chicagotribune--2020-05-24--Illinois legislators pass bill sought by Mayor Lori Lightfoot that could bring Chicago casino closer

Illinois legislators pass bill sought by Mayor Lori Lightfoot that could bring Chicago casino closer to reality

“ We still don ’ t know what that looks like , when they ’ ll be able to reopen @ @ @ @ @ able to reopen — whether it be able to fill a blackjack table with six @ @ @ @ @ social distancing .
So they ’ re going to have some changes in how they @ @ @

Illinois State Rep. Tim Butler, R-Springfield, left, and Illinois House Republican Leader Jim Durkin, R-Western Springs, talk with a colleague during an extended session of the Illinois House of Representatives at the Bank of Springfield Center on May 23, 2020, in Springfield. (Justin L. Fowler/The State Journal-Register/AP)
Legislators on Saturday approved change the tax structure for a Chicago casino that Mayor Lori Lightfoot has been pushing for the past year.
After the House passed the bill earlier, the Senate approved the casino changes late Saturday by a 42-14 vote, sending the measure to Gov. J.B. Pritzker, who has pledged to sign it when it reaches his desk.
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Mayor Lori Lightfoot praised the legislature’s action late Saturday as making “the possibility of a financially viable Chicago casino a reality.”
“This moment is decades in the making and represents a critical step toward shoring up our city’s pension obligations, as well as driving huge levels of infrastructure funding and fueling thousands of new jobs for all of Illinois,” Lightfoot said in a statement.
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Revenue from a Chicago casino is considered a key to the $45 billion capital bill passed last year. Pritzker has said he was eager to sign the gaming legislation, as it “provides a reliable funding stream” to the statewide construction plan and in a statement late Saturday credited Lightfoot and legislators from both parties for bringing it to fruition.
The changes lawmakers approved Saturday will mean “hundreds of millions of dollars annually to repair our schools, hospitals and higher education buildings across the entire state of Illinois,” Pritzker said.
After lawmakers last year approved a massive gambling expansion that authorized six new casinos across the state and legalized sports wagering, a study found that the tax structure for the Chicago casino, which is higher than for the other casinos in the state, could make it difficult to attract investors.
In addition to changes to the tax structure, the legislation approved on Saturday would extend from two to six years the amount of time casino’s owners would have to make a reconciliation payment, another change Lightfoot has pushed.
The legislation also delays by a year, until July 1, 2021, the time by which gaming applicants must pay license fees.
The coronavirus pandemic is driving that change, which is intended to help existing casinos in the state that have been closed and “would be very helpful for them in terms of how they’re going to reopen,” said sponsoring Rep. Bob Rita, a Blue Island Democrat.
“We still don’t know what that looks like, when they’ll be able to reopen and how they will be able to reopen — whether it be able to fill a blackjack table with six players or three or with social distancing. So they’re going to have some changes in how they operate.”
"The idea is to make this work for Chicago so we can fund the vertical capital, put people to work, not only for Chicago but for everywhere in the state of Illinois,” Rita said. “This is good for everyone for jobs and development — having a Chicago casino be real.”
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Springfield Republican Rep. Tim Butler called the Chicago casino “tremendously important” for the whole state because of its role in funding part of a massive statewide construction plan lawmakers approved last year.
The changes for the city casino would send an estimated $500 million in annual revenue to the state for the statewide infrastructure program, Rita said.
Sen. Bill Cunningham, a Chicago Democrat who sponsored the bill in the Senate, gave a lower revenue projection than his House counterpart, estimating the city’s casino would generate “more than an additional $200 million every year” for the capital program.
That’s on top of $145 million in licensing fees upfront and $700 million in reconciliation payment over a six-year period.
The legislation the House approved Saturday also includes technical changes for the casino in Danville in relation to gambling on the state fairgrounds in both Springfield and Du Quoin.
Tribune reporter Gregory Pratt contributed.
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jmunks@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-05-24--Illinois legislators overwhelmingly approve bill allowing bars and restaurants to sell cocktails for

Illinois legislators overwhelmingly approve bill allowing bars and restaurants to sell cocktails for pickup and delivery

The measure , which was approved unanimously in the Senate and by a 104-6 margin in the House , also @ @ @ @ @ days and delays license fees for six months after restaurants and bars are allowed to @ @ @ @ @ It would take effect immediately upon the governor ’ s signature and expire in one @ @

Illinois legislators late Saturday night overwhelmingly approved a measure aimed at helping bars and restaurants who’ve been forced to close for dine-in service during the pandemic.
The bill would allow establishments to sell cocktails for pickup and delivery in sealed containers. Third-party services like Grubhub and DoorDash would be prohibited from making cocktail deliveries.
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The measure, which was approved unanimously in the Senate and by a 104-6 margin in the House, also extends liquor licenses for 120 days and delays license fees for six months after restaurants and bars are allowed to reopen to the public. It would take effect immediately upon the governor’s signature and expire in one year.
“This will allow people to maintain jobs, and it’s a lifeline to the bars and restaurants, our beloved bars and restaurants,” said Rep. Lindsey LaPointe, a Chicago Democrat.
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dpetrella@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-05-24--Madigan wins latest round in suit alleging sham candidates

In his original ruling last year , Kennelly called it “ undisputed ” that some members of Madigan ’ s @ @ @ @ @ the two additional candidates on the ballot and wrote that the “ evidence supports a @ @ @ @ @ or at least was aware of the recruitment effort .
”

Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan confers with his chief of staff Jessica Basham during the spring legislative session May 21, 2020, in in Springfield. (Ted Schurter/AP)
Democratic Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan won a federal court victory in Chicago on Saturday as he worked on wrapping up the pandemic-shortened legislative session in Springfield.
U.S. District Judge Matthew F. Kennelly denied a motion asking for him to reconsider his August decision to toss out a lawsuit that contended Madigan conspired to put up two “sham” candidates with Hispanic names to confuse voters in a 2016 Democratic primary.
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The suit was brought by Jason Gonzales, who soundly lost to the speaker in the primary contest but cried foul over the two last-minute candidates who filed to join the ballot.
In his Saturday decision, Kennelly said Gonzales’ motion for reconsideration amounted to re-arguing points the judge already had considered and rejected, as well as other matters that were not the “proper basis for reconsideration.”
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Madigan spokeswoman Eileen Boyce said the judge’s ruling “just reaffirms that Mr. Gonzales had his opportunity to make his case to the voters, and he lost overwhelmingly. Speaker Madigan remains focused on working to protect the people of the 22nd (House) District, especially during these challenging times."
Gonzales attorney Stephen Boulton said he would file an appeal Tuesday. Gonzales had sought damages of up to $2 million.
In his original ruling last year, Kennelly called it “undisputed” that some members of Madigan’s political organization worked to put the two additional candidates on the ballot and wrote that the “evidence supports a reasonable inference that Madigan authorized or at least was aware of the recruitment effort.”
But Kennelly noted that Gonzales made the allegations of Madigan’s “deceptive tactics a central issue in his campaign” and news outlets publicized them. Kennelly said the publicity “placed the alleged misconduct squarely within the political realm, enabling voters to rebuke Madigan by electing his challenger” and, citing case law, dismissed the suit.
Madigan has seen his legal costs rise lately. He spent more than $445,000 in campaign funds during the closing months of 2019. That included a $275,000 settlement with a former campaign worker, ongoing civil cases and routine staff training, a Madigan spokeswoman said at the time.
Several of Madigan’s political associates have attracted scrutiny from federal prosecutors. The Tribune reported in December that federal authorities have asked questions about Madigan and his political operation as part of an ongoing investigation, according to four people who have been interviewed.
The sources, all of whom requested anonymity, said FBI agents and prosecutors asked about connections between Commonwealth Edison lobbyists and Madigan, lobbyists giving contracts to people tied to the speaker, and city, state and suburban government jobs held by his associates.
They also said authorities had numerous questions about the speaker’s relationship and dealings with longtime confidant Michael McClain, a former ComEd lobbyist.


