chicagotribune--2020-10-27--Sisters, 18 and 21, accused of attacking store security guard, stabbing him 27 times after they refu

Sisters, 18 and 21, accused of attacking store security guard, stabbing him 27 times after they refused to wear face masks

Each sister is charged with attempted first-degree murder and was ordered held without bail by Judge Mary C. Marubio , @ @ @ @ @ ” of the attacks , as well as statements from witnesses and surveillance that captured @ @ @ @ @ confrontation .

Two sisters are accused of stabbing a store security guard 27 times with a small knife after he asked them to wear face masks and use hand sanitizer, according to prosecutors.
Neither Jessica Hill, 21 nor her sister Jayla, 18 — a recent Simeon Academy graduate — had a criminal history before the Sunday evening attack in the 3200 block of West Roosevelt Road in the Homan Square neighborhood, prosecutors told a judge during a bail hearing broadcast on YouTube.
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Each sister is charged with attempted first-degree murder and was ordered held without bail by Judge Mary C. Marubio, who cited the “randomness” of the attacks, as well as statements from witnesses and surveillance that captured video and audio of the confrontation.
The sisters entered the store around 6 p.m., around closing, but refused to wear a face mask or use hand sanitizer, as many businesses require patrons to do during the COVID-19 pandemic, prosecutors said in court.
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During a quarrel with the 6-foot-5, 270-pound security guard, the women were both asked to leave but they refused and began hitting him with a garbage can, authorities said.
While Jayla Hill held the guard’s hair, her older sister pulled a small knife concealed in a comb and stabbed the man in the head and torso, prosecutors told the judge.
Jessica Hill, 21 (left) and Jayla Hill, 18, sisters from Lawndale, were ordered held without bail Tuesday, Oct. 27, 202, after they were accused of attacking a store security guard and stabbing him 27 times with a small knife after he asked them to wear face masks and use hand sanitizer. - Original Credit: Chicago police (Chicago Police booking photo / HANDOUT)
The guard was taken to a hospital, where he was treated for 27 puncture wounds that did not require surgery or stitches, authorities said.
The women’s court-appointed attorney argued that the stabbing was self-defense and that both women suffered from bipolar disorder.
Both women are expected to return to court next week.
wlee@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @MidNoirCowboy


chicagotribune--2020-10-27--Waukegan police shooting victim says she begged for their lives: ‘Please don’t shoot, we have a baby

Waukegan police shooting victim says she begged for their lives: ‘Please don’t shoot, we have a baby’

At the earlier press conference called by her attorneys , Williams , 20 , appeared via a Zoom link and @ @ @ @ @ of the Oct. 20 incident on the city ’ s south side .
She said @ @ @ @ @ in her car , which was parked in front of her house .
Williams said @ @ @ @ @ smoke when a police car pulled up behind her car .

Zharvellis Holmes, left, mother of Marcellis Stinnette, and his grandmother, Sherrellis Stinnette, center, listen as the Rev. Jesse Jackson, right, and others speak Oct. 28, 2020, outside the Illinois State Police headquarters in Des Plaines. They had viewed video of the shooting death Stinnette and the wounding of Tafara Williams by Waukegan police last week. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
Tafara Williams said Tuesday that she and her boyfriend Marcellis Stinnette did nothing to cause the Waukegan police shooting last week in which she was wounded and Stinnette was killed, adding that when the officer opened fire on them, “We had our hands raised in the air.”
She said she begged for their lives during the shooting.
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“Please don’t shoot, we have a baby. We don’t want to die,” Williams said, describing the incident from her hospital room, where she is recovering from gunshot wounds.
Later Tuesday, the Rev. Al Sharpton, the political commentator and civil rights leader, appeared with members of Stinnette’s family at the site of the shooting on Martin Luther King Drive.
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Sharpton stood in front of the small brick building where Williams crashed her car and said, “We are returning to the scene of a crime. The answer to a crime is not just firing a policeman. The answer is accountability."
At the earlier press conference called by her attorneys, Williams, 20, appeared via a Zoom link and gave her first public account of the Oct. 20 incident on the city’s south side. She said she and Stinnette were sitting in her car, which was parked in front of her house. Williams said she had come outside to smoke when a police car pulled up behind her car.
The officer, she said, had his hand on his gun and asked for her name. The officer commented to Stinnette that he knew her boyfriend from a previous encounter, according to Williams.
Williams said that after getting the officer’s permission to leave, she drove away slowly, she turned south onto Martin Luther King Drive. Williams said it seemed as if another police officer was waiting for them as she turned.
“There was a crash, and I lost control,” Williams said. “But he kept shooting.” She did not elaborate on the details of the crash.
Handout photo of Marcellis Stinnette who was shot and killed by Waukegan police on October 20th. (Family photo)
Her attorneys, Antonio Romanucci and Ben Crump, along with Williams' parents and other family members, met the media Tuesday at a press conference on the steps of Waukegan’s city hall. The attorneys, who are also involved in high-profile alleged police brutality incidents around the country, said they had come from a meeting with Waukegan Mayor Sam Cunningham, which they called positive.
Cunningham has pledged to release police video from the incident, and the attorneys said they thought that would come Wednesday after they review it with the families of the victims.
The officer who fired on the couple has been terminated from the department, and federal authorities have been called in to assist in the investigation.
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Romanucci said he wants Waukegan to be “ground zero” for an improved way of dealing with alleged instances of police brutality.
“We want to make this city the model of transparency and accountability,” Romanucci said. “What Waukegan has done will give this family a sense of peace. It will not restore what has happened.”
He said the officer profiled the couple because they are Black. The officer who first confronted them is white, and the officer that opened fire is Hispanic, according to reports.
“That was their crime,” he said.
The family of Tafara Williams, pictured on the back of several T-shirts, who was wounded by a Waukegan police officer, gather outside of Waukegan City Hall in Waukegan on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2020. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)
Although Romanucci said the city’s pledges of transparency are encouraging, the family will file a lawsuit seeking monetary relief, but also policy changes.
“Waukegan has taken the right steps, but we need to make sure this doesn’t happen again,” he said.
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Crump said he spoke with Williams about incidents involving Breonna Taylor, George Floyd and Jacob Blake – national cases where Crump is involved.
“When does it end, America?” Crump asked. “How many more Black people have to be killed because of police brutality, excessive force, implicit bias?”
Williams' parents, Tina Jones and Trevor Williams, also spoke.
Jones called her daughter, “the strongest person I’ve ever met. She loves everybody and has a heart of gold.”
“I ask the federal government to make this speedy because I can’t sleep at night,” Trevor Williams said.
Lake County authorities have said that the investigation could take several weeks before the results are turned over to the state’s attorney for review and possible charges.
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Zharvellis Holmes, Stinnette’s mother, also addressed the media and a group of supporters at the evening gathering, and urged people to remain peaceful.
“We don’t want no looters," she said. "We don’t want no violence. I don’t want anybody coming to burn anything.”


chicagotribune--2020-10-27--Geneva's FoxFire restaurant gets court order to stay open despite coronavirus restrictions in Kane C

Geneva's FoxFire restaurant gets court order to stay open despite coronavirus restrictions in Kane County

Former Cubs bench coach and current Baltimore Orioles manager Brandon Hyde sold his four-bedroom house in Evanston — complete with @ @ @ @ @ backyard — for $ 840,000 .

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chicagotribune--2020-10-27--Scramble is on to get 320,000 Wisconsin absentee ballots turned in after Supreme Court refused to ex

Scramble is on to get 320,000 Wisconsin absentee ballots turned in after Supreme Court refused to extend deadline to count them

Democrats argued in a federal lawsuit that more time should be allotted for ballots to arrive by mail and be @ @ @ @ @ posed by the coronavirus pandemic .
Republicans countered that voters had plenty of options to @ @ @ @ @ the rules shouldn ’ t be changed so close to the election .
The Supreme @ @ @ @ @ decision Monday along ideological lines , affirmed an appellate court ruling that had blocked the @ @ @

