to her throat and face. A detective testified at a LaSalle County coroner’s inquest that it would have been impossible for Cusick to drown in the toilet “without a second party exerting some outside force.”
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A coroner’s jury ruled that her death was a homicide, and in 2012 her family sued Cusick, accusing him of killing her. The case was dismissed a few months later, according to court records.
The lawsuit says police tried to convince Brian Towne, the LaSalle County state’s attorney at the time, to pursue a prosecution but he declined. They then went to Karen Donnelly, the suit says, an attorney who would go on to challenge Towne in the 2016 election.
LaSalle County State's Attorney Karen Donnelly appears at an Illinois Prisoner Review Board parole hearing at the state Capitol in Springfield in December 2016. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
According to the lawsuit, Donnelly “saw an opportunity in this investigation to advance her goal of being elected as the LaSalle County State’s Attorney, and so without revealing her involvement in this investigation she pursued a campaign that included a promise that she would pursue charges against Kenneth Cusick if elected.
“Throughout her campaign she publicized the false assertions that there was evidence Tracy Cusick had been murdered and that Ken Cusick should be charged with her murder. She used Mr. Cusick, along with Mr. Towne, as political punching bags to secure her election as LaSalle County State’s Attorney."
Tracy Cusick (Family photo)
Donnelly defeated Towne after a bitter campaign, and unsuccessfully tried to prosecute him for official misconduct connected in part to a controversial asset forfeiture program he ran during his tenure. He in turn sued her, claiming malicious prosecution.
Donnelly called that lawsuit, which was filed in July, a political stunt meant to help her opponent in November’s election. She could not be reached Friday for comment about Cusick’s lawsuit.
Cusick, a 53-year-old tavern manager and retired firefighter, went on trial in December and was acquitted in less than an hour after a two-week proceeding, according to local media reports.
In his lawsuit, though, his lawyers say he is still being punished.
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“Following his acquittal, Mr. Cusick was not simply able to resume his normal life,” they write. "He will be forever known in LaSalle County, the place he lived his entire life, as a person who murdered his wife. Some friends and even family members have been turned against him as a result. This is a false and unfair characterization he will never be able to shed thanks to the (defendants') conduct.
“It remains extremely difficult for Mr. Cusick to (live) his life and travel anywhere in LaSalle County and beyond without people recognizing him and assuming that the things the (defendants) have accused him of are true. Mr. Cusick has gone from a person who enjoyed participating in his community to a person who rarely leaves his home other than to go to work.”
Aside from Donnelly, the lawsuit names a former county coroner, three police officers, a forensic pathologist, a forensic consultant and a plumbing expert who testified at Cusick’s trial that there are no known cases of an adult drowning in a toilet.
jkeilman@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @JohnKeilman


chicagotribune--2020-10-09--Two years after flipping suburban district, U.S. Rep. Sean Casten faces challenge from Jeanne Ives

“ If you actually attended any of these huge Black Lives Matter protests , as I have and she hasn @ @ @ @ @ see this amazing diversity of people standing up , ” Casten said , “ and @ @ @ @ @ choked up .
… For the first time , the first meaningful way in our @ @ @ @ @ seeing this amazing diversity of people standing up and having the empathy to look out @ @ @ @ @ s not about whether it polls well .
That ’ s are you a good @ @ @

Two years ago, Democrat Sean Casten was a political newcomer seeking to knock off a veteran Republican lawmaker in a suburban district that was a longtime GOP stronghold.
Casten used criticism of President Donald Trump, his expertise on climate issues and an appeal to moderate voters on social issues to defeat Peter Roskam, locking up a crucial swing district for Democrats during the 2018 midterms as they took control of the U.S. House.
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The quest is different for Casten this time. The rookie congressman from Downers Grove is trying to hold on to his seat in the 6th Congressional District against an opponent much different from the polished Roskam.