chicagotribune--2020-05-24--Coronavirus in Illinois updates: Here’s what’s happening Memorial Day weekend with COVID-19 in the C

Coronavirus in Illinois updates: Here’s what’s happening Memorial Day weekend with COVID-19 in the Chicago area

“ We ’ re now well over our free and reduced numbers .
... We ’ re hearing from our @ @ @ @ @ fully employed , and now , both mom and dad are out of a job @ @ @ @ @ by week to week , ” Lenihan said , adding : “ I ’ ve @ @ @ @ @ , and people are pulling up in cars with signs saying , ‘ Thank you @ @ @ @ @ , ’ which is incredible , and very emotional .
”

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Sabine Beechum adjusts a balloon as she celebrates her 6th birthday with friends and family driving past her Hyde Park home in Chicago on Memorial Day, May 25, 2020. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)
Illinois reported the lowest number of daily coronavirus deaths since early April on Monday, as officials announced 31 additional fatalities. That’s the fewest deaths in a 24-hour period in the state since April 5, when 31 deaths were also recorded.
There were also 1,713 new known coronavirus cases in the last day, bringing the state’s total since the pandemic began to 112,017, officials said. The state’s total death count is now 4,884.
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Meanwhile, Chicagoans marked Memorial Day in a different way Monday, as local leaders tried to balance paying respect to those who died serving their country while also respecting the coronavirus-driven stay-at-home rules.
[ When can Illinois reopen? Check our daily charts on where each region stands. ]
[ How will Illinois reopen? Three charts breaking down Pritzker’s plan ]
[ COVID-19 cases in Illinois by ZIP code: Search for your neighborhood ]
[ As the coronavirus spreads, the Tribune is tracking Illinois cases here ]
Here’s what’s happening Memorial Day weekend with COVID-19 in the Chicago area and Illinois:
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3:50 p.m.: Crowd protests at Buckingham Fountain against Pritzker’s stay-at-home order on Memorial Day
At a Memorial Day rally in front of Buckingham Fountain, a crowd protested Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s stay-at-home order as an affront to the freedoms that service members have died defending. The well-received speeches, though, frequently veered into plugs for online learning courses or political futures.
State Rep. Darren Bailey, R- Xenia, who is locked in a legal battle with the governor over the order, urged onlookers to get involved in their local government and flood the phone lines of their elected officials.
The crowd, which held signs saying “F-U-J-B” and “Fire Pritzker,” called on Bailey to run for governor. He told the audience it was “time to replace career RINOs,” a pejorative term for Republicans who aren’t considered conservative enough.
“If God opens a door, I’ll go through that door,” Bailey said as the crowd erupted in cheers. “But it’s going to take a lot of work.”
Bailey, who was removed from the House floor last week for refusing to wear a mask in violation of a bipartisan rule, also insisted he held a fondness for Chicago, which runs counter to his previous statements. He did not, for example, mention that he has supported efforts to separate the city from the rest of the state.
“I love Chicago, its part of Illinois,” he said. “But sometimes when you raise a wayward child, you have to discipline that child.”
The event was organized by Anthony Delmedico, an Arizona-based entrepreneur, who promoted the event as part of a documentary called "Unconstitutional." He has predicted pandemic-related lockdowns soon will be viewed as “the biggest blunder in American History.”
At several points during the rally, Chicago police officers wearing face masks asked unmasked protesters to maintain 6 feet of social distance. One such request, repeated over a bullhorn by organizers, was met with boos and demands for police to arrest them if they didn’t like it.
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Officers dispersed the protest, with the Police Department citing public health concerns in a statement.
“While we worked to ensure the First Amendment rights of those participating in today’s march, the organizers and participants were not practicing social distancing or abiding by the public health guidelines outlined in the stay-at-home order. Therefore, for the health and safety of all residents involved in the rally, the Chicago Police Department issued a dispersal of the crowd and ordered the organizers to shut down the event," the statement read. —Stacy St. Clair
Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 8 People attend a Reopen Illinois rally in Chicago's Grant Park on Memorial Day, May 25, 2020. Attendees were calling for Gov. J.B. Pritzker to end the state lockdown sooner than planned. Many businesses deemed to be nonessential have been closed in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19. (Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune)
3:15 p.m.: State officials report 31 coronavirus deaths, the lowest number since early April
Illinois officials reported 31 more deaths related to COVID-19 in the previous 24 hours, the lowest number since April 5, when 31 deaths were also recorded.
There were also 1,713 new known coronavirus cases in the last day, bringing the state’s total since the pandemic began to 112,017, officials said. The state’s total death count is now 4,884, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. —Hal Dardick
11:15 a.m.: Memorial Day weekend violence not hampered by pandemic shutdown
Nine people already have been shot and killed in Chicago over Memorial Day weekend, as of Monday morning, making it the deadliest one since 2015.
The dead are among at least 36 people shot from Friday afternoon to early Monday, according to data kept by the Tribune.
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With a day still to go in the long weekend, the number of shootings is approaching 2019′s total despite a coronavirus stay-at-home order, Saturday’s severe storms and added police patrols.
Last year, 43 people were shot, seven fatally, over a holiday weekend that also included severe storms and an extra 1,200 patrol officers. The most injured in one year was 2016 with at least 69 shot, six fatally, but 2015 saw more people killed with 12 fatalities.
New police Superintendent David Brown said on Friday that he expected the usual spike in violence to occur this weekend. Patrols would be stepped up, but he would not say how many extra officers would be deployed.
Officers also were supposed be “on the lookout for large gatherings” that are not allowed because of the pandemic, Brown said. Read more here. —Paige Fry
Members of the Chicago Police and Fire Department work the scene where four people were stabbed near the intersection of West 77th Street and South Union Avenue in the Gresham neighborhood on Sunday, May 24, 2020. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)
11:10 a.m.: Relief funds pop up for south suburban families
As the COVID-19 pandemic ravages the south suburbs, impacting thousands of families and exacerbating the economic and public health disparities endemic to the region, a pair of relief funds have popped up to help the Southland’s most vulnerable residents.
The Chicago Community COVID-19 Response Fund, launched in mid-March, and the Southland Family Support Fund, announced this past week, aim to provide emergency financial support to those locally in need.
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The COVID-19 Response Fund raises money from local philanthropies, corporations and individual donors for distribution to nonprofits that serve populations disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. To date, it has provided $1.825 million to more than two-dozen organizations in the south and southwest suburbs.
The Family Support Fund, which takes a more direct approach to assisting Southland families, will next week begin providing $500 cash transfers to at least 1,000 Southland families directly affected by the pandemic.