MADISON, Wis. — Democrats and Republicans in the battleground state of Wisconsin were pushing Tuesday to get 320,000 outstanding absentee ballots returned by the close of polls on Election Day after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to extend the deadline to receive and count ballots, as Democrats had wanted.
“This is an all-hands-on-deck final push,” said Ben Wikler, who chairs the Wisconsin Democratic Party, which has been advocating absentee voting more aggressively than Republicans.
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But the message is the same for Republicans who decided to mail in their ballots amid a surge in coronavirus cases in Wisconsin.
“If you do it absentee, do it now, do it quickly,” said Andrew Hitt, chairman of the Wisconsin Republican Party.
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Democrats argued in a federal lawsuit that more time should be allotted for ballots to arrive by mail and be counted because of the challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic. Republicans countered that voters had plenty of options to vote on time and that the rules shouldn’t be changed so close to the election. The Supreme Court, in a 5-3 decision Monday along ideological lines, affirmed an appellate court ruling that had blocked the extended count.
It’s not clear if the ruling will benefit one side or the other in Wisconsin, which President Donald Trump won by fewer than 23,000 votes in 2016, said Barry Burden, a University of Wisconsin-Madison political science professor and the director of the Elections Research Project.
Trump was campaigning in Wisconsin on Tuesday and his Democratic challenger Joe Biden was scheduled to visit the state on Friday.
“The fact that Democrats are using mail voting more than Republicans are suggests that the Biden campaign would be hurt more by ballots that come in late,” Burden said.
However, since the appellate ruling nearly three weeks ago, Democrats have been working under the assumption that the deadline for returning ballots would be 8 p.m. on Election Day and have helped shatter the state record for returning absentee ballots, Burden said.
As of Tuesday, more than 1.4 million ballots had been returned, including 352,000 that were cast early in person. That is 48% of the total Wisconsin votes cast in the 2016 presidential election. About 10 times more ballots have been returned by mail than in typical presidential elections.
People vote inside City Hall on the first day of in-person early voting for the November 3rd elections in Kenosha, Wisconsin, on Oct. 20, 2020. (Kamil Krzacyznski / Getty-AFP)
Still, there were 320,000 outstanding ballots as of Tuesday, which amounts to 18% of the nearly 1.7 million absentee ballots requested. In the April presidential primary election, 9% of all requested absentee ballots were not returned. In that election, 1.7% of all ballots returned were rejected due to missing signatures or other deficiencies that were not fixed in time by the voters.
The ruling setting the 8 p.m. Election Day deadline for returning ballots means there will “definitely” be some that aren’t counted, Burden said. In Wisconsin’s April primary, some 80,000 ballots arrived after Election Day.
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That, along with uncertainties about the timeliness of mail delivery, has both Republicans and Democrats urging their voters to get their ballots in immediately.
“The rules haven’t changed,” Wikler said. “What changes is that there is now a certainty that ballots need to arrive by the time polls close. There is now a wave of public attention on that fact.”
The Democratic effort to get ballots returned on time includes calling, texting, having people contact their friends, “running digital ads on every conceivable platform,” tracking down outstanding absentee ballots, TV ads, radio ads, newspaper ads, planes pulling banners, chalking on campuses and billboards, Wikler said.
Republicans, who opposed extending the counting deadline, were also urging voters to return ballots, or follow through on their plans to vote in person.
“We continue to monitor who has outstanding ballots and we will push them hard this last week though text messages, robocalls,” Hitt said.
Some of the 320,000 outstanding ballots could have been sent to people who requested them in the spring but have now decided to vote in person, Hitt said.
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“I suspect there will be quite a bit of that, especially on the conservative side,” he said.
The Wisconsin Elections Commission said that Tuesday was the practical deadline for voters to return their absentee ballots by mail, which would allow one week for it to be delivered. Voters have until Thursday to request a ballot by mail, but that does not likely leave them enough time to receive it on time.
Voters have numerous options for returning the ballots, other than by mail, including at secure drop boxes, their municipal clerk’s office or dropping it off at their polling place on Election Day unless it is a city, like Milwaukee, where ballots are counted at a central location. Voters can also always cast their ballots in person on Election Day, even if they requested and received an absentee ballot.
The Supreme Court’s ruling also means that poll workers can’t come from outside the county where they live. The Wisconsin Elections Commission has been operating on the assumption that poll workers must come from the county where they live, said spokesman Reid Magney. He noted that there are other jobs at the polls which do not require county residency, including greeting voters, managing lines and sanitizing surfaces and voting equipment.
Hitt and Wikler said they were not concerned about a shortage of poll workers. Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat, has promised to call out the Wisconsin National Guard to fill any vacancies, as was done during two previous elections this year.


chicagotribune--2020-10-27--Watch live: Gov. J.B. Pritzker gives a COVID-19 update

Gov .
J.B. Pritzker could announce new restrictions on businesses and gatherings in a briefing scheduled for 2:30 p.m. Watch @ @ @


chicagotribune--2020-10-27--Chicago election officials still looking to assign polling places for 7 precincts in the final stret

Chicago election officials still looking to assign polling places for 7 precincts in the final stretch to Election Day

“ Each election , there are always a number of precincts where the previous location can not host a polling @ @ @ @ @ or some other change in operations , ” said Marisel Hernandez , chairwoman of the @ @ @ @ @ .
“ This election is similar , except now we had to change many polling @ @ @ @ @ larger spaces that allow for social distancing between work stations for election judges and the @ @ @ @ @

A week before Election Day, Chicago election officials on Tuesday still were looking to assign polling places for seven precincts, a process they said was complicated this year by COVID-19.
There are at least 2,069 voting locations citywide. The coronavirus outbreak added an extra wrinkle to finalizing both early voting and Election Day sites, with some go-to polling locations from the past declining to participate this year or no longer available for other reasons because of the pandemic.
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While the vast majority of precincts in Chicago and nearby counties have, by this point, been assigned an Election Day polling location, local election officials said the search required more effort than usual. Many sites used in past elections were either too small to accommodate social distancing, were undergoing construction or had closed.
“Each election, there are always a number of precincts where the previous location cannot host a polling place, because of construction or some other change in operations,” said Marisel Hernandez, chairwoman of the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners. “This election is similar, except now we had to change many polling place locations to move to larger spaces that allow for social distancing between work stations for election judges and the booths for voters.”
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According to state law, schools and public buildings must remain available as polling locations for the election. In addition, a new law this year designated Election Day a state holiday, meaning all government offices except election authorities are closed.
That new rule has helped immensely in finding polling places, officials said.
In DuPage, all precincts have been assigned a polling site, but the county did need to obtain more replacement sites than the usual year, according to Adam Johnson, chief deputy of the DuPage County clerk’s office.
“We did have more sites drop off,” Johnson said. “But the state holiday and having government facilities close and available to use as polling places did make it fairly convenient to find schools and other locations to be used as replacement sites.”
Suburban Cook County also had all of its Election Day sites finalized and plans to utilize more than 350 schools for voting purposes on Nov. 3.
“While Chicago has several precincts that have yet to be assigned a polling site, suburban Cook County does not have any instances of it,” Frank Herrera, a spokesperson for the county clerk’s office, said on Friday.
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In Chicago, the number of unassigned precincts varied by ward, with most only needing one or two final polling sites by the beginning of this week. But the 42d Ward, which encompasses the downtown area, remained an outlier — at least seven of its precincts still needed a polling site by Monday morning.
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Ald. Brendan Reilly, 42nd, said the difficulty stemmed from previous sites in the downtown area turning down the opportunity to participate this year because of COVID-19.
“Previously, many of the polling locations in the 42nd Ward were housed in residential buildings or commercial spaces attached to residential buildings,” Reilly said in an emailed statement. “Due to COVID-19, a number of property managers and condominium boards declined to allow the Board of Elections (BOE) to use their facilities — citing health concerns."
Though Chicago election officials anticipate finding the remaining sites needed well ahead of Election Day, they’ve prepared a backup plan. Reilly said officials planned to redirect voters in unassigned precincts on Nov. 3 to the Loop Super Site at 191 N. Clark St. or to the Maggie Daley Fieldhouse at 337 E. Randolph St.
Additionally, Hernandez said notices would be sent to all voters of precincts that were recently assigned. She encouraged voters to check chicagoelections.gov/info for the latest polling place information.
Any Illinois voter can confirm their assigned polling place using the state’s polling place lookup system, located online at https://ova.elections.il.gov/PollingPlaceLookup.aspx.
kelsmith@chicagotribune.com
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Twitter @KelliSmithNews


chicagotribune--2020-10-27--Florida added to Chicago’s travel quarantine list this week, Michigan could be next. Here’s what you

Florida added to Chicago’s travel quarantine list this week, Michigan could be next. Here’s what you need to know to avoid a large fine.

States are added to the list when they have an infection rate higher than 15 cases per 100,000 residents and @ @ @ @ @ average remains below that rate for two consecutive weeks .
According to an order from @ @ @ @ @ city ’ s Department of Public Health , those who travel to any of the @ @ @ @ @ COVID-19 risk must quarantine for two weeks upon their return or face hefty fines — @ @ @ @ @ issued any since the policy was put in place early in the summer .