Congressman Sean Casten speaks outside of the Ken Christy Post Office to "discuss the importance of the vital services USPS provides to northern Illinoisans, who rely on reliable, on-time delivery especially during the coronavirus pandemic" on Aug. 18, 2020, in Aurora. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
The Republican candidate is the blunt-speaking social conservative Jeanne Ives, a former Illinois state lawmaker from Wheaton who gave then-Gov. Bruce Rauner a run for his money in the 2018 Republican primary for governor when she ran to his right.
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Ives is banking that her anti-tax, small government and law-and-order messages will resonate with voters in the district that stretches through the western and northwestern suburbs, returning it to the GOP.
Casten, a former clean energy business owner, does not mince words about his opponent.
“The homophobia, the racism, the cruelty that has infected so many of her public statements, it’s who she is,” Casten said.
Ives is trying to brand Casten as a loose-lipped liberal, criticizing the congressman for his sometimes profane online persona and as someone who walks in lockstep with the left wing of the Democratic Party, positions she argues are out of step with the majority of a district made up of middle-class suburbs.
“We have big challenges ahead. It will take leaders of character to work with others to restore law and order, get our kids back in school, and get our economy growing again while taking care of our most vulnerable citizens,” Ives said during a recent League of Women Voters online forum.
Jeanne Ives, right, talks at a WTTW candidate forum when she ran for governor in 2018. (Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune)
Casten rebuffs Ives’ characterizations, arguing his positions on everything from how to handle the coronavirus pandemic to social issues to climate change make him more than qualified to remain to Washington.
“I am a member of Congress not because my views are at some crazy extreme but because my predecessor was doubling down on the extremism of Trump, and certainly my challenger is as well,” Casten said in an interview with the Tribune. “And that’s not where the American people are, and that’s not where this district is.”
The two candidates also offer stark differences on the handling of the coronavirus pandemic, issues of racial justice, how to address climate change and America’s path forward.
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Casten blasts the White House and federal government’s response to the coronavirus, saying they dropped the ball on the early distribution of personal protective equipment and ventilators as the pandemic surged.
US. Rep. Sean Casten places his hand over his heart during the Pledge of Allegiance before the start of the Vietnam War Commemoration ceremony honoring Vietnam war veterans at Lake Barrington on Oct. 6, 2020. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
“Anyone who claims we’re doing a good job has got their head in the sand,” Casten said. “It’s shameful what we’ve done. If you assume that the United States is merely an average country, and I’d like to believe we’re exceptional, but assume that we are merely average, then 80% of those deaths were avoidable. That’s 160,000 Americans and counting that didn’t have to be dead right now.”
Ives is focusing more on the economic implications of the pandemic, getting businesses and schools back open.
Casten calls climate change the “existential threat we face as a species” and said the wildfires that are ravaging the West Coast, hurricanes hammering the Gulf Coast and flooding throughout the Midwest are “exactly what we knew was coming” without more decisive policy changes.
Ives said the climate has been changing for millions of years and policymakers need to act but “do so in a reasonable manner.” She also has poked fun at one of her opponent’s campaign ads, in which a bespectacled Casten is referred to as a business owner, scientist and “nerd.”
“Instead of a nerd who got nothing done, send a mom and a veteran with a record of leadership to Congress,” Ives posted on Twitter.
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Jeanne Ives greets a supporter during her 2018 bid for the governor's seat at the Abbington Banquets in Glen Ellyn. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
Casten said he believes the 6th District is a “pro-science district.”
“When my opponent gets out there and denies science, she deserves exactly as much respect as someone who would deny gravity,” Casten said.
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Unlike the midterms, when millions of dollars of campaign donations poured in on both sides to a race that both political parties viewed as crucial, Casten has a vast advantage in the money game, giving him a leg up heading into the home stretch as many voters begin filling out mail-in ballots and visiting early voting sites.