Together, the funds are providing a lifeline to dozens of local social service organizations and thousands of their struggling clients.
Kathy Straniero, executive director of Together We Cope, a Tinley Park-based homeless prevention agency that has received $75,000 from the COVID-19 response fund, said she doesn’t know where her organization would be if it weren’t for the fund’s recent support. Read more here. —Zak Koeske
Sunday
7:10 p.m.: More than 1,000 attend drive-thru Eid celebration at suburban mosque. ‘Preserving human life comes before preserving the religion.’
At the beginning of Ramadan, Khawla Hammad feared the isolation amid the COVID-19 crisis would prove to be a burden spiritually, with mosques closed to the public and none of the traditional communal gatherings permitted.
Yet the 38-year-old from Chicago was surprised to find the solitude of the pandemic — along with innovative methods of connecting online or through social distancing measures — have in many ways augmented her faith and relationship with God.
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“This gave us a chance to sit and reflect spiritually,” she said. “Just you alone with your creator.”
Hammad was one of more than a thousand local Muslims who celebrated Eid al-Fitr — the holiday marking the end of the month of Ramadan fasting — at a drive-up gathering Sunday at the Mecca Center in southwest suburban Willowbrook. Read more here. — Angie Leventis Lourgos
6:26 p.m.: With planting put off by coronavirus, Chicago Park District selling flowers to the public
Some green spaces in Chicago may still be shut down to slow the spread of the coronavirus, but some of the 50,000 plants planned to take root in Chicago parks this summer are up for grabs and available to bring home.
Because of the pandemic, seasonal workers weren’t hired to plant the annual flowers, so the Chicago Park District joined with the Garfield Park Conservatory Alliance to bring the plants to the public.
The online flower sale from the Park District is open through Wednesday and contactless curbside pickup will be available starting Thursday at the Garfield Park Conservatory, 300 N. Central Park Ave. Read more here. — Morgan Greene
4:32 p.m. (Updated): Gov. J.B. Pritzker announces reopening rules for businesses as Illinois is poised to move to next phase and loosen restrictions
With all four regions of the state as defined under Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s phased-in reopening plan slated to advance to the next stage Friday, the state rolled out detailed guidance Sunday for what precautions restaurants and bars need to have in place to be able to serve customers outdoors, how manufacturers and some offices can resume operations with restrictions and how barbers can offer those badly needed haircuts.
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The industry-specific guidance the state released Sunday for the sectors of the state’s economy that will see loosened restrictions in the third phase of the governor’s plan provides a glimpse at a gradual return to normalcy after more than two months under a stay-at-home order meant to curb the spread of the coronavirus. Read more here. — Jamie Munks
2:40 p.m.: Illinois officials announce 2,508 new known coronavirus cases and 67 more deaths
The Illinois Department of Public Health announced Sunday 2,508 new known cases of COVID-19 and 67 deaths, pushing the statewide known case count to more than 110,000.
Since the pandemic began earlier this year, 110,304 cases have been confirmed statewide, and 4,856 people have died. Nearly all of Illinois’ counties – 100 of 102 – have reported known positive cases. State officials also announced Sunday that 25,674 tests had been conducted in the previous 24-hour period, for a total of 747,921. — Jamie Munks
12:23 p.m.: Pritzker announces guidelines for bars, restaurants, retailers and other businesses that can reopen Friday
As Illinois nears the date when a range of businesses can begin to reopen with restrictions, Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Sunday announced industry-specific guidelines for bars and restaurants to allow outdoor dining and drinking, more retailers to open with capacity limits and manufacturing with distancing between employees.
Under Pritzker’s five-phase “Restore Illinois” plan to gradually reopen Illinois’ economy as it meets a range of health metrics, the four regions the plan divides the state into are all on track to enter the next phase on Friday.
New state guidelines were also issued Sunday for fitness centers, offices, salons and barbershops, service counters, day camps, youth sports and other outdoor recreation, that deal with physical workplaces, employee health monitoring and restrictions for customers.
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The rules are published on the state website. —Jamie Munks
IMPORTANT UPDATE: Guidelines now available for businesses to safely reopen beginning May 29. Review the industry-specific guidelines, complete the pre-opening checklist and print & display health and safety signage. Everything you need ➡ https://t.co/vCP9fPeSTH#RestoreIllinois pic.twitter.com/f1TW7NpDRg — Illinois Dept. of Commerce & Economic Opportunity (@IllinoisDCEO) May 24, 2020
9:35 a.m.: Chicago faith leaders divided on whether to reopen for in-person service
A group of Chicago-area church leaders Saturday slammed President Donald Trump’s call to governors to allow churches to reopen for in-person services, even as other pastors said their churches would open their doors Sunday, despite local restrictions still in place.
The battle over church services marks the latest division in public opinion regarding when and how Illinois should reopen, even as the state Saturday added 2,352 new known cases of COVID-19 in Illinois, including 75 additional deaths. Read more here. —Madeline Buckley
7 a.m.: In historic pandemic-driven special session, Illinois lawmakers pass budget and clear path for Chicago casino
The Illinois legislature’s historic pandemic-driven special session ended in overtime early Sunday morning after lawmakers approved a maintenance-level $40 billion state budget that depends heavily on federal funds and made another effort to get a Chicago casino off the ground.
Both the House and the Senate on Saturday passed a bill that would revamp the tax structure for a Chicago casino, a step toward overcoming what has been seen as a key obstacle to getting one built. Mayor Lori Lightfoot has long pushed for tax changes, and the House vote was the furthest her proposal has gotten in the General Assembly.
The Senate early Sunday joined with the House to pass a budget plan that would maintain funding for many parts of state government from the current budget, except for health care agencies significantly impacted by the pandemic, despite Republican complaints that it ceded too much legislative authority to the state’s Democratic chief executive. Read more here. —Rick Pearson, Jamie Munks and Dan Petrella
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Saturday
7:28 p.m.: Lawmakers’ historic pandemic-driven special session focuses on new budget and Chicago casino
Illinois lawmakers stretched their historic pandemic-driven special session into overtime Saturday, as they sought to finalize details on a maintenance-level $40 billion state budget that would depend heavily on federal funds while also making another effort to get a Chicago casino off the ground.
With some bipartisan support, the House on Saturday approved a bill that would revamp the tax structure for a Chicago casino, a step toward overcoming what has been seen as a key obstacle to getting one built. Mayor Lori Lightfoot has long pushed for tax changes, and the House vote was the furthest her proposal has gotten in the General Assembly.
A Chicago casino is seen as key to the $45 billion capital bill the legislature passed last year. Read more here. —Rick Pearson, Jamie Munks and Dan Petrella