We have lifted the paywall on this story. To support essential reporting, please consider becoming a subscriber .
Dick DeGray, of Brattleboro, Vt., puts on his mask before going into the Municipal Building, in Brattleboro, as the town started to require visitors and staff to put their masks back on Aug. 11, 2021, due to COVID-19 virus numbers increasing in Windham County. (Kristopher Radder/The Brattleboro Reformer)
Chicago has revamped its travel quarantine order to reflect rising rates of the coronavirus in Chicago and the rest of Illinois, moving from a blanket list of states to a color-coded list comparing the rate of infection here with that in other states.
On Tuesday, the city added New York, California and Washington, D.C., to its orange list, requiring all travelers from those states to either quarantine or prove they have had a negative COVID-19 test 72 hours before arriving in Chicago. Idaho was moved from the stricter red list to the orange list.
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Under the original version of the emergency travel order, states had been added to the list when they reached an infection rate greater than 15 cases per 100,000 residents and removed once the daily case average remains below that rate for two consecutive weeks.
Now, the city is using a color-coded list, which will be updated every two weeks.
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“First and foremost, I would like people to avoid travel at this time if at all possible. But by creating a tiered system and using Chicago’s case rate as a category threshold, it allows us to be responsive to the changing dynamics of the pandemic,” said city health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady.
States that weren’t on the quarantine list that were added to the orange list the first week were Michigan, Connecticut, Arizona, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Georgia, Maryland, Oregon, Washington and Louisiana.
Yellow-coded states are those with a rolling seven-day average below 15 cases per day per 100,000 residents. Anyone returning from these states doesn’t have to quarantine. Three states qualified as of Tuesday.
Orange-coded states are those with a rolling seven-day average between 15 cases per day per 100,000 residents and Chicago’s rolling seven-day average, which was 60 as of Tuesday. People traveling from these states must either quarantine for 14 days or show they had a negative COVID-19 test no more than 72 hours before arrival in Chicago. There were 35 orange states, plus Washington, D.C., as of Tuesday.
Red-coded states are those with a rolling seven-day average above Chicago’s. Anyone traveling from these states has to quarantine. There were 11 red-coded states as of Tuesday.
People who commute across the Indiana or Wisconsin state lines to or from Chicago to work or go to school will be exempt from the quarantine rule, a nod to the symbiotic relationship between the neighboring states. But workers in Chicago from Indiana will be expected to avoid restaurants, bars and other public spaces in the city.
Here’s what you need to know about the city’s quarantine policies:
City says people will be fined
Anyone who visits red-listed states should stay inside for two weeks upon their return or risk a fine of $100 to $500 per day, according to the city. Those who visit orange-listed states are subject to the same fines if they don’t have a negative COVID-19 test or quarantine.
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Despite the list’s fluctuating size, enforcement of the order so far has been nonexistent, save for some billboards and signs that Mayor Lori Lightfoot has said are intended to “educate” people into compliance.
Lightfoot’s initial self-quarantine requirement was implemented during the Fourth of July weekend.
If city contact tracers get information that people who’ve caught the virus were in proximity to someone from a quarantine state and flouted the rules, they’ll issue a citation, Arwady has said.
They’ll also be on the lookout for people who are on social media “flagrantly posting their social activities, clearly out and about in Chicago after being in settings that are subject to our quarantine order, within the time frame,” she said. Investigators will look into any reports about city workers not following the guidelines, the health commissioner said.
Arwady has since clarified that the city “is not Big Brother,” nor does it have the resources to dedicate anyone to aimlessly scroll feeds from Chicagoans.
But if the agency receives a tip or is already looking into someone to determine whether to fine them, that’s when the city may scour social media.
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“One of the easiest ways to sort of get enough proof … without me having to send out an inspector … is to look at social media,” Arwady said.
Details for travelers
The order has plenty of exceptions for different types of workers and depending on how long travelers spend in the listed states.
If someone drives through a state on the list but does not stay more than 24 hours, that person does not need to quarantine. But a city employee clarified that Chicagoans who choose to drive into Wisconsin and go out in public, regardless of whether they return later in the same day, do need to quarantine after such voluntary activities.
For example, Chicagoans who drive through Indiana (a red-listed state), Ohio and New York (orange-listed states) to spend a week in Vermont (a yellow-listed state) but who did not stay in Indiana and Ohio more than 24 hours do not need to quarantine. There are similar restrictions for air travelers. .
Travelers visiting Chicago from red- or orange-listed states also are subject to the order if they are staying longer than a day. Everyone older than age 2 who lands at a Chicago airport is required to wear a mask, then quarantine if they’ve come from a listed state.
If someone is staying with a Chicago resident after traveling to an affected state, the traveler must quarantine, but other people in the home who did not travel to a listed state are not required to quarantine. The resident should follow guidance for being around someone who has potentially been exposed.
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Travelers or area residents who leave a Chicago airport and immediately travel to a suburb or outside Chicago limits are not required to quarantine — unless their municipality also has a travel restriction in place. The order also states that face coverings should be worn and that public transportation should not be used by those headed outside city limits.
Testing and exceptions to quarantine requirements in the revised rules
Under the guidance revised in November, Chicago residents returning from travel in red states or residents of red states who travel to the city are required to quarantine for 14 days upon arrival here, according to the city travel order website.
People in similar circumstances entering Chicago from orange states must either quarantine for 14 days or, with a “pre-arrival negative test result” from no more than three days before traveling to Chicago, may choose instead to employ “strict masking, social distancing and avoidance of in-person gatherings.”
There also is an option for those who can’t get a test while visiting an orange state, such as a visit not much longer than 24 hours. Someone can quarantine upon arrival in Illinois until a test can be arranged locally, according to the city’s travel order website. The test needs to be issued by a private provider because of concerns about limited capacity at public health testing sites.
“If you cannot be tested for COVID-19 prior to arriving in Chicago and do not take a post-arrival test, you must quarantine for 14 days (or the duration of your stay, whichever is shorter),” according to the website.
Essential workers and other exceptions
For those who live outside Chicago but work in the city, it’s important to determine whether you’re an essential or nonessential worker according to the executive order.
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There are limited exceptions to the quarantine order for essential workers who have to travel for work. Travelers who don’t live in Chicago but who have to be in Chicago to work and who traveled to an orange- or red-listed state for work do not need to quarantine. Travelers who live in Chicago and who travel to a listed state for work do not have to quarantine, according to the order.
But if workers go to a listed state when they didn’t have to, or for medical care, or because of parental shared custody, they would be subject to quarantine.
People who work in Chicago and live elsewhere can do so if they haven’t traveled to a high-incidence state. If they have traveled to a high-incidence state, they are subject to requirements regarding essential workers who are Chicago residents.
For the purposes of the order, an “essential worker” is a person who works in any one of the 16 critical employment sectors. The term also includes any government workers traveling in their official capacities. Essential workers must:
Avoid any nonessential interactions until the quarantine period has ended. They must limit themselves to work-related activities and related functions, and avoid public spaces as much as possible.
Monitor temperature and signs of symptoms, wear a face covering when in public, maintain social distance, and clean and disinfect workspaces.
Avoid as much as possible extended periods in public, contact with strangers and large congregate settings.
What does quarantine mean?
According to the emergency travel order, quarantine means staying at one place for 14 days before doing any activities outside of the home. Included in the restrictions:
Not go out in public or otherwise leave home, unless seeking medical care or COVID-19 testing.
Wear a face covering and do not use public transit if seeking medical care or testing, or when traveling to or from an airport, train station or bus station.
Don’t go to the grocery store; instead have food and other supplies delivered.
Stay in separate quarters with a separate bedroom and, if possible, use a separate bathroom than non-traveling household members.
Travelers still must quarantine even if they had a negative COVID-19 test because people “can develop symptoms and become contagious up to 14 days from their last exposure.”
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Are the rules different for each state or territory?
Generally, the emergency order is applied uniformly to any state or territory on the list. However, with neighboring states, travelers should pay close attention to what constitutes a visit and distinctions between essential and nonessential workers.
What are the state lists?
The following is a rolling list of states on Chicago’s red, orange and yellow lists. The lists will be updated every two weeks:
Red-listed states (11): Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
Orange-listed states and Puerto Rico (36): Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, Washington, D.C., and West Virginia.
Yellow-listed states (3): Hawaii, Maine and Vermont.
Chicago Tribune’s Alice Yin, John Byrne and Gregory Pratt contributed.
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kdouglas@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @312BreakingNews


chicagotribune--2020-10-27--Chicago adds Florida to its travel quarantine order; Michigan could be next in line

Chicago ’ s averaging nearly 800 new cases a day , Arwady said .
To put it into perspective , @ @ @ @ @ daily cases was a level of concern and 200 was the level the city wanted @ @ @ @

Dick DeGray, of Brattleboro, Vt., puts on his mask before going into the Municipal Building, in Brattleboro, as the town started to require visitors and staff to put their masks back on Aug. 11, 2021, due to COVID-19 virus numbers increasing in Windham County. (Kristopher Radder/The Brattleboro Reformer)
The city of Chicago added Florida to its travel quarantine order on Tuesday and warned that Michigan could be added next week as coronavirus cases continue to rise, public health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady said.
That makes 31 states, as well as Puerto Rico, on the city’s list of places residents can’t travel to without quarantining.
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“This is the worst we are doing on COVID as a country since the beginning,” Arwady said.
Chicago’s averaging nearly 800 new cases a day, Arwady said. To put it into perspective, she said, 400 new daily cases was a level of concern and 200 was the level the city wanted to stay under.
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“It’s heading the wrong way,” she said.
Test positivity in Chicago is at 7.8%, according to Illinois public health guidelines, Arwady said. City officials wanted to be under 5% and was until just a few weeks ago, she said.
Check back for updates.
gpratt@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @royalpratt


chicagotribune--2020-10-27--New Florida poll shows Biden with 50% and Trump at 48%: Track the race for president in key battlegr

New Florida poll shows Biden with 50% and Trump at 48%: Track the race for president in key battleground states

Of those , 218 electoral votes are in states rated as likely or solidly Democrat and expected to vote for @ @ @ @ @ electoral votes are tied to states rated as likely or solidly Republican and expected to @ @ @ @

Bill Ruthhart, Chad Yoder, Jonathon Berlin

Going into Tuesday’s voting, the list of battleground states that President Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden were fighting for was a long 13. By the end of the night, that list had shrunk to a half-dozen.
By Wednesday morning, all eyes were on three familiar battlegrounds: Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania.
Propelled by the late counting of votes from Democratic strongholds, Biden had taken a lead in Michigan and Wisconsin by late morning Wednesday, while Trump remained in front in Pennsylvania with hundreds of thousands of votes outstanding.
Regardless of where those states land, the margin in the race to 270 Electoral College votes promises to be thin. Here is a look at results in hand so far from Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, as well as some of the other battlegrounds that have been projected already or are closer to projection.
Also included here are final FiveThirtyEight polling averages for those states — polling that, as in 2016, proved to underestimate Trump’s sway with voters.
Those polls had Biden up 8.2 points nationally, for example. In key Midwest states, Biden led Minnesota by 9.3, Wisconsin by 8.2 and Michigan by 8 points. Trump won states where he was leading — Iowa, Texas and Ohio.
State by state


chicagotribune--2020-10-27--Boy, 16, charged with turning Lake Shore Drive into a ‘shooting gallery,’ wounding a teen and causin

Boy, 16, charged with turning Lake Shore Drive into a ‘shooting gallery,’ wounding a teen and causing her to lose an eye

When the light turned green , the boy got back into the car and fired a single shot , hitting @ @ @ @ @ ’ s girlfriend in the head .
The boyfriend tried to apply pressure to the @ @ @ @ @ but the Ford Focus followed them and then got in front as the Dodge changed @ @ @ @ @