Casten’s campaign reported this week that it raised $1.1 million during the third quarter, with nearly $2 million cash on hand. The Ives campaign has yet to report its third-quarter numbers ahead of the Oct. 15 reporting deadline. Through the end of summer, Casten had outraised Ives by about $2.3 million. Both candidates are hitting the airwaves and social media channels with advertisements. During two weeks in September, Ives spent more than $86,000 on local cable television ads.
In a recent spotlight on national races, the Congressional Leadership Fund, the Super PAC endorsed by House Republican leadership, launched new television ads in 21 House races. Ives did not receive backing, though the CLF did fund an advertisement aimed at boosting western Illinois Republican Rep. Rodney Davis in his race against Democrat Betsy Dirksen Londrigan.
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And in another sign of the state of the race, Casten won the endorsement of former Illinois Republican Chairman Pat Brady. Ives recently secured the endorsement of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
There also is a wide gulf between the two candidates' views on race issues and the civil unrest that has roiled Chicago and cities across the nation.
“If you actually attended any of these huge Black Lives Matter protests, as I have and she hasn’t, you will see this amazing diversity of people standing up,” Casten said, “and I get a little bit choked up. … For the first time, the first meaningful way in our history, we’re seeing this amazing diversity of people standing up and having the empathy to look out for decency. That’s not about whether it polls well. That’s are you a good person."
Casten added that “of course we condemn looting and violence."
Ives has focused more on a law-and-order message.
“It’s pretty frightful out there,” she said. "When you look across the nation and you see what’s happened in Seattle and Portland, Kenosha and elsewhere, in our own streets of Chicago, it’s very unsettling to people. Businesses are afraid to open up. People are afraid to go down and visit Chicago at this point. And that is not right.
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“If you’re not going to enforce the law,” she continued, “the lawlessness will continue.”
Libertarian Bill Redpath is also in the race. Redpath is emphasizing reduced government spending, tax reform and is a proponent of ranked choice voting.
poconnell@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-10-09--Planning to vote in person this year? What Illinois voters should know before heading to the polls.

Your election judge may issue you a provisional ballot for a number of reasons , including if your name does @ @ @ @ @ in Illinois ; your voting status has been challenged ; you didn ’ t provide @ @ @ @ @ and don ’ t have your ID with you at the voting site ; you @ @ @ @ @ having voted early ; a court order extends voting time at your precinct and you @ @ @ @ @ ; or you admit to receiving a mail-in ballot but you didn ’ t bring @ @ @ @ @ to an election judge .

Early voting in Illinois is underway.
While a record-setting number of people have applied for a mail-in ballot in Illinois, scores of voters across the state have ventured out of their homes to cast an in-person ballot for the Nov. 3 general election.
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From Cairo to Galena, as of Friday more than 147,000 voters across Illinois had cast an in-person ballot at early-voting sites and nearly 379,000 of more than 2 million applicants had returned ballots by mail. Many more early-voting sites are set to become available in the coming weeks: In Chicago, locations in each of the city’s 50 wards open Oct. 14; and suburban Cook County, which opened a handful of early-voting sites Wednesday, will expand voting to more than 50 sites Oct. 19.
[ ¿Planea votar en persona este año? Lo que los votantes de Illinois deben saber antes de ir a las urnas ]
Whether you’re a longtime voter or new to the process, voting can be confusing. Here’s what you need to know when casting your vote this year.
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Early voters line up and down north Clark Street to vote at the Loop Super Site on Oct. 1, 2020. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
Do I have to show my ID?
If you’re already registered to vote in Illinois, you should not need a form of identification at your polling site, but election officials encourage bringing one just in case.
Election judges may ask for identification if they challenge your right to vote, you did not provide proof of ID when registering by mail or online or you are not listed as registered to vote in the state.
“If the judges have doubts about your identity because your signature doesn’t match the one on record they could ask for ID,” said Matt Dietrich, an Illinois State Board of Elections spokesman. “But it takes judges of both parties to do that.”