6:57 p.m.: On Friday, Illinois stopped providing historical data on COVID-19 in nursing homes. A day later, the full numbers are back.
A day after limiting its report on COVID-19 cases and deaths in Illinois nursing homes to facilities with “active” outbreaks, the state on Saturday reversed course and disclosed the total numbers.
State data now shows that 14,882 workers and residents of long-term care centers have tested positive and more than 2,400 have died. That’s an additional 1,800 cases and 250 deaths that were not part of Friday’s data. Read more here. —Jennifer Smith Richards and Robert McCoppin
2:40 p.m.: State officials announce 75 more deaths, 2,352 new cases of COVID-19
Illinois announced 2,352 new known cases of coronavirus, with 75 newly confirmed deaths.
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That brings the total number of confirmed cases in the state to 107,796, including 4,790 deaths, in 100 counties, according to state officials. —Madeline Buckley
12:21 p.m.: A few black leaders in Chicago say they’ll open this weekend following Trump’s call for churches to hold services
Two black community leaders spoke out Saturday morning urging Mayor Lori Lightfoot to reopen churches for in-person services after President Donald Trump on Friday said places of worship are essential and governors should open them this weekend.
“We just want her to recognize our institution as being essential,” said Pervis Thomas, pastor of New Canaan Land Missionary Baptist Church in Englewood.
Thomas plans to hold services Sunday at his church, citing Trump’s comments and new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.
At a press conference Friday, Trump said state governors need to “do the right thing” and open houses of worship. Later, the CDC posted non-binding guidance for faith institutions considering re-opening, including use of masks and limiting the size of gatherings.
Lightfoot called the president’s declaration “dangerous and foolish" and said he has no power to override local restrictions, which still ban such gatherings. Gov. J.B. Pritzker said the state will continue to “operate on the basis of science and data.”
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Still, Thomas said his church, along with a number of others, plan to hold services tomorrow, despite a risk of citations. Chicago police fined three houses of worship $500 each after they held services last weekend.
“We just want to have a freedom of choice,” Thomas said. “We just feel the mayor is (overstepping).”
Thomas held in-person service last Sunday for the first time since the stay-at-home order was implemented in March. About 10 people attended.
Thomas said his church will have hand sanitizer on hand, make use of masks and gloves and encourage the elderly and people with preexisting conditions to stay home. There also will not be a choir.
Jimmy Lee Tillman, president of the Martin Luther King Republicans, echoed Thomas’s call for in-person service.
“We’re calling on the governor and the mayor to adhere to the president’s ... guidelines,” Tillman said. “We feel we are breaking no laws.” —Madeline Buckley
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11:30 a.m.: City Youth Commission holding virtual concert to engage young people on reopening plans — with DJ Mike, Bella Bahhs, Jeremih
As part of efforts to get Chicago young people involved but also encourage them to stay home while enjoying the Memorial Day weekend, Mayor Lori Lightfoot’sYouth Commission will hold a Saturday afternoon online concert, according to the mayor’s office.
Dubbed the “We Gon’ Be Alright” virtual concert, the online event starts at 3 p.m. Saturday, broadcast simultaneously on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook, on the official mayor’s office accounts, @chicagosmayor on Twitter and Instagram and @chicagomayorsoffice on Facebook.
Performers were to include “song-writer Jeremih, Bella Bahhs, Angelina Victoria, DJ Mike P, Mayor Lightfoot, and other special guests,” according to a release.
The concert “was part of a day of events planned by the Mayor’s Youth Commission to engage and hear from youth from around the city on Chicago’s reopening and recovery efforts,” according to the release. —Chicago Tribune staff
5 a.m.: As need for food assistance soars, schools expand from meal pickup to grocery delivery: ‘We are seeing more demand every day.’
With one out of three students in suburban High School District 211 qualifying for free or reduced lunch, administrator Stacy Lenihan said the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic has been especially devastating for families who were struggling even when the economy was healthy.
But as Lenihan orchestrated a recent distribution of 5,000 bags of groceries for families in the Palatine-based district, she realized a growing number of recipients who have come to count on the weekly curbside delivery likely never imagined they would be needing such assistance.
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“We’re now well over our free and reduced numbers. ... We’re hearing from our students’ families who were fully employed, and now, both mom and dad are out of a job, and having trouble getting by week to week,” Lenihan said, adding: “I’ve gotten multiple letters and cards, and people are pulling up in cars with signs saying, ‘Thank you so much, District 211,’ which is incredible, and very emotional.”
Following the statewide school shutdown in mid-March, officials from school districts across the Chicago area wasted no time in launching meal delivery programs to ensure that students from low-income families would still have access to breakfast and lunch.
Two months later, those fledgling efforts have grown to include expansive school district-based grocery distribution programs, the majority of which are funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service.
Read the full story here. — Karen Ann Cullotta
5 a.m.: Chicago’s first lady launches ‘My Chi. My Future.’ campaign to find opportunities for city’s young people this summer and beyond
Connecting every young person in Chicago to a meaningful opportunity this summer. That’s the immediate goal of the city’s “My Chi. My Future.” initiative, which launches Saturday.
With the school year almost at an end, and the city of Chicago on pace to cautiously begin reopening in June, young people are looking for ways to stay engaged during the summer months. That’s why first lady Amy Eshleman and Deputy Mayor for Education and Human Services Dr. Sybil Madison are launching the My Chi. My Future. initiative — Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s youth-focused campaign that hopes to connect young people with opportunities geared toward their interests, and mentorship that will help them on the path to success.
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“Some communities don’t have as many of these opportunities as others, or don’t have as rich a number of opportunities as other communities. There are communities in which young people and their families are afraid — there are physical and emotional barriers in just moving around,” Madison said. And then there’s just barriers in terms of information. A big part of this effort is putting all these opportunities in one place, so it’s easier for caring adults to have the information that youth needs to connect to these opportunities."
Work on the site began last year. Lightfoot and Eshleman are announcing the launch of the “My Chi. My Future.” social media campaign during a virtual youth summit Saturday. The website was to go live the same day. Read more here. — Darcel Rockett
Connecting every young person in #Chicago to a meaningful opportunity this summer. That’s the immediate goal of the city’s “My Chi. My Future.” initiative, which launches TODAY. T-minus 5 hours! 🚀https://t.co/QJJGnnOKDT #MyCHIMyFuture @chicagosmayor https://t.co/Hfc850fkKs — First Lady Amy Eshleman (@TheChiFirstLady) May 23, 2020
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chicagotribune--2020-05-25--Coronavirus in Illinois updates: Here’s what’s happening Memorial Day weekend with COVID-19 in the C