A 16-year-old boy has been charged with repeatedly opening fire at another car on Lake Shore Drive near Grant Park, wounding a teen in the head and causing her to lose an eye, according to police.
The boy, not identified by police, was charged with attempted first-degree murder and aggravated battery with a firearm. Authorities said he turned Lake Shore Drive into a “shooting gallery” on Oct. 10 after he and others started yelling and showing gang signs at a couple stopped next to them at a red light.
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It’s not clear what sparked the confrontation as the two cars sat at the light in the 300 block of Lake Shore around 1:20 p.m. The couple, in a white Dodge Caliber, told police the driver of a white Ford Focus was staring at them while passengers in her car made threats.
The 20-year-old driver of the Dodge asked why they were trying to “make a problem on the expressway,” according to prosecutors, and the boy got out of the Ford and said, “You can get it anywhere you want it.”
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When the light turned green, the boy got back into the car and fired a single shot, hitting the man’s 19-year-old’s girlfriend in the head. The boyfriend tried to apply pressure to the wound and drive away, but the Ford Focus followed them and then got in front as the Dodge changed lanes to get away.
After the Dodge tried to pass the Ford several times, the boy “fired multiple more shots,” and hit the car and its rear window, prosecutors said. The Ford kept chasing the Dodge, weaving in and out of traffic as the boy kept firing.
“They don’t care who gets in the way,” Assistant State’s Attorney James Murphy said earlier this month, when the driver of the Ford was arrested and charged.
The Dodge was able to exit near Navy Pier, where the couple asked a security officer to call 911. The 19-year-old woman was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where she underwent surgery to remove her left eye, Murphy said.
The driver of the Ford, Jennifer Medina, 26, of Bridgeview, is also facing charges of attempted first-degree murder.


chicagotribune--2020-10-27--COVID-19 in Illinois by the numbers: Here’s a daily update on cases, positivity rate and hospital da

COVID-19 in Illinois by the numbers: Here’s a daily update on cases, positivity rate and hospital data in your area

Among the metrics ( see below ) tracked under guidelines set by Gov .
J.B. Pritzker are the percentage of @ @ @ @ @ , the number of people hospitalized for COVID-19-like illnesses , and the capacity of hospitals @ @ @ @ @ state will decide how much or how little to restrict activities based on these metrics @

Note: With Chicago and Illinois moving into phase 5, the Tribune is no longer updating this data. If the state moves back into bridge phase, the Tribune we reassess. Daily metrics on COVID-19, like cases, deaths and hospitalizations, can be found here. And Daily metrics on the vaccination effort can be found here. More on where the coronavirus stands nationally and around the world can be found here.
To assess how different parts of Illinois are handling the COVID-19 pandemic, officials look at the state through the 11 regions of Emergency Medical Services. The city of Chicago is one region, for example, and the rest of Cook County is another.
Among the metrics (see below) tracked under guidelines set by Gov. J.B. Pritzker are the percentage of coronavirus tests that return positive, the number of people hospitalized for COVID-19-like illnesses, and the capacity of hospitals to take in new patients.The state will decide how much or how little to restrict activities based on these metrics. (Cases, deaths and tests data is as of Dec. 31).
• Check out the Tribune’s coronavirus coverage.
• Remembering the lives of those in Illinois who died from coronavirus.
• Other Chicago, suburbs and Illinois COVID-19 metrics.
• See how the governor’s plan to manage the regions works.
Source: Illinois Department of Public Health
Created by the Chicago Tribune dataviz team. On Twitter @chitribgraphics


chicagotribune--2020-10-27--Daily Illinois coronavirus graphs: 46 new deaths, 4,000 new confirmed cases and 62,074 new test resu

Daily Illinois coronavirus graphs: 46 new deaths, 4,000 new confirmed cases and 62,074 new test results

Illinois announced 4,000 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 Tuesday for a total of 382,985 .
The state also announced 46 @ @ @ @ @ of 9,568 and 62,074 new test results for a total of 7.39 million .

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


chicagotribune--2020-10-27--He’s 82, but the owner of Old Fashioned Donuts in Roseland has no plans to stop making the best appl

He’s 82, but the owner of Old Fashioned Donuts in Roseland has no plans to stop making the best apple fritters in Chicago

He owns the building that they rented their first five years from the Darvin Furniture family .
The space was @ @ @ @ @ “ I have a few more thousand dollars in the account for tile work I @ @ @ @ @ ” he added .
“ I used to tackle that myself , but after getting @ @ @ @ @ crawl around on my knees like I used to .
”

Buritt Bulloch, founder and owner of Old Fashioned Donuts, makes his famous apple fritters at his bakery in the Roseland neighborhood in Chicago on Oct. 20, 2020. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
This article is part of an ongoing series checking in with older owners still working at beloved restaurants in Chicago through the coronavirus pandemic. So far we’ve visited Rose Barraco George, 73, at Vito & Nick’s; and Sam Sianis, 85, at Billy Goat Tavern.
As leaves change color, and the weather turns cold, you may embrace the season. Apple picking plans may pop up, until you realize it’s too late for this year. It’s always apple fritter season, though, at Old Fashioned Donuts on the South Side of Chicago.
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Owner and doughnut maker Buritt Bulloch, 82, hasn’t missed a day of work despite the pandemic. Through the dark early days, and now the second surge, he’s been there, and expects to stay there in the days to come.
Buritt Bulloch, 82, is the founder and owner of Old Fashioned Donuts. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
“When I first started here, I wasn’t making the apple fritter,” Bulloch said at his shop in the Roseland neighborhood. The huge, fruit-studded fritters weren’t on the menu when he opened the business in 1972 with his wife, Mamie, who died in 2009. Daughters Tina Bulloch and Michelle Bulloch, and granddaughter Drejauna Bulloch all work at the shop now.
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So how did the beloved apple fritters come to be?
“I had a police friend who used to work out of the 5th District, but he’s retired now,” Bulloch said. “He kind of coaxed me into making apple fritters.”
Bulloch had made fritters previously, first when working at the old Amy Joy Donuts, and later at Huck Finn, before founding what has become an iconic Black-owned restaurant in the city. While the raised, glazed doughnuts remain bestsellers, his apple fritters have become famous with those who know, winning critical praise and becoming stars on social media.
“One of the reasons I never made apple fritters was because I thought it was going to take too much of my time,” he said. Surprising, perhaps, because it’s time he’s had, but the hours go fast when you start work at 6 a.m. six days a week. (The shop is closed on Sundays.)
The last Sunday in May, after the Minneapolis killing of George Floyd, unrest broke out in some areas of Chicago and the shop window was broken.
“During that time, when the looting started, there were some kids who broke the window, and they were planning on coming into the doughnut shop,” said Bulloch. “Loyal customers told them they were not going in and it wasn’t no place for them.”
His daughter Michelle came and had the window boarded up. “WE ARE NOT BURNED DOWN,” they posted on the shop’s Facebook page that night. “PLEASE STOP THE RUMORS!”
That’s when the family patriarch decided to close up shop for a day. “I told my daughter to call the crew and to tell them we’re going to take Monday off and let things cool down,” he said. “(From) that Tuesday on, we haven’t missed a day.”
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His granddaughters, Drejauna and her cousin Leda Edwards, a college student studying journalism, organized a GoFundMe to help repair the smashed storefront. The original goal was $1,000. The campaign raised more than $25,000 before they gratefully closed it.
“I used $17,000 to have a new air conditioner unit installed,” said Bulloch. “I was about to do that myself in the summer.”
He owns the building that they rented their first five years from the Darvin Furniture family. The space was a former beauty shop. “I have a few more thousand dollars in the account for tile work I’m putting down,” he added. “I used to tackle that myself, but after getting older I can’t crawl around on my knees like I used to.”
Buritt Bulloch, 82, makes his famous apple fritters at his bakery in Chicago's Roseland neighborhood on Oct. 20, 2020. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
About 10 or 12 years ago, when Bulloch finally decided to make his apple fritters, they became one of the greatest uses of leftover dough in town.
“Each time I cut my yeast dough, you’re always going to have some scrap left,” said Bulloch. You can still watch him in the repaired front window early every morning, transforming puffy dough into golden doughnuts. The fritter magic happens with the leftover scrap dough a little bit later. “I put the apples into the dough and chop it up with just a little bit of cinnamon.”
He shapes the dough and fruit in his flour-dusted palm. The fritters get big, about the three times the size of their regular doughnuts, which are substantial too. Only 15 fit on the proofing and frying screen that normally holds 48.
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“After they cook, we glaze them,” Bulloch said. “People love them. On Saturdays, we sell six to seven dozen. I have people coming all the way over from Joliet for the fritters.”
That’s about a 30-mile drive. He understands going the distance.
“Back in the day, in the late ’70s and ’80s, with a couple of friends of mine, we used to ride out to Colorado,” Bulloch said. “We motorcycled for a good little while then, during my vacation. I’ve owned six or seven motorcycles, and put on about 100,000 miles motorcycling over the years.
“I’ve been to Vegas and Arizona a couple of times,” he said. “I’ve rid to Seattle. That was a three-day ride one way on a motorcycle.”
They never had problems traveling, even riding back down to his hometown of Holly Springs, Mississippi. (He moved to Chicago when he was 23.)
“We’d just ride during the daylight hours,” he said. “We had a tent. We’d camp out at night. We used to have fun.”
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He still has a Harley, and can still ride, but did so just once last summer around the neighborhood.
Danisha Brown brings a tray of doughnuts for a customer at Old Fashioned Donuts in Roseland on Oct. 20, 2020. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
Last summer, Bulloch thought he was good for another 10 years, but didn’t know how many of those years he’d still make doughnuts.
Now? “I’m planning on doing this as long as I possibly can, as long as I can stay on my feet,” he said. “I did have a little touch of that colon cancer, but they think they caught everything in time.”
Why the change of heart? “I’ve been doing it so long, it’s a part of me,” he added. “And it keeps my mind occupied.
“I feel pretty good from day to day. It’s just when I sit that I get a little stiff. Once I get up and get moving, I’m all right again.”
Bulloch still puts in six- or seven-hour days at the shop, plus does the buying for ingredients and supplies at Restaurant Depot and Sam’s Club.
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“I have a couple of other guys who I’ve trained to make doughnuts,” he said. The shop has a total of 10 people on payroll. “Business is doing good, about the same, if not a little more than a year ago.”
“For the regular doughnuts, we’re getting $14 per dozen and we’re making out at that.”
You can call ahead to order doughnuts and apple fritters, the latter with or without a generous topping of chopped pecans. “We get $4 apiece for them and it works pretty well,” Bulloch said. They’ve blocked off the indoor seating, so it’s currently takeout-only for the pastries or grill food, including Vienna Beef Polish sausages, cheeseburgers and breakfast sandwiches.
Danisha Brown holds a tray of large doughnuts at the Old Fashioned Donuts in Roseland. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
“If too many people come through the door, 98% of them are really nice,” Bulloch said. “They’ll come and peep in the door. If they see it’s kind of full, they’re nice enough to stand outside for a few minutes. When it gets really cold, we might have to have them wait in their car.”
Masks are required, of course, but sometimes people forget for just a moment.
“They get halfway in the door, see me with my mask on, and they say ‘Oh my God!’” he said. “They turn around, go back to the car and get their mask.
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“I know a lot of people just jump out of their car with their mind on their doughnut,” Bulloch said, laughing.
11248 S. Michigan Ave., 773-995-7420, facebook.com/Old-Fashioned-Donuts-Inc
lchu@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-10-27--Is it a cold, the flu or COVID-19? Get a flu shot and err on the side of caution, experts say.