If an election judge asks for your ID, you are not required to show one to vote in person. You may cast a provisional ballot without showing your ID. The poll worker should then tell you how you can separately submit proof of registration to your election authority.
If election judges tell you that you’re not listed as registered, and you’re sure you did register, make sure they spelled your name correctly. You can give them your address to make sure you’re at the right polling place. You can also ask them to call your county elections office.
If you’re not yet registered but hope to vote through a standard ballot, you’ll need to bring an election judge two forms of identification, one of which must include your current address. You can then register — and vote — at your polling place.
What is a provisional ballot?
Provisional ballots allow residents to cast a vote even if their right to vote has been questioned. They’re investigated and processed in the two weeks after Election Day and kept separate from standard ballots.
Your election judge may issue you a provisional ballot for a number of reasons, including if your name does not show up as registered in Illinois; your voting status has been challenged; you didn’t provide identification when registering by mail and don’t have your ID with you at the voting site; you’re listed as already having voted early; a court order extends voting time at your precinct and you vote during that extended period; or you admit to receiving a mail-in ballot but you didn’t bring it with you to surrender to an election judge.
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You should be informed about provisional ballots if election judges challenge your right to vote. You also reserve the right to know if your ballot was counted. If it was not, you’re entitled to know why.
Some local election boards have a lookup tool on their website, which voters can use to check the status of their provisional ballot.
An election official keeps watch during the first day of early voting at the Loop Super Site on Oct. 1, 2020. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
What can I bring to my polling place?
You’re allowed to bring any written or printed materials into the voting booth to assist you.
You also can bring children younger than 18 into the voting booth with you, so long as they don’t interfere with the voting process and election officers approve of it. All you’ll need to do is tell the election judge before entering the voting booth.
Keep in mind voters are prohibited from wearing campaign items at voting sites because polling places are campaign-free zones. Election judges may ask you to cover any campaign clothing, buttons or stickers.
What if I show up at the wrong polling place?
During the early-voting period, you can cast your ballot at your local election authority’s office or at a designated early-voting site in your area. Be sure to check your local election authority’s website to determine which polling places are available for you to vote.
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On Election Day, you can only vote at your assigned polling site. State officials have a polling place lookup website and an online database for all Illinois election boards, which voters can use to check their polling places. You can still cast your ballot after the polls close so long as you were in line when they closed.
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If you show up at the wrong polling place, you can give the election judge your address and they’ll help you find the right location. If you’re in the wrong election jurisdiction or your address isn’t found, you or the poll worker can call a local election authority for more information.
This year, election workers also could direct voters to a polling place where all voters can vote, which all jurisdictions are required to have under the special election law in place this year, Dietrich said.
Be sure to check your local election authority’s website to confirm your polling site before going to vote. Polling places are subject to change because of concerns with COVID-19.
What happens if I just moved?
You must live in your election precinct at least 30 days before Election Day to register there.
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If you moved before Oct. 5 to your current Illinois address, vote at the precinct polling place for your new, current address.
You can register for the first time or update your registration online until Oct. 18 or at your new local polling place through Election Day.
If you moved on or after Oct. 5, vote at your old jurisdiction. Then, after Election Day, update your registration ahead of the next election.
Local election officials encourage voters to cancel their old registration by sending a signed letter to the election officials in their previous jurisdiction.
What if I make a mistake on my ballot?
If you make a mistake on your ballot and have not yet cast it, you’re entitled to a replacement ballot.
If you want to replace your paper ballot, you can ask an election judge at the voting site to spoil that ballot and you’ll receive a new one. If you make a mistake on a mail-in ballot, you can take the ballot to your local polling site and surrender it to an election judge. You’ll then be able to vote through a standard ballot.
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If you’ve already cast your ballot, there are no take-backs, and it’s illegal to vote again. Voting more than once in an election in Illinois is a felony, punishable by two to five years in prison.
Can people talk to me at polling places?