“ Some communities don ’ t have as many of these opportunities as others , or don ’ t have @ @ @ @ @ opportunities as other communities .
There are communities in which young people and their families @ @ @ @ @ physical and emotional barriers in just moving around , ” Madison said .
And then @ @ @ @ @ in terms of information .
A big part of this effort is putting all these @ @ @ @ @ so it ’ s easier for caring adults to have the information that youth needs @ @ @ @ @ . ''


chicagotribune--2020-05-25--More than 1,000 attend drive-thru Eid celebration at suburban mosque. ‘Preserving human life comes b

More than 1,000 attend drive-thru Eid celebration at suburban mosque. ‘Preserving human life comes before preserving the religion.’

At one point , he got out of his car to greet his brother down the street from the mosque @ @ @ @ @ of about a parking space between them : It was the first Eid celebration Mohammed @ @ @ @ @ ’ t hug one another .

Bashar Kashlan waves at passing cars during drive-thru Eid al-Fitr celebrations on May 24, 2020, at the Mecca Center in Willowbrook. (Erin Hooley/Chicago Tribune)
At the beginning of Ramadan, Khawla Hammad feared the isolation amid the COVID-19 crisis would prove to be a burden spiritually, with mosques closed to the public and none of the traditional communal gatherings permitted.
Yet the 38-year-old from Chicago was surprised to find the solitude of the pandemic — along with innovative methods of connecting online or through social distancing measures — have in many ways augmented her faith and relationship with God.
Advertisement
“This gave us a chance to sit and reflect spiritually,” she said. “Just you alone with your creator.”
Hammad was one of more than a thousand local Muslims who celebrated Eid al-Fitr — the holiday marking the end of the month of Ramadan fasting — at a drive-up gathering Sunday at the Mecca Center in southwest suburban Willowbrook.
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A rainbow of colored flags and balloons decorated the mosque’s parking lot, where a line of cars paraded throughout the afternoon. Children were given cotton candy, popcorn, toys and maamoul — a buttery date-filled cookie often eaten on the holiday. Streamers and balloons were tethered to vehicle bumpers and roof racks. “Eid Mubarak!” was scrawled on passenger windows, wishing celebrants a blessed holiday.
Bashar Kashlan waves at passing cars during drive-thru Eid al-Fitr celebrations on May 24, 2020, at the Mecca Center in Willowbrook. (Erin Hooley/Chicago Tribune)
A flyer for the event instructed participants to remain inside their vehicles. Signs on the mosque entrance indicated it was closed to the public due to COVID-19.
Hussain Mohammed, 37, of southwest suburban Darien, said it was joyful to witness so many fellow Muslims celebrating together in a safe manner. At the same time, it was also a bit sad to see friends and relatives but not connect with them in the usual ways.
At one point, he got out of his car to greet his brother down the street from the mosque, while maintaining a distance of about a parking space between them: It was the first Eid celebration Mohammed could remember where they didn’t hug one another.
Mecca Center Imam Hassan Aly said he had closed the mosque to the public a few days before Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced the stay-at-home executive order in March. The decision to close the mosque was based on the advice of congregants who are physicians, after they warned that holding services could spread the highly contagious virus, Aly said.
“In Islam, protecting and preserving human life is one of the most important goals,” he said. “Protecting and preserving human life comes before preserving the religion.”
Aly cited an instance when the Prophet Muhammad is said to have encouraged followers to pray at home during a time of severe weather conditions.
Layla Fattash hands treats to people in cars during drive-thru Eid al-Fitr celebrations. (Erin Hooley/Chicago Tribune)
“Now let’s have more self-reflection and reconnection with God,” Aly said, likening the experience to prophets and messengers who had to approach their faith as individuals, before they had a full religious community available.
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The Eid festivities come a few days after President Donald Trump declared churches and other houses of worship “essential,” urging governors around the country to allow them to reopen this weekend.
Yet Aly said he will not be opening Mecca Center until medical experts deem large worship services safe. He added that the mosque would typically be filled with some 3,000 congregants during prayer services on Eid, with many of the faithful embracing one another or praying in close proximity.
“This is not safe,” he said. “Why should we take the risk?”
Aly said he hosts reflections virtually, and the mosque’s social media sites have gained followers, some from other parts of the world. Congregants have spent Ramadan making homemade masks for front-line workers and donating supplies to hospitals and first responders; the Mecca Center has also given away meals to those in need during the pandemic, turning its gym into a makeshift food pantry.
“If there is one lesson to be learned from COVID-19, it’s not to be selfish,” he said. “We have to care about each and every person in the world — and not take anything for granted.”
eleventis@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-05-25--Drive-thru Eid al-Fitr celebration at the Mecca Center

Hundreds of people attend drive-thru Eid al-Fitr celebrations on May 24 , 2020 , in their cars at the Mecca @ @ @ @ @ called the `` Festival of Breaking the Fast , '' Eid is a religious holiday @ @ @ @ @ the end of the monthlong fasting of Ramadan .

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chicagotribune--2020-05-24--With planting put off by coronavirus, Chicago Park District selling flowers to the public

Some green spaces in Chicago may still be shut down to slow the spread of the coronavirus , but some @ @ @ @ @ to take root in Chicago parks this summer are up for grabs and available to @ @ @

People walk through the Garfield Park Conservatory on March 3, 2019. Flowers from the online flower sale will be available for contactless curbside pickup at the conservatory starting Thursday. (Raquel Zaldivar/Chicago Tribune)
Some green spaces in Chicago may still be shut down to slow the spread of the coronavirus, but some of the 50,000 plants planned to take root in Chicago parks this summer are up for grabs and available to bring home.
Because of the pandemic, seasonal workers weren’t hired to plant the annual flowers, so the Chicago Park District joined with the Garfield Park Conservatory Alliance to bring the plants to the public.
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The online flower sale from the Park District is open through Wednesday and contactless curbside pickup will be available starting Thursday at the Garfield Park Conservatory, 300 N. Central Park Ave.
Many plants were already sold out as of Sunday afternoon, but some were still available, like a flat of Salvia Rockin Deep Purple or Cuphea Honeybells.
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The conservatory notes that gardening benefits include “physical activity, stress relief and beautification of your home space,” and invites the public to “take a piece of the beauty of our parks home to enjoy.”


chicagotribune--2020-05-24--Gov. J.B. Pritzker announces reopening rules for businesses as Illinois is poised to move to next ph

Gov. J.B. Pritzker announces reopening rules for businesses as Illinois is poised to move to next phase and loosen restrictions

At outdoor tables spaced 6 feet apart , Illinois residents will be able to eat and imbibe outside their homes @ @ @ @ @ of the reopening plan , served by employees who will be instructed to wear masks @ @ @ @ @ , check their temperatures before clocking in and wash their hands for 20 seconds , @ @ @ @ @ operators are being asked to do away with refilling customer beverages and instead utilize new @ @ @ @ @ using delivery trays to “ minimize hand contact .
”

With all four regions of the state as defined under Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s phased-in reopening plan slated to advance to the next stage Friday, the state rolled out detailed guidance Sunday for what precautions restaurants and bars need to have in place to be able to serve customers outdoors, how manufacturers and some offices can resume operations with restrictions and how barbers can offer those badly needed haircuts.
The industry-specific guidance the state released Sunday for the sectors of the state’s economy that will see loosened restrictions in the third phase of the governor’s plan provides a glimpse at a gradual return to normalcy after more than two months under a stay-at-home order meant to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
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But operations at the businesses that will be allowed to reopen later this week will look markedly different from they did pre-pandemic: Hair and nail salons, barbershops and spas will only be able to offer services where both the employee and customer wear face coverings over their nose and mouth.
Pritzker’s announcement of the phase three rules at a Sunday morning news conference in Springfield came hours after the Illinois General Assembly adjourned its four-day special pandemic-driven session, where lawmakers passed a maintenance-level spending plan for the budget year that begins July 1. The budget holds much state spending flat from the current year but does provide increases to some areas most affected by the pandemic.
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Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 22 Senators are allowed inside chambers 10 at a time to vote on a measure during a session at the Illinois State Capitol on May 20, 2020, in Springfield, Illinois. (Erin Hooley/Chicago Tribune)
The Democratic governor on Sunday called on Republicans “to step up here instead of simply complaining about the need that the state has” for additional federal aid, in response to their criticisms of the budget’s reliance on borrowing from the Federal Reserve and uncertain direct federal aid from Washington to close a deficit driven by pandemic-decimated revenues.
Pritzker on Sunday also called it a “complete abdication of responsibility” for lawmakers not to take up legislation with an enforcement mechanism for businesses that defy his stay-at-home order, after he withdrew last week a controversial emergency rule that would have made businesses that flout the rules subject to a misdemeanor.
“They were unwilling to vote on anything like that or they didn’t get it done and so we’re going to have to look at other mechanisms,” Pritzker said. “But the fact is I think the legislature failed in this regard.”
In the next phase of reopening, retailers can allow customers at 50% of their normal capacity or five customers per 1,000 feet of retail space, and “service counter” businesses such as dry cleaners, electronic and shoe repair shops and car washes can operate with signage displayed at the entrance notifying customers of social distancing and facial covering requirements and cleaning procedures.
Illinois Retail Merchants’ Association President and CEO Rob Karr on Sunday acknowledged that the rules the state is rolling out “present some challenges operationally."
Pritzker last week announced that restaurants would be able to offer outdoor dining service in the third phase of the plan, which has faced pushback across the state for being too strict, since it was announced earlier this month.
At outdoor tables spaced 6 feet apart, Illinois residents will be able to eat and imbibe outside their homes again during the next phase of the reopening plan, served by employees who will be instructed to wear masks over their nose and mouth, check their temperatures before clocking in and wash their hands for 20 seconds, every 30 minutes. Restaurant operators are being asked to do away with refilling customer beverages and instead utilize new glasses, and serve food using delivery trays to “minimize hand contact.”
Illinois Municipal League Executive Director Brad Cole stood with Pritzker at his Sunday news conference where he announced the new industry guidance and called it a “good first step,” but noted that many municipal officials are “hopeful that additional steps like these today can be taken again soon.”
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Local governments have largely been tasked with enforcing Pritzker’s sweeping stay-at-home order that took effect March 21, and municipal officials will continue to give the governor input to “expand and improve upon the recovery plan,” Cole said.
“We will do that with a spirit of cooperation and understanding that many local officials have been placed in a no-win position in the middle of either defying their constituents or disregarding state orders,” Cole said. “The ongoing challenge to all of us is to work together and the mutual commitment to that process is appreciated.”
Under Pritzker’s five-phase “Restore Illinois” plan to gradually reopen Illinois’ economy as it meets a range of health metrics, the four regions the plan divides the state into are all on track to enter the next phase on Friday.
The industry guidance was released as state officials Sunday announced 2,508 new known cases of COVID-19 and 67 deaths, pushing the statewide known case count to 110,304 since the pandemic began earlier this year. The statewide death toll now stands at 4,856.
Also seeing changes in phase three of the reopening plan are offices including law, accounting and architectural firms that can reopen with 50% of their normal office capacity and physical distancing and a face covering requirement for employees. Manufacturers will be able to resume operations with reconfigured work stations and more physical distance between employees.
Day camps and some noncontact youth sports practices can resume if they allow for physical distancing between participants.
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One-on-one fitness training can resume with restrictions, larger fitness classes will be allowed but only outdoors with physical spacing between people, and some outdoor recreation such as driving ranges and outdoor shooting ranges can reopen but with capacity and face covering requirements.