“ If you have ever received a flu vaccine in your life , this is the year to do it @ @ @ @ @ about the possibility of co-infection with influenza and COVID , ” Taormina said .
“ @ @ @ @ @ see a lot of that in the spring because flu season was fizzling out .
@ @ @ @ @ to be entering months here where we absolutely are going to have these two illnesses @ @ @ @ @ ”

That tickle in the throat, cough, runny nose or run-down feeling in late October typically means grabbing some over-the-counter cold and flu relief and powering through a day of work or errands.
Not this year, said Dr. Mia Taormina, an infectious disease specialist with DuPage Medical Group.
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“If you’re feeling sick at all, you should stay home,” Taormina said.
Because so many of the symptoms of COVID-19 are similar to those of influenza or a cold, it’s best to recuperate at home, Taormina said.
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“We just can’t afford to continue spreading (the coronavirus). This is why we are where we are because we continue to go out and about feeling unwell,” she said.
Knowing the symptoms
Those experiencing symptoms first and foremost should not panic, Taormina said, but calmly assess which virus may be the cause.
A cold is easiest to distinguish, she said. Symptoms, which peak within two to three days, are along the lines of a runny nose and watery eyes. A person with a cold generally doesn’t have a fever, she said.
A fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headaches, shortness of breath and fatigue are all symptoms of both influenza and COVID-19.
In general, people experience more body aches and headaches with the flu, and the loss of taste or smell is a symptom specific to COVID-19, Taormina said.
Flu symptoms present sooner than COVID-19, within 24 to 48 hours after exposure to someone with the flu compared to five to six days after being exposed to the coronavirus.
“There’s always going to be situations where you don’t know where you may have been exposed,” and in that case, knowing what is trending in a community can assist in virus identification, Taormina said.
“Right now we are (inching) up with our COVID numbers,” she said. “But we’re going to reach a point where we might have a flu rate that is much higher than that, and the probability errs on the side of more likely to be flu than and COVID.”
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When to call the doctor
If a person is experiencing any shortness of breath, chest pain or significant symptoms, that is when a doctor should be consulted, she said.
Taormina advises against heading to emergency rooms or immediate care facilities. “We don’t want to inundate those emergency services that really need to be available for the sickest patients,” she said.
Dr. Mia Taormina, an infectious disease specialist with DuPage Medical Group, urges anyone who is feeling unwell to stay at home, even if it's a cold or the flu. (DuPage Medical Group)
Instead, she suggests calling the doctor office. “Almost all doctors have some capacity toward video visits or after-hours visits, where they can facilitate seeing sick patients and get testing done as appropriate,” Taormina said.
Through a conversation with the doctor, it may be determined that strep throat or flu is more likely and those tests can be ordered, she said. If COVID-19 is a possibility, the patient can be sent for that testing.
“COVID and flu can present similarly so there’s going to be a need, and in many cases, to kind of test for both,” she said.
And definitely seek attention if symptoms are accompanying "either a known exposure or a known event where you know you were in larger gathering spaces with people not being compliant with mask wearing,” she said.
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Importance of a flu shot
The best defense against contracting influenza is a vaccine.
“If you have ever received a flu vaccine in your life, this is the year to do it. We are very concerned about the possibility of co-infection with influenza and COVID,” Taormina said. “We didn’t really see a lot of that in the spring because flu season was fizzling out. But we’re going to be entering months here where we absolutely are going to have these two illnesses running side by side.”
In addition to the possibility of getting infected with both, she said the medical community doesn’t know how the body might respond.
“Getting flu on the tail end of COVID or getting COVID on the challenge of flu, it might generate such an inflammatory response and render someone really, really ill,” Taormina said.
Flu vaccines are not 100%, and they never have been, she said. “But to have that extra layer of possible protection is so beneficial in this period of time,” she said.
October is the “sweet spot month” so get a flu shot now, she said.
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Avoid gatherings
The doctor advises vigilance amid the approaching holidays.
For Halloween, Taormina said she definitely encourages mask wearing and participating in outdoor activities.
“I’m OK with trick-or-treating as long as you are in a small group — your own family essentially, and not to trick-or-treat in a large group — and distancing is maintained,” she said.
For those who are handing out candy, wear masks and gloves, she said.
Other options to increase the distance might be using long barbecue tongs so you don’t physically touch the candy or set out individual packages out on a table that the kids can grab themselves, Taormina said.
As for as indoor parties and gatherings, “I don’t think this is a good time for that.”
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Thanksgiving will be problematic this year, she said.
“We all want to be together with our families, and sometimes Thanksgiving can involve multiple generations of family members where we can have more vulnerable individuals,” Taormina said.
This might be the year to drop off Thanksgiving dinner with the fixings to anyone who’s ill, elderly or has a history of immuno-compromising symptoms, she said.
Consideration should be given to smaller indoor gatherings with people who’ve been in the same isolation bubble and bringing in technology, such as FaceTime or Zoom, so everyone can still say hello, Taormina said.
“But the large family gatherings, I really would not suggest at this point,” she said.
Cold and flu season also is another reason to avoid indoor gatherings with family and friends.
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“We’ve gotten lax about wearing masks indoors when we’re indoors with family members,” she said. “We all wear masks indoors in public places, stores and whatnot because that’s sort of what’s required of us.”
But in reality, indoor get-togethers have more people in a smaller space than a large market or store, she said.
“There’s upwards of a 10% chance of getting COVID if someone in an indoor gathering with you has COVID,” Taormina said.
That’s enough of a chance that if social distancing indoors cannot be maintained, everyone should be wearing masks, especially those people who have not interacted regularly over the quarantine period, she said.
“Your immediate household is one thing, but if you started inviting over the in-laws, the cousins and extended family, we do have a concern,” Taormina said.
subaker@tribpub.com


chicagotribune--2020-10-27--Baby boy found after police say he was never in SUV reported taken from outside Southwest Side conve

Baby boy found after police say he was never in SUV reported taken from outside Southwest Side convenience store

Police recovered the SUV two hours later in the 1400 block of South Keeler Avenue but did not immediately find @ @ @ @ @ that he was in the care of a babysitter the whole time and had not @ @ @ @ @ according to an updated police media notification .

Chicago police said they found a 7-month-old boy in the care of a babysitter Monday afternoon after the car a woman said he was riding in was reported stolen from outside a Marquette Park neighborhood convenience store.
Police found the vehicle abandoned on the city’s West Side with no signs of the child. Authorities found the boy late Monday evening in the care of a babysitter after releasing photos of the child, Jaylen Mojica, in a community alert where he was classified as an endangered missing person.
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A 30-year-old woman told police she left the gray SUV running in the 2700 block of West 71st Street about 12:45 p.m. while she went into a convenience store, according to a police media notification. The child had been left inside the car, according to police.
When the woman returned to where she had left the SUV, it was gone, and investigators found that someone had driven it off, heading north on California Avenue, according to police.
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Police recovered the SUV two hours later in the 1400 block of South Keeler Avenue but did not immediately find Jaylen. Police later determined that he was in the care of a babysitter the whole time and had not been in the SUV, according to an updated police media notification.
Area One detectives were investigating. Police on Tuesday refused to say how they located the boy and the SUV.


chicagotribune--2020-10-27--WeatherTech, maker of car floor mats, switches gears to make COVID-19 face shields

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit , MacNeil reached out to the federal government , initially offering to produce ventilators .
@ @ @ @ @ GM , which had been enlisted to make ventilators by the White House under the @ @ @ @ @ well as ventilator manufacturers , to see if WeatherTech could help .