No one is allowed to try to influence a voter inside or within 100 feet of a polling place. Outside of that zone, campaigning is legal, unless a church or private building designated its entire property a campaign-free zone.
Exit pollsters, who try to poll voters as they leave their voting site, must also be outside the campaign-free zone, according to Dietrich.
“Not sure if voters should expect them, but it’s possible they could encounter them,” he said.
If you feel intimidated, election officials encourage you to tell a poll worker and report it to your local or state election board, the U.S. attorney’s office or Illinois attorney general’s office. Knowingly preventing another person from registering or voting by methods including intimidation or threats is a felony in Illinois.
What if I want to vote in person but already have a mail-in ballot?
If you applied and were approved for a mail-in ballot but decide to vote in person instead, you must bring your mail-in ballot with you to your polling place and surrender it to an election official. You’ll then be given a standard ballot that you can use to vote in person.
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If you’ve opened your mail-in ballot, or it was torn or mutilated, you can still surrender it to an election judge for cancellation.
If you lost your mail-in ballot and therefore can’t surrender it to an election judge, you can still cast a provisional ballot. Election authorities will process it in the two weeks after Election Day after verifying you didn’t vote by mail.
If the poll books show you received a mail-in ballot but you never did, tell an election judge. You’ll then be able to vote after signing an affidavit under penalty of perjury.
If voters cast a ballot in person after signing an affidavit, and later receive a mail-in ballot, they should discard it.
If you voted by mail and the ballot was rejected, you must be informed within 48 hours and given a chance to resolve the issue, if possible. Ballots that arrive unsealed are automatically rejected, according to Dietrich.
How can I track my mail-in ballot?
Election boards provide various ways for voters to track their mail-in ballot.
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Chicago: Voters should receive emails updating them on their mail-in ballot’s status. They should receive one when their vote-by-mail application has been received and processed. If the application is approved, voters will be notified via email again and sent a unique link allowing them to track their mail-in ballot through the U.S. Postal Service. Once they’ve filled out and sent the ballot, voters will receive another email once the ballot has been received by the election board, and another once it’s been approved for counting or if there are any questions.
Suburban Cook County: Voters can check on the status of their mail-in ballot by filling out the online “What Is My Mail Ballot Status” form on the county clerk’s office website.
DuPage County: Voters can check on the status of their mail-in ballot by signing up for the county’s Ballot Trax database, which can be accessed through the county clerk’s website.
Kane County: Voters can check the status of their mail-in ballot by signing up for the county’s Ballot Trax database, which can be accessed through the county clerk’s website.
Kendall County: The clerk’s office has a list of voters who voted by mail on the county’s website.
Lake County: Voters can track receipt of their application and mail-in ballot through the county’s online Voter Power database, which can be found on the clerk office’s website.
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McHenry County: Voters can check the status of their mail-in ballot by signing up on the county’s Ballot Trax database, which can be accessed through the clerk’s website.
Will County: Voters can check on the status of their mail-in ballot by filling out the online “Track My Vote By Mail Ballot” form on the county clerk’s office website.
kelsmith@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @KelliSmithNews


chicagotribune--2020-10-09--Metro East region outside St. Louis returned to phase 4 reopening rules after weeks under tighter re

Metro East region outside St. Louis returned to phase 4 reopening rules after weeks under tighter restrictions; Lake County added to state’s COVID-19 warning list

State officials also reported 35 more fatalities , bringing the statewide death toll to 8,945 .
While there have been @ @ @ @ @ days than when the virus was first peaking in May , the seven-day average of @ @ @ @ @ upward .
For the week ending Friday , the state averaged 29 deaths per day @ @ @ @ @ day earlier .
But a month ago , the state was averaging 18 deaths per @ @

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)
After more than a month under tighter restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of COVID-19, the Metro East region will return to phase four rules that allow indoor dining and bar service and gatherings of up to 50 people, state officials said Friday.