chicagotribune--2020-05-24--When can Illinois reopen? Check our daily charts on where each region stands.

The metrics focus on a rolling average of positive coronavirus cases and hospitalizations to keep track of the direction of @ @ @ @ @ availability of hospital beds and ventilators that would be needed to handle a possible surge @ @ @ @ @ for testing and tracing positive tests .

Chad Yoder, Nausheen Husain, Jennifer Smith Richards, Jonathon Berlin

With each of the state’s four regions in Phase 3 of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s Restore Illinois plan, the clock starts on moving on to Phase 4, where more businesses and activities are allowed. The plan to reopen Illinois — from restaurants and salons to open space to non-COVID-19 procedures at the hospital to concerts and festivals — depends on a host of metrics laid out by Pritzker.
The metrics focus on a rolling average of positive coronavirus cases and hospitalizations to keep track of the direction of the outbreak as well as availability of hospital beds and ventilators that would be needed to handle a possible surge. There are also benchmarks for testing and tracing positive tests.
[ COVID-19 cases in Illinois by ZIP code: Search for your neighborhood ]
A key element of the plan is that a region can move both forward and backward, where more parts of society can open and shut depending on the seriousness of the outbreak.
Here is a breakdown of where each region stands.


chicagotribune--2020-05-24--COVID-19 cases in Illinois by ZIP code: Search for your neighborhood

Search below by street address , ZIP code or city , then click on the map to see the number @ @ @ @ @ state is not providing data for any ZIP code with five cases or fewer .

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.
Illinois releases the number of positive COVID-19 cases by ZIP code daily. The map below shows the cumulative cases for each area as well as other analysis of the data.
• Check out the Tribune’s coronavirus coverage.
• Tracking daily Illinois coronavirus deaths, cases and tests.
Search below by street address, ZIP code or city, then click on the map to see the number of confirmed and probable cases. The state is not providing data for any ZIP code with five cases or fewer.
Data as of June 10.
The map search tool above works best in Chrome or Firefox and may not perform consistently in Internet Explorer.
Note: Because of a coding error this map was displaying the incorrect rates for new cases in the last 7 days per 100,000 people — the issue should now be resolved.. The Tribune adjusted the data shown on the map below to focus on new cases, those the state tracked in the last 7 seven days. The totals for the entire pandemic are still available, but in the pop-up after tapping or clicking on a ZIP.


chicagotribune--2020-05-24--Tracking Illinois coronavirus: 4,856 deaths, 110,304 confirmed cases, 747,921 tests,  36% ICU beds a

Tracking Illinois coronavirus: 4,856 deaths, 110,304 confirmed cases, 747,921 tests,  36% ICU beds and 68% ventilators open

As the coronavirus spreads and local , state and national governments work to contain and mitigate the outbreak , the @ @ @ @ @ .

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--2020-05-24--Sunny skies, temps in the 80s follow severe weather and flash flooding on Saturday

This is the second weekend in a row that the Chicago region was pummeled by heavy rains , which flooded @ @ @ @ @ the area .
The record for precipitation in May was already broken earlier this month @ @ @ @ @ only added to the totals , Birk said .

Sabine Beechum adjusts a balloon as she celebrates her 6th birthday with friends and family driving past her Hyde Park home in Chicago on Memorial Day, May 25, 2020. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)
The Chicago area can look forward to sunny skies and high temperatures in the mid-80s for the rest of the weekend — a respite after flash flooding and severe weather Saturday, which included heavy wind damage and a few tornadoes briefly touching down in some of the collar counties.
Sunday is forecast to be the warmest day of the year so far, with humid conditions and highs generally reaching the mid-80s, though temperatures will likely be a bit lower closer to Lake Michigan, according to the National Weather Service.
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“Pretty much expect some of our warmest conditions today,” said Kevin Birk, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
The beautiful weather is expected to continue on Memorial Day; while meteorologists say there could be a few scattered showers across the region, Monday will likely be mostly sunny with high temperatures in the mid-80s as well.
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This is the second weekend in a row that the Chicago region was pummeled by heavy rains, which flooded basements and damaged infrastructure across the area. The record for precipitation in May was already broken earlier this month — the torrential downpour Saturday only added to the totals, Birk said.
Just over a half-inch of rain was reported at O’Hare International Airport on Saturday, bringing the month-to-date total to a little over 9 inches of rain; in 2019, 8.25 inches of rain was recorded at O’Hare in May.
This is the third year in a row that the Chicago area has had record-setting precipitation in May, according to the weather service.
By Saturday afternoon, storms and downpours hit most of the Chicago region, with some of the worst flash flooding reported in southern Cook County and northwest Indiana. The southwest suburban Joliet area also suffered straight-line wind damage as well, the weather service said.
At least two tornadoes briefly touched down in the collar counties: One was reported northwest of Hampshire in Kane County, another was in Minooka near the borders of Kendall County, Grundy County and Will County, according to the weather service.
Hail as large as an inch in diameter was reported farther south in Kankakee and Pontiac.
“What’s really been out of the ordinary is just the amount of rain we’ve had in the month of May — we’re up to 9 inches, which is really record rain,” Birk said.
eleventis@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-05-24--Court documents: 2nd man charged in 2019 deaths of two Lake County teens during drug deal

“ I want to commend the work of our Criminal Investigations Division and the Prosecutor ’ s Office for working @ @ @ @ @ this tragedy , ” Sheriff David Reynolds said in the release .
“ I also @ @ @ @ @ sincere condolences to the families of Thomas Grill and Molley Lanham .
Please continue to @ @ @ @ @ and prayers .
”

Texts about a drug deal and discussion in the car on the way there about robbing and killing two Lake County teens preceded their murders last year, according to charging documents for a second suspect arrested in the case.
John Silva II, 19, of Hamlet, was charged Friday with two counts of murder in the perpetration of a robbery in the Feb. 25, 2019, deaths of Thomas Grill, 18, of Cedar Lake, and Molley Lanham, 19, of St. John.
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Thomas Grill, 18, of Cedar Lake and Molley Lanham, 19, of St. John. (Provided by St. John Police)
Connor Kerner, 19, of the 100 block of Kinsale, Valparaiso, remains at the Porter County Jail without bond. He has been charged with two counts of murder and additional felony counts of intimidation and arson in the case. Kerner, arrested in the days after the alleged crimes, has pleaded not guilty and is scheduled for a change of venue hearing at 10 a.m. June 3 before Porter Superior Court Judge Roger Bradford.
Detectives with the Porter County Sheriff’s Department arrested Silva and took him into custody Friday, according to a release from the sheriff’s department. No initial hearing has been set.
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“I want to commend the work of our Criminal Investigations Division and the Prosecutor’s Office for working tirelessly since we learned of this tragedy,” Sheriff David Reynolds said in the release. “I also again want to send my sincere condolences to the families of Thomas Grill and Molley Lanham. Please continue to keep them in your thoughts and prayers.”
According to court documents, video surveillance at Valparaiso High School captured Silva and Kerner leaving the building at 10:16 a.m. on Feb. 25, 2019, after exchanging texts on an encrypted message app about what appears to be a drug deal.
Connor Kerner (Porter County Sheriffs Dept. / P / Chicago Tribune)
“He wants to trade me a lot of wax and pens for the packs so whatever cash he doesn’t have on him we’re gonna have to move some product today,” Kerner reportedly texted to Silva, using the name “bodabodadro.”
After Kerner goes on to say that he’ll give Silva “all the prepacks and slabs,” Silva, using the name “jsilva2626,” responds, “that’s perfect. i have sooo much sales already, as long as we get at least 10k.”
Silva, according to the documents, initially denied being present during the murders but later agreed to speak with investigators. He told police he and Kerner left the high school in Kerner’s Jeep Grand Cherokee and traveled to Kerner’s grandparent’s house in Hebron to meet with Grill and Lanham.
Kerner and his mother were staying at his grandparents’ home to care for their dog while they were out of town, documents said.
Two informants told police that Silva told them that in the car ride to Hebron, “Kerner was fixated on robbing ‘them’ and wanted Silva to kill ‘them,” documents said. Kerner played the song “Last Memory” and told Silva, “this is going to be that kid’s last memory,” according to the charges.
Silva told police he turned off his location services on his cellphone settings when he and Kerner got in the Jeep to go to Hebron, documents said.
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“Silva stated he observed Kerner retrieve a black handgun from the Jeep’s glove compartment before they entered the house,” documents state.
Silva took a seat in the basement and a short time later, he heard Kerner meeting with two people upstairs, documents said.
“Silva then stated that he heard six shots and Connor Kerner called for him, saying, ‘John, John,’” documents state.
Silva ran upstairs and entered the garage, where he saw Lanham lying motionless face down. He saw Grill near the man door to the garage, lying face down but still alive and making noises.
“Silva stated that Kerner gave him microfiber towels to start wiping up blood, which he did. He advised that he observed Kerner grab a wrench and his back swing prior to striking Thomas (Grill),” documents state.
Kerner loaded the bodies into a Honda Civic that belonged to Lanham’s stepfather, Silva told police, while he placed the bloody towels in a white trash bag. Kerner handed him the gun, and Silva wrapped it in the towel and placed it in the trash bag with the bloody towels, documents state.
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Silva took the trash bag to the Jeep and noticed blood on his sleeve cuffs and his shoe and waited in the Jeep until Kerner joined him and the left, documents state.
Before Kerner dropped him off, Silva saw him with another gun, initially described as a “CZ9” handgun, which he told investigators he hadn’t seen before.
Kerner’s grandfather told police that when he returned from out of town, he noticed that his CZ9 9mm handgun was missing and that Kerner said he had it and planned to do some target shooting, documents state. The grandfather drove to Kerner’s house and retrieved the gun.
Charging documents state that the Indiana State Police lab determined Silva’s DNA profile is present on that gun.
Kerner burned the Honda Civic in a wooded area not far from his grandparents’ home, court documents have said, and later told an informant about the crime, as well as showing her the wooded area where the car was. She later reported the murders to police.
Amy Lavalley is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.


chicagotribune--2020-05-24--In historic pandemic-driven special session, Illinois lawmakers pass budget and clear path for Chica

In historic pandemic-driven special session, Illinois lawmakers pass budget and clear path for Chicago casino

“ We don ’ t know when or if discussions ( in Washington ) will come to fruition .
We @ @ @ @ @ or how much , if they do come to fruition , will come to Illinois @ @ @ @ @ t know when that happens if we would be physically able to return to Springfield @ @ @ @ @ decided to take no further action today , ” Harris said of the dependence on @ @

Illinois Senate Republican Leader Bill Brady, R-Bloomington, stands with Senate Republicans during a news conference on May 22, 2020, outside the Illinois State Capitol in Springfield, as they called for a longer session to deal with more issues. (Justin L. Fowler/The State Journal-Register)
The Illinois legislature’s historic pandemic-driven special session ended in overtime early Sunday morning after lawmakers approved a maintenance-level $40 billion state budget that depends heavily on federal funds and made another effort to get a Chicago casino off the ground.
Both the House and the Senate on Saturday passed a bill that would revamp the tax structure for a Chicago casino, a step toward overcoming what has been seen as a key obstacle to getting one built. Mayor Lori Lightfoot has long pushed for tax changes, and the House vote was the furthest her proposal has gotten in the General Assembly.
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The measure now goes to Gov. J.B. Pritzker, who has pledged to sign it when it reaches his desk.
A Chicago casino is seen as key to the $45 billion capital bill the legislature passed last year.
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“This is good for everyone for jobs and development — having a Chicago casino be real," Blue Island Democratic Rep. Bob Rita, the bill’s sponsor, said.
[ Illinois legislators pass bill sought by Mayor Lori Lightfoot that could bring Chicago casino closer to reality ]
The Senate early Sunday joined with the House to pass a budget plan that would maintain funding for many parts of state government from the current budget, except for health care agencies significantly impacted by the pandemic, despite Republican complaints that it ceded too much legislative authority to the state’s Democratic chief executive.
“The budget the General Assembly has sent to my desk today recognizes that massive economic disruption leads to difficult decisions,” Pritzker said in a statement. “This budget begins to address the financial upheaval we are facing, but more hard choices about how to spend and save these dollars wisely remain to be made.
House Majority Leader Greg Harris, a Chicago Democrat, characterized the budget as representative of “a series of tough choices” that resulted in a combination of “working with the Federal Reserve and setting ourselves on a path to a slow, sustainable return to some fiscal normalcy.”
“Our state has been ravaged by the pandemic, just like our nation,” Harris said. “People are struggling, families are struggling, local governments are struggling, our schools are struggling. And yes, we as the state are struggling too.”
The 68-44 House vote was largely along party lines.
In the Senate, the budget passed by a 37-19 vote and was opposed by all Republicans, who objected to a small increase in state spending at a time full of fiscal uncertainty.
[ Illinois lawmakers send Gov. J.B. Pritzker $40 billion maintenance budget that relies heavily on federal funding ]
Sen. Dale Righter of Mattoon said he appreciated that the budget doesn’t count on any revenue from the proposed graduated-rate income tax, which voters will have their say on in November. But he noted outstanding questions about what other revenues will look like in the coming months and called it "an enormous gamble as we stand here on May 23.”
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Democratic Sen. Andy Manar of Bunker Hill, a lead budget negotiator, said it was the wrong time to make cuts.
“We made a choice not to present a budget to this chamber that slashes the state budget at a time when we’re dealing with a global pandemic,” Manar said shortly before the vote was taken. “That was our choice. That was a simple choice for me because the last thing we need to be doing is cutting public health programs, cutting health care programs, cutting school funding, cutting programs for small businesses, or cutting pensions or laying off state employees.”
The proposal would give Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker sweeping authority to move agency operating funds around and to put a hold on some spending as a contingency.
The plan counts on up to $5 billion in loans from the Federal Reserve that would be repaid with anticipated but still uncertain direct federal aid from Washington. The state also is hoping to get flexibility on how it spends $3.5 billion in federal coronavirus relief funding it has already received.
Harris called the borrowing a “line of credit” until Congress overcomes differences between Democrats and Republicans and approves a new coronavirus relief bill to assist states and local governments.
“We don’t know when or if discussions (in Washington) will come to fruition. We don’t know when or how much, if they do come to fruition, will come to Illinois. And we don’t know when that happens if we would be physically able to return to Springfield to reappropriate monies if we decided to take no further action today,” Harris said of the dependence on borrowing.
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But Rep. Tom Demmer of Dixon, the Republican’s budget spokesman, said the Democratic-led spending plan wrongly relied upon hopes from Washington.
“What we’ve heard today is a budget that is balanced only on a wing and a prayer. It relies on $5 billion in borrowing or magical revenue that comes from the federal government with no strings attached,” Demmer said. “We also see unprecedented levels of authority over Illinois taxpayer dollars being granted to one person, being ceded from the legislature to the governor through emergency rule, through appropriations that well exceed the amount of money that’s been currently received.”
The budget appropriation for the General Assembly would not fund previously scheduled cost-of-living pay increases for legislators, Democrats said.
The spending plan also would not provide local school districts with the $350 million increase in state aid that was promised as part of a major rewrite of the formula used to distribute state aid in 2018. Districts would instead receive the same amount they got this year. Universities also would be funded at the current level.
Agencies dealing with public health and welfare, particularly affected by trying to deal with the pandemic, would receive funding increases.
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The Department of Human Services would get $683 million, a 6% increase, to allow for hiring 300 new caseworkers to process Medicaid eligibility claims. The state estimates that due to large unemployment, anywhere from 200,000 to 1 million new people could become eligible for the state-federal taxpayer subsidized health care.
The Illinois Department of Public Health would see an overall budget of $1.6 billion, up 144% primarily due to federal coronavirus funding. The figure includes $416 million in federal funds for increased testing for the coronavirus and related services.
The Department of Children and Family Services would get a 20% increase in state funding, bringing its overall state-funds budget to more than $1 billion. The funds include hiring 123 more investigators and to provide rate increases to providers. Funding for foster care would increase by $80 million due to an expected increase in caseload.
The spending plan would make the state’s statutory required contribution to Illinois’ massively underfunded public employee pension systems at a cost of more than $9 billion. The amount includes $266.8 million as a state share to the Chicago Teachers’ Pension Fund.
After lawmakers last year approved a massive gambling expansion that authorized six new casinos across the state and legalized sports wagering, a study found that the tax structure for the Chicago casino, which is higher than for the other casinos in the state, could make it difficult to attract investors.
In addition to a new tax structure for the casino, the legislation passed by both chambers would extend from two to six years the amount of time casino owners would have to make a reconciliation payment, another change Lightfoot has pushed.
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The legislation also delays by a year, until July 1, 2021, the time by which gaming applicants must pay license fees.
The coronavirus pandemic is driving that change, which is intended to help existing casinos in the state that have been closed and “would be very helpful for them in terms of how they’re going to reopen,” Rita said.
“We still don’t know what that looks like, when they’ll be able to reopen and how they will be able to reopen — whether it be able to fill a blackjack table with six players or three or with social distancing. So they’re going to have some changes in how they operate.”
Springfield Republican Rep. Tim Butler called the Chicago casino “tremendously important” for the whole state because of its role in funding part of a massive statewide construction plan lawmakers approved last year.
The changes for the city casino would send an estimated $500 million in annual revenue to the state for the statewide infrastructure program, Rita said.
Revenue from the casino allocated to building projects under the state’s “Rebuild Illinois” infrastructure plan was one of the sticking points for lawmakers last fall. Along with concerns the legislation amounted to a “special deal” for Chicago, the revenue issue kept the legislation Lightfoot wanted from passing.
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The city’s share of the casino revenue would be dedicated to underfunded police and fire pensions
The legislation also includes technical changes for the casino in Danville in relation to gambling on the state fairgrounds in both Springfield and Du Quoin.
Late Saturday, legislators overwhelmingly approved a measure aimed at helping bars and restaurants who’ve been forced to close for dine-in service during the pandemic.
The bill would allow establishments to sell cocktails for pickup and delivery in sealed containers. Third-party services like Grubhub and DoorDash would be prohibited from making cocktail deliveries.
The measure, which was approved unanimously in the Senate and by a 104-6 margin in the House, also extends liquor licenses for 120 days and delays license fees for six months after restaurants and bars are allowed to reopen to the public. It would take effect immediately upon the governor’s signature and expire in one year.
“This will allow people to maintain jobs, and it’s a lifeline to the bars and restaurants, our beloved bars and restaurants,” said Rep. Lindsey LaPointe, a Chicago Democrat.
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Lawmakers also approved a measure that would create a “Restore Illinois Collaborative Commission,” a panel of eight Democrats and six Republicans, to provide “input on plans to revive the state’s economy” with an initial report due in July.
Republicans had pushed for more oversight over Pritzker’s phased-in plans to reopen the state’s economy, including an up-or-down vote, and deemed the commission idea as too weak for a co-equal branch of government.
Republican Sen. Jason Barickman of Bloomington said the more than two dozen executive orders Pritzker has issued since his coronavirus disaster proclamation have touched on every aspect of life for Illinois residents without sufficient input from the legislature.
The oversight commission created in the legislation approved Saturday “falls wildly short of those expectations that my constituents have for this body,” Barickman said.
“Let’s demand that this governor work with us as a body, demonstrating mutual respect for the two co-equal branches of government, so that we can work together with him to solve the many problems that face our communities and our people in our state,” he said.
The bill’s sponsor, Democratic Sen. Elgie Sims of Chicago, encouraged Barickman to seek one of his party’s appointments to the panel
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chicagotribune--2020-05-24--Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan wins latest round in suit alleging sham candidates


chicagotribune--2020-05-23--1 dead, 6 wounded since Friday afternoon as Memorial Day weekend starts

Police said shortly before 11:30 p.m. Friday , the victim was found unresponsive and lying on a sidewalk with gunshot @ @ @ @ @ lower body .
He was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center , where @ @ @ @ @ There were no witnesses to that fatal shooting , police said .

A 15-year-old boy was among seven people wounded including one man who was killed during shootings on the South and West sides since the Memorial Day weekend started Friday afternoon in Chicago, police said.
The boy was shot shortly after 12:45 a.m. Saturday in the 7100 block of South Exchange Avenue in the South Shore neighborhood. A 15-year-old boy was arguing with a driver of a blue SUV who exited his vehicle and opened fire, striking the boy in the face, chest and abdomen, police said.
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The boy was taken to Comer Children’s Hospital, police said.
Earlier Friday night, a 41-year-old man was fatally wounded in the West Englewood neighborhood in the 5600 block of South Paulina Street.
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Police said shortly before 11:30 p.m. Friday, the victim was found unresponsive and lying on a sidewalk with gunshot wounds to the upper and lower body. He was