WeatherTech owner and Trump megadonor David MacNeil is pushing a new product line — plastic face shields to protect against COVID-19.
Eight months into the resurgent pandemic, the southwest suburban car floor mat manufacturer is getting into the personal protection equipment business in a big way, despite ongoing politicization over face masks.
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“We have hundreds of thousands of them in stock, ready to go,” said MacNeil, 61.
The FaceShield Air, a sort of wearable sneeze guard, includes a comfort pad, headband and anti-fog lens. Priced at $24.95 for a three-pack, the reusable full-face device can be worn with or without a mask, according to the WeatherTech website.
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Made in the same factory that turned Bolingbrook into the aftermarket vehicle floor mat capital of the U.S., WeatherTech’s latest addition to its eclectic catalog was months in development.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, MacNeil reached out to the federal government, initially offering to produce ventilators. He then contacted Ford and GM, which had been enlisted to make ventilators by the White House under the Defense Production Act, as well as ventilator manufacturers, to see if WeatherTech could help.
No one accepted his offer, and MacNeil decided to shift gears and make plastic face shields using WeatherTech’s injection molding production line.
“We thought we could make a great face shield, right here in America, and not have those jobs exported overseas,” MacNeil said.
MacNeil, who grew up in Oak Park and River Forest, started WeatherTech in 1989 out of his Clarendon Hills home. He began making floor mats using outside manufacturers, eventually bringing production in-house. MacNeil relocated operations to Bolingbrook in 2009.
WeatherTech diversified its product line in 2018 with the CupFone cellphone holder and an ergonomic dog food bowl. As with all his products, MacNeil touts his Made in America mantra in ubiquitous TV spots, including an annual Super Bowl commercial since 2014.
The company has 1,600 employees at its sprawling Bolingbrook campus, and MacNeil said business across all lines has remained strong. WeatherTech has been hiring people from other industries during the pandemic to keep up with demand, he said.
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This year, MacNeil invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in everything from automatic temperature sensors at entryways to touchless time clocks in an effort to keep the factory going and COVID-19 from spreading among his workforce.
His employees all wear face masks.
“I’m not questioning whether it’s a good idea or bad idea,” MacNeil said. “I’m just following the rules and regulations and recommendations of the experts.”
MacNeil said safety protocols have been successful, touting that no more than two employees have been stricken with COVID-19 at a time since March.
A Republican megadonor, MacNeil contributed $1 million to President Donald Trump’s January 2017 inauguration. But in 2018, MacNeil took a stand against the president’s decision to rescind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, vowing not to fund Republicans that opposed legislation protecting immigrants brought to the country illegally as children.
He remains an active donor, most recently contributing $2,800 to the Trump presidential campaign and $35,500 to the Republican National Committee in July, according to Federal Election Committee records.
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MacNeil’s latest venture seems at odds with Trump, who has been less than supportive, and at times dismissive, of wearing face coverings to prevent COVID-19 transmission.
While he has occasionally worn a mask in public, Trump has openly mocked Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden’s masks, falsely claimed in a nationally televised October town hall that a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study found that 85% of people who wear masks catch the virus, and does little to discourage supporters who flock to his rallies without wearing masks.
The CDC recommends that people wear masks in public settings to prevent the spread of the virus through respiratory droplets. On its website, the agency said there is currently not enough evidence to support the use of face shields as a substitute for masks.
MacNeil said pairing a face mask with a shield provides optimum protection, particularly on an airplane or in other close quarters.
While WeatherTech may be a little late to the production of face coverings, there seems to be no end in sight to the potential market as the number of COVID-19 cases surged to new highs this week and municipalities began to clamp down on public gatherings to limit its spread.
The lack of a presidential seal of approval has not deterred MacNeil, who is bullish on the prospects for his new face shield.
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“It’s really got nothing to do with being a Trump donor,” MacNeil said. “It’s another form of protection, and it’s certainly very effective and usable under the right circumstances.”
rchannick@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-10-27--Campaign trail tracker: Where Trump, Biden and their running mates have traveled in presidential rac

Campaign trail tracker: Where Trump, Biden and their running mates have traveled in presidential race’s final weeks

In the final sprint ahead of the Nov. 3 election , both President Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden @ @ @ @ @ travel despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic .
Starting in September , Biden abandoned his monthslong @ @ @ @ @ in Delaware while Trump has accelerated his travel and is once again welcoming crowds at @ @ @

In the final sprint ahead of the Nov. 3 election, both President Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden have ramped up their campaign travel despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Starting in September, Biden abandoned his monthslong virtual campaign from his basement in Delaware while Trump has accelerated his travel and is once again welcoming crowds at some events.
Sign up for The Spin to get the top stories in politics delivered to your inbox weekday afternoons.
Here’s a look at the campaign trail stops made by Trump, Biden and running mates since Sept. 1.
Campaign trail tracker
Tap or click on a dot to see details of the stop.
Don’t see the map? Some mobile browsers disable it. Try this link.


chicagotribune--2020-10-27--Tracking Chicago homicide victims

Tracking Chicago homicide victims

Though there are homicides recorded throughout the city they are most concentrated in the South and West sides .


chicagotribune--2020-10-27--‘Blindsided and heartbroken.’ Mood of restaurant, bar owners dismal as COVID restrictions are back i

‘Blindsided and heartbroken.’ Mood of restaurant, bar owners dismal as COVID restrictions are back in suburban Cook

“ But that ’ s not the end of the story , ” she said .
“ The people who @ @ @ @ @ virus tomorrow has not been determined .
And that is where every one of us @ @ @ @ @ mask and our clean hands and our physical distancing , we can prevent exposure to @ @ @ @ @

Karen Ann Cullotta, Kaitlin Edquist, John Keilman, Robert McCoppin, Jamie Munks, Dan Petrella, Alice Yin

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)
Suburban Cook County will soon join other communities living under stricter measures intended to slow the latest COVID-19 surge, Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced Monday, much to the dismay of bar and restaurant owners who have already endured a dismal year.
“All the progress we’ve made over the last two months is out the door now, and we have to start back from zero,” said Arnie Krause, owner of The Claim Company restaurant in Northbrook.
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It was a widespread sentiment in the suburbs after Pritzker announced the latest round of restrictions as coronavirus cases began to creep higher. A week ago, only one of the 11 regions in the governor’s reopening plan was forbidden to have indoor dining, bar service and crowds of more than 25 people. By Wednesday, more than half of the state’s population will be living under the stricter rules.
“No matter where in Illinois you call home, as you go about your daily lives, remember that this is not over,” Pritzker said during his daily COVID-19 briefing in Peoria. “There seems to be a COVID storm on the rise, and we have to get prepared.”
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[ Suburban Cook County placed under tougher coronavirus restrictions starting Wednesday that will prohibit indoor dining and bar service ]
Suburban Cook County has had eight consecutive days of test positivity rate increases and seven days of increased hospital admissions. It is the first region to surpass the state-set thresholds for those two metrics at the same time.
The other regions have triggered tougher rules by reaching an 8% positivity rate threshold for three consecutive days. As of Friday, the rolling seven-day positivity rate for the Cook County suburbs was 7.7%.
Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said the stricter rules are needed to slow the recent surge and prevent the state’s health care system from becoming overwhelmed as weather turns colder and flu season takes hold.
With hospitalizations already on the rise, health officials are concerned about the percentage of newly diagnosed patients who may soon end up in the hospital, in intensive-care units and on ventilators, Ezike said.
“But that’s not the end of the story,” she said. “The people who will get exposed to the virus tomorrow has not been determined. And that is where every one of us comes in. With our mask and our clean hands and our physical distancing, we can prevent exposure to this deadly virus.”
[ COVID-19 in Illinois by the numbers: Here’s a daily update on cases, positivity rate and hospital data in your area ]
Health officials say indoor restaurants and bars carry a higher risk because they have crowds of people socializing in confined areas for extended periods without masks. They note that outbreaks traced to restaurants and bars have occurred in other states.
But Orland Park Mayor Keith Pekau, who has frequently criticized Pritzker over his handling of COVID-19 measures, said the governor has created "a constantly moving bar” communities must meet to keep their restaurants open.
He pointed to the county’s hospitalization rate, which remains far below the peak in April and May, as evidence that new restrictions aren’t needed. He added that he doesn’t have the legal authority or the inclination to crack down on any restaurants that might ignore the new order.
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“Ask the governor how he’s going to enforce it,” he said. “He’s not going to make me go after my restaurants for trying to earn a living.”
State police have issued citations to four businesses and visited dozens of others to help enforce public health rules, spokeswoman Mindy Carroll said. Additional details about the citations were not immediately available.
[ COVID-19 cases in Illinois by ZIP code: Search for your neighborhood ]
Numerous restaurants across the suburbs have announced they plan to stay open regardless of the new restrictions, though Sam Toia, president of the Illinois Restaurant Association, said the group doesn’t support that move.
“We do not advocate any restaurant to disobey the governor’s orders,” he said. “We always care about the safety and health of our team members and guests.”
In far northwest suburban McHenry County, county board Chairman Jack Franks asked to apply mitigation restrictions only to businesses that flout mask and social distancing mandates.
As with prior COVID-19-related restrictions that were overturned, such as church openings or the limit of two people per boat, Franks said this blanket closure should end. He recommended enforcement tied to specific violators, rather than shuttering restaurants while retail businesses are allowed to operate with many more customers.
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That discrepancy also aggravated Jim Downing, manager of the 115 Bourbon Street entertainment complex in Merrionette Park.
“It’s hard to understand how every place can be open except bars and restaurants,” he said, noting he’s trying to figure out whether his establishment’s Saturday night Halloween party can proceed. “You go to Home Depot and Walmart and it seems to be no problem there.”
[ As second wave of COVID-19 roils Illinois, here are 5 updated ways doctors say you can stay healthy ]
In Rosemont, the village rents out space to restaurants in its entertainment district, and deferred rent payments and renegotiated leases after the spring ban on indoor dining. Despite those measures, Gene & Georgetti’s restaurant announced it was closing its location there.
Michelle Durpetti, part of the third generation of family that owns Gene & Georgetti, said the restaurant faced a $120,000 tax bill and was forced to close Sunday. Employees called her in tears, she said, asking what they could do now.
“I’d love for the governor to look my employees in the face and explain how they are, through no fault of their own, losing their livelihoods,” she said. “This sweeping decision is ruining the lives of so many people. It’s devastating.”
Winnetka-Northfield Chamber of Commerce President Terry Dason said two restaurants in the area — Spirit Elephant, a vegan eatery in Winnetka, and The Happ Inn, a bar and grill in Northfield — recently invested in new ventilation systems to ensure that customers could be safe dining indoors.
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That made the halt to indoor dining particularly frustrating, especially given the cost incurred for the improvements, she said.
“We’re all blindsided and heartbroken,” she said. “It’s upsetting and unfortunate for our residents, but it’s absolutely devastating to restaurant owners.”
In nearby Glencoe, Village Manager Phil Kiraly said the governor’s announcement puts in limbo the future of two new greenhouses erected in the village’s downtown business district to accommodate heated, outdoor dining.
“There isn’t real clarity from the state yet on how these structures will be treated, but from our perspective, it’s not any different than the enclosed outdoor dining they have by the wagonfuls and are allowing in Chicago,” he said.
Cook County Commissioner Sean Morrison, who is also leader of the county’s Republican Party, said Pritzker has gone overboard with his response to the pandemic.
“He seems to have a drunken sense of power that’s going on here because nobody’s taking into account all the bad things that are happening as a byproduct of COVID-19 and of these government shutdowns,” Morrison said, detailing the pervasiveness of unemployment, alcoholism, overdoses and suicide during the pandemic.
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But his colleague, Commissioner Larry Suffredin, D-Evanston, said caution should carry the day, citing the more than 500 people who have died of COVID-19 in his district.
“You can’t mess with this, so I’m sorry for the people who are having difficulty and are making really courageous decisions in running their businesses, but we’ve got to do this to protect everybody,” he said.


chicagotribune--2020-10-28--Daywatch: Pritzker and Lightfoot clash over Chicago COVID-19 restrictions, special education parents

Daywatch: Pritzker and Lightfoot clash over Chicago COVID-19 restrictions, special education parents' tough choice and meet the maker of city’s best apple fritters

Although their families don ’ t yet have the option to send their children back to school before the end @ @ @ @ @ for thousands of other CPS families with special education students , decision day is Wednesday @ @ @ @ @ about 5,000 students in moderate and intensive special education programs have been identified as the @ @ @ @ @ learning .
But for many parents , the decision is not simple .

Good morning, Chicago. On Tuesday, Illinois health officials reported 4,000 new known cases of the coronavirus and 46 more deaths. The seven-day statewide positivity rate ticked up to 6.4%
Meanwhile, Chicago added Florida to its travel ban and warned that Michigan could be added next week, the city’s public health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady said on Tuesday. That makes 31 states, as well as Puerto Rico, on the city’s list of places residents can’t travel to without quarantining. Here’s everything you need to know about the quarantine order.
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Here’s more coronavirus news and other top stories you need to know to start your day.
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Bartender Rory Toolan delivers a drink for Jessica Wolfe, right, in the outdoor patio at Ludlow Liquors on Oct. 22, 2020, in Chicago. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Tuesday clashed over his order for tighter restrictions that would prohibit indoor dining and bar service in Chicago, with the governor saying they’re needed to help stop the coronavirus spread and the mayor indicating she’ll try to change his mind.
Hours after Pritzker announced the rollback in Chicago starting Friday, citing increases in the city’s positivity rate and in hospital admissions for people with COVID-19 symptoms, Lightfoot in a televised interview said she’s trying to convince him not to go through with his order, citing concerns about the economy.
Court allows FoxFire restaurant in Geneva to stay open for indoor dining despite Gov. Pritzker’s COVID-19 closure order
Ald. Brendan Reilly speaks during a news conference at Milton Lee Olive Park in Chicago on Aug. 14, 2020. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
Downtown Ald. Brendan Reilly, a recent critic of Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx, bucked his fellow Democrats and the Chicago mayor on Tuesday to endorse the Republican challenger in one of the most anticipated local races this November.
Rory Dominick pours juice for son Connor, 12, as son Cameron, 14, who is in a special education program at Riverside-Brookfield High School, works on his laptop at the family's Riverside home on Oct. 27, 2020. Dominick said she's thrilled her 14-year-old son was finally back in the classroom. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
Although their families don’t yet have the option to send their children back to school before the end of the calendar year, for thousands of other CPS families with special education students, decision day is Wednesday. Along with pre-kindergartners, about 5,000 students in moderate and intensive special education programs have been identified as the first who could resume in-person learning. But for many parents, the decision is not simple.
JDL Development wants to build 2,680 residential units on 8.1 acres of Near North Side land the firm has a deal to buy from Moody Bible Institute. (Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture)
A Chicago developer wants to build 2,680 residential units on the Near North Side, one of the most ambitious proposals in the city in decades. JDL Development’s plan, which includes towers rising 587, 512 and 500 feet tall, is on 8.1 acres the developer has a deal to buy from Moody Bible Institute, JDL founder and CEO Jim Letchinger said Monday.
Buritt Bulloch, 82, founder and owner of Old Fashioned Donuts, makes his famous apple fritters at his bakery in the Roseland neighborhood in Chicago on Oct. 20, 2020. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
As leaves change color, and the weather turns cold, you may embrace the season. Apple picking plans may pop up, until you realize it’s too late for this year. It’s always apple fritter season, though, at Old Fashioned Donuts on the South Side of Chicago.


chicagotribune--2020-10-28--Column: Trump’s claim that he has done more for Black people than any president since Lincoln makes

Column: Trump’s claim that he has done more for Black people than any president since Lincoln makes me sick

Though he stops short of saying it , his point is that Black people should be grateful .
He is @ @ @ @ @ not such an empathetic and benevolent president , African Americans would be far worse off @ @ @ @ @ other president has shown such generosity to a group of people as helpless as we @ @

Every time I hear Donald Trump say that he has done more for the Black community than any president since Abraham Lincoln, I want to let out a guttural scream.
It took me a while to understand the outrage I felt watching this white man speak to me, an African American, as if he were some sort of savior who has lifted my people from wretchedness and given us a chance to be more like him.
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Though he stops short of saying it, his point is that Black people should be grateful. He is telling us that were he not such an empathetic and benevolent president, African Americans would be far worse off. He suggests that no other president has shown such generosity to a group of people as helpless as we are.
I now know the cause of my indignation. Trump sounds like a slave master proclaiming that he is good to his Negroes.
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To keep their slaves submissive, the masters would threaten to sell them to less compassionate owners if they got out of line. “I have done more for the Black community” sounds like a slave owner claiming that he’s a good master because he doesn’t beat his slaves as often or cut off their feet to stop them from fleeing.
It is a racist, self-gratifying pronouncement that was passed down through generations of prominent white people who held power over African Americans. It was prevalent in the South during the 1960s, when Black women largely were domestic workers cleaning homes and caring for the children of white employers.
It was not uncommon for a white woman to brag to her friends about how good she was to her help. Though she paid wages too small to live on, she rewarded her “girl” with items from her home — discarded furniture, clothing and trinkets that Black people struggling to put food on the table would never buy for themselves.
Trump wants us to understand that even the first Black president, Barack Obama, couldn’t fix our problems. Only someone like him — white with an abundance of intellect — could lead us to the Promised Land. But there’s only so much he can do.
Trump’s comments reflect the racist, stereotypical attitude he and others in his circle espouse about the Black community. He sees African Americans as violently barbaric people and describes our neighborhoods as “living in hell.”
He has written us off as too dumb to understand how we have created these conditions ourselves. And he is losing patience with us because we refuse to acknowledge all that he does for us.
Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, expressed it more bluntly. Appearing Monday on “Fox & Friends,” Kushner brought up the old racist adage that Black people can’t succeed to the heights of white people because they don’t want to be successful.
“One thing we’ve seen in a lot of the Black community, which is mostly Democrat, is that President Trump’s policies are the policies that can help people break out of the problems that they’re complaining about,” said Kushner, a top White House adviser. “But he can’t want them to be successful more than they want to be successful.”
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Kushner went on to suggest that African Americans would rather complain than do what is necessary to improve their lives.
In other words, the white savior in the Oval Office has broken his back trying to help Black people, while we are being lazy and shiftless. This came from someone who came up in his father’s business and is only in his prominent position because he is married to the president’s daughter.
The hypocrisy of both Kushner and Trump, who inherited wealth from his father, is astounding. It shows complete ignorance when it comes to the interplay between race and economics in America.
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It overlooks the impressive achievements of large numbers of African Americans in spite of a system that historically has offered little or no assistance. It also ignores that this same system has successfully fought to tear down equalizers such as affirmative action that sought to provide a bridge to economic parity.
Speaking at Stanford University in 2017, Harvard University sociologist William Julius Wilson pointed out that the income of more affluent African Americans was increasing prior to Trump taking office.
When adjusted for inflation, the percentage of African Americans earning at least $75,000 more than doubled to 21% from 1970 to 2014, he said. Those making $100,000 or more nearly quadrupled to 13%. In contrast, white Americans saw a less impressive increase, from 11 to 26%, he added.
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By no means does that indicate that African Americans have reached economic parity in this county. In fact, we remain far from it.
But it does prove that Trump is not the savior to Black people he claims to be. More so, it shows that African Americans can do, and always have done, a lot better without him.
dglanton@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @dahleeng


chicagotribune--2020-10-28--After their mom died from COVID-19, her kids give a final toast with a beloved, hard-to-find token o

After their mom died from COVID-19, her kids give a final toast with a beloved, hard-to-find token of her youth: Tab diet soda

“ I just always liked the taste of it , ” said Mary Ellen Gourley , of Chicago , who @ @ @ @ @ middle school student and kept going strong through her nursing career .
“ It had @ @ @ @ @ that citrus taste and I liked the saccharin .
The carbonation kind of had more @ @ @ @ @ .
It hooked me , and I just always drank it .
”

Kathleen Berger died in May from coronavirus-related causes, leaving behind eight kids and a legacy encapsulated by a bright pink soda can.
Berger, who was 73, was a voracious consumer of Tab, the saccharin-infused cola known for its distinctive packaging, vaguely metallic taste and aerobic studio vibe. Introduced in 1963 by the Coca-Cola Co., it was once the nation’s dominant diet soda, producing a legion of fans so hard-core they called themselves Tabaholics.
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But Tab lost its mojo over the decades, surpassed by Diet Coke and other carbonated descendants, and Coke finally dispatched the brand earlier this month with a eulogy of buzzwords (“We’re prioritizing bets that have scale potential across beverage categories, consumer need states and drinking occasions”).
The retirement led to hoarding that soon made Tab, which was already hard to find, as rare as a white truffle. As of Tuesday, the asking price on eBay for a single can went as high as $25.
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A family photo of Kathleen Berger with her can of Tab, photographed Oct. 27, 2020, in Sarah Kennie's Elmhurst home. Berger, a "Tabaholic," died of COVID-19 complications and the family hosted a Tab toast to remember her. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
Berger, whose Tabaholism was second to none, would have recoiled at such a markup. That left her children, who are spread from Seattle to Elmhurst to suburban Boston, with a challenge: locate enough Tab in the wild so they could give a final, video chat-enabled salute to their mother.
“We were all like, ‘All right, let’s go out and try to find some, and then we’ll do this toast to Mom,’” said her son, Matt Berger. “And then none of us could find it anywhere.”
Weight-loss elixir
Tab was a product of the “Mad Men” era, concocted to compete with Royal Crown Cola’s Diet Rite. Coke’s marketers portrayed it as a weight-loss elixir and beauty enhancer, as an early commercial made clear.
“Have a shape he can’t forget,” a male voice purred as a lithesome tennis player tossed a ball on an empty court. “Tab can help.”
Within a decade, Tab took the lead in the diet soda wars, achieving a popularity it would keep well into the 1980s.
“I just always liked the taste of it,” said Mary Ellen Gourley, of Chicago, who started drinking it as a middle school student and kept going strong through her nursing career. “It had a little bit more of that citrus taste and I liked the saccharin. The carbonation kind of had more of a burn to it. It hooked me, and I just always drank it.”
Chicago restaurant executive Emlyn Thomas had a similar youthful initiation. In high school, after his girlfriend teased him about his weight, he went on a diet of unbuttered popcorn and Tab. He was quickly smitten, pink can and all.
“It had a very strange, tinny, almost bitter taste to it,” he said. “They tried to change it at one point and make it sweeter, and people rebelled."
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Berger, a writer who spent most of her time raising her children in Lake Forest, Connecticut and Massachusetts, started drinking it in the 1970s after going on the Scarsdale diet, a high-protein, low-carb weight-loss regimen.
“Tab was kind of her treat to get through it,” Matt Berger recalled. “She ended up losing a whole bunch of weight and never gave up the habit.”
Cans of Tab soda that Sarah Kennie went on a hunt to find to have a toast for her mom. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
She drank several cans a day and sometimes walked around the house singing the jingle, keeping her allegiance even as the soda grew hard to find. After having a stroke in her 50s, Berger’s short-term memory grew foggy, but her kids found that when they offered her a Tab, the years snapped back into focus.
“You could tell she was super excited about it,” said her son, Jonah Berger. “It was like she reverted back to being her younger self when she would have a Tab. I think for her it brought back really good memories of when she was healthier.”
One last Tab
Berger spent her final months in a nursing home outside Boston, and when COVID-19 swept through in the spring, she became ill. Her family could only visit through a window before she died May 20.
When the nursing home returned her belongings, her children discovered two cans of Tab among the items. That planted a germ of an idea that flowered when Coca-Cola said earlier this month that Tab, which long ago was displaced by Diet Coke as the company’s calorie-conscious flagship, would be discontinued.
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That didn’t sit well with Tabaholics, especially Derick Garr, of Kirksville, Missouri, whose love for the soda runs so deep that his personalized license plate says “TAB BOI.”
He started a Facebook group in 2012 called “Bring TaB! Soda back to ALL store shelves!” when the soda became so rare in his small town that he had to drive three hours to Kansas City to find it. The group has spent the last week and a half pleading with Coca-Cola to give Tab another chance, he said.
“We’ve gone to the top, as far as we can go,” he said. “Until it’s no longer around and hasn’t been around for a while, we’re not going to stop.”
A Coca-Cola spokeswoman told the Tribune there are no plans to revive the brand.
“We understand that this has caused disappointment for Tab fans, and we want to let them know that we do appreciate their passion for the original ‘pink pioneer,’” she said.
When the news of Tab’s demise broke, Berger’s kids joked in a group chat that the soda had gone under because their mom was no longer around to support it. But that led to a serious plan.
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“We all said that we should try to find some to have one last Tab for Mom, because she’d be so upset by (the discontinuation),” Matt Berger said. “The perfect way to end Tab and to (honor) my mom’s time on the earth was to toast her with a Tab.”
The search
So they set off to find some, only to discover that store shelves from Boston to Chicago to Seattle had been stripped clean. They posted pleas on social media and received commiseration and suggestions on where to look, but for days, none of the tips panned out.
Then Sarah Berger Kennie, who lives in Elmhurst, got a heads-up that the Schnucks grocery store in DeKalb might yet have a supply. She dutifully called, and the man who answered the phone checked the shelves. A single 12-pack remained.
Sarah Kennie has a Tab toast with her husband, J.R., and son Carter, 3, along with her siblings who joined on a video call in honor of their mom, Kathleen Berger. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
Sarah Kennie's siblings joined on a video call for the Tab toast in honor of their mom, Kathleen Berger. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
Kennie asked him to hold it, put her 3-year-old son Carter in the car and made the hourlong drive west, half-believing the soda would be gone when she arrived. But sure enough, she walked in and found it waiting at the self-checkout line in all its pink splendor.
“It was an overwhelming feeling,” she said. “Kind of a happy/sad-type situation.”
By Tuesday night, the soda was in the hands of her siblings, who gathered around their webcams for the toast.
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“Tab’s jingle said it was for beautiful people,” Matt Berger said from his home in Seattle. “Well, they were right. You truly were a beautiful person inside and out, and we love you and miss you very, very much.”
Kennie and her husband, J.R., raised their cans and took a sip as Carter bounced around the living room. In a few minutes it was done and everyone signed off, leaving Kennie with a fizzy afterglow no caffeine can achieve.
“I know my mom would have loved that I did that for her,” she said. “It’s definitely a good feeling.”
jkeilman@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @JohnKeilman


chicagotribune--2020-10-28--Man, 51, injured after falling from train tracks onto street on West Side, police say

At 11:20 p.m. , the man was crossing the tracks in the 4000 block of West Lake Street in the @ @ @ @ @ police said .
He fell through the tracks and landed on the street , injuring @ @ @

A 51-year-old man was crossing elevated train tracks when he fell through to the street Tuesday night on the West Side, according to Chicago police.
At 11:20 p.m., the man was crossing the tracks in the 4000 block of West Lake Street in the West Garfield Park neighborhood, police said. He fell through the tracks and landed on the street, injuring his leg.
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He was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in good condition, police said. The man told police that he was using drugs before crossing the tracks.
pfry@chicagotribune.com
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Twitter @paigexfry


chicagotribune--2020-10-28--2 critically injured by suspected carbon monoxide poising, Fire Department says

The department responded before 8 p.m. to the home at 8506 S. Ada St. in the Gresham neighborhood on the @ @ @ @ @ said .
Two adults were found inside and CPR was used on them .

Two adults were taken to a hospital in critical condition and a cat died after lethal levels of carbon monoxide were found Oct. 27, 2020, in a family home in the 8500 block of South Ada Street in the Gresham neighborhood, according to the Chicago Fire Department. (Chicago Fire Department)
Two adults were taken to a hospital in critical condition and a cat died after dangerous levels of carbon monoxide were found to be in a South Side home Tuesday evening, according to the Chicago Fire Department.
The department responded before 8 p.m. to the home in the 8500 block of South Ada Street in the Gresham neighborhood. Two adults were found inside and CPR was used to revive them.
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They were both taken to Little Company of Mary Medical Center in Evergreen Park in critical condition, the department said.
Carbon monoxide levels were found to be high, possibly due to a generator that was running for electricity, the department said.
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pfry@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @paigexfry


chicagotribune--2020-10-28--Woman who told police her baby and SUV were taken faces charges of filing a false report

A 30-year-old woman is being accused of filing a false report after Chicago police say she told authorities that someone @ @ @ @ @ 7-month-old boy inside .
The child was later found to be in the care of @ @ @

For hours, Chicago police searched the city for a 7-month-old boy after his mother claimed he had been in an SUV that was stolen while she dashed into a convenience store on the Southwest Side.
They finally found him safe — with a babysitter where Sade Owens had dropped him and her two other children off earlier Monday. She told officers she filed the false report because “some lady” had told her police would find her stolen car faster if she said her baby was inside.
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Owens, a 30-year-old home caregiver, could be heard sobbing Wednesday during her bail hearing, broadcast on YouTube, after a judge ordered her held on $5,000 bail on a felony charge of false reporting.
Judge Mary C. Marubio noted how police “jumped into action” to find the missing child, deploying canine units and a helicopter.
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“This is an incredibly expensive search for this child, for this baby,” the judge said. “So while we consider that no one was harmed, there is a harm to a community when police resources are misdirected — and misdirected on such a grand scale.”
Sade Owens (Chicago Police Department)
Owens told police she left the boy in a gray SUV when she went into a convenience store in the 2700 block of West 71st Street early Monday afternoon, police said. When she returned, the SUV was gone.
Investigators found that someone drove the SUV north on California Avenue. They found it two hours later in the 1400 block of South Keeler Avenue but did not find the child. Police released photos of the boy in an endangered missing person alert.
Prosecutors said Owens became “evasive with officers,” later giving them incomplete information about the location of her other two children and their babysitter. Owens gave detectives the wrong address to her babysitter, but they were eventually able to find the correct apartment building and apartment, prosecutors said.
When the babysitter opened the front door, investigators immediately saw the boy sitting on the couch, authorities said.
The babysitter said Owens had dropped all three children off that morning and was supposed to pick them up at 5 p.m., prosecutors said. When Owens didn’t return, the babysitter said she was unable to contact her. The boy’s 7-year-old brother identified the baby by name.
Owens' court-appointed attorney said the mother of three was homeless and living in a shelter while working full-time as a caregiver. She is scheduled to return to court next week.
wlee@chicagotribune.com
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pfry@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @MidNoirCowboy
Twitter @paigexfry