The region outside St. Louis was the first in Illinois to see a scaled-back reopening in August after it passed a state-set threshold of an 8% positivity rate for three consecutive days.
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Also on Friday, state health officials added Lake County to a warning list for potential resurgence of the coronavirus due to rising cases and emergency room visits. Statewide, the news has not been particularly good as the seven-day averages for daily new cases and deaths this week reached their highest levels in several months.
The Metro East region can return to phase four of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s reopening plan at 5 p.m. Friday, after its percentage of positive tests fell below 6.5% this week for three days in a row.
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The region reached a high 10.5% rolling positivity rate Aug. 27, and now sits at 5.8%, Pritzker’s office said Friday.
Pritzker credited the reversal in part to the state’s expanded COVID-19 testing program. Earlier this week, the state pushed past 6 million total tests conducted throughout the course of the pandemic, which Pritzker in a statement called “a landscape where Illinois is continuously increasing our ability to test for and monitor this virus.”
The seven-county Metro East region saw the stricter rules imposed by the state on Aug. 18. In early September, the regulations were tightened again after the region’s rolling positivity rate continued to rise, to more than 9.5%.
Some of the state’s border regions have been struggling of late with resurgences of COVID-19, and Illinois is surrounded by states that have recently seen significantly higher test positivity rates. With the Metro East’s return to phase four rules, the northwest region of the state, which includes Galena, Rockford and Dixon, is the only one under stricter rules imposed by the state.
Statewide, data from the Department of Public Health suggest the virus may be on the upswing once again.
Health officials on Friday announced 2,818 newly confirmed cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of known cases to 313,518 statewide since the start of the pandemic.
While the daily number was down slightly from Thursday, the seven-day average of newly confirmed cases continues to climb. For the week ending Friday, the state averaged 2,267 new cases per day, the highest number since the week ending May 24, when the average was 2,302 cases per day.
The share of coronavirus tests returning positive results also continues to increase, according to health officials. The seven-day average for the statewide positivity rate was 3.8% for the week ending Thursday. That’s the highest it’s been since Sept. 11, when the seven-day average was 3.9%.
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State officials also reported 35 more fatalities, bringing the statewide death toll to 8,945. While there have been far fewer deaths in recent days than when the virus was first peaking in May, the seven-day average of fatalities also has been trending upward. For the week ending Friday, the state averaged 29 deaths per day, down from 31 a day earlier. But a month ago, the state was averaging 18 deaths per day.
Until this week, the state hadn’t averaged more than 30 deaths per day over a seven-day period since the end of June.
The weekly warning list from the Illinois Department of Public Health includes 26 counties, down from 28 a week earlier. Counties are added to the list when they reach two or more bench marks indicating the virus that causes COVID-19 is spreading locally, such as more than 50 new cases per 100,000 residents or when the death toll increases by more than 20% for two straight weeks.
Public health officials continue to warn that some businesses are “blatantly disregarding” restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of the virus, including mask requirements and social distancing guidelines.
Lake County was added to this week’s list because there have been 90 coronavirus cases per 100,000 and because there had been a recent surge in emergency room visits for COVID-19-like illness, which accounted for 4.3% of all visits for the week ending Oct. 3, more than double the rate two weeks earlier.
Lake County was previously on the list heading into Labor Day weekend. DuPage County was on the warning list for one week in mid-September.
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The other counties on this week’s list are: Case, Christian, Clay, Clinton, Coles, Crawford, Effingham, Fayette, Henderson, Jackson, Jefferson, Johnson, Knox, Lee, Mason, Massac, Pulaski, Richland, Saline, Shelby, Union, Vermilion, Whiteside, Winnebago and Warren.
State health officials continue to warn of outbreaks connected to large gatherings, bars and clubs, weddings and funerals, college and sports teams, family gatherings, long-term care facilities, prisons and jails, and schools. There also are continued cases of community spread, especially among people in their 20s, health officials said.
jmunks@chicagotribune.com
dpetrella@chicagotribune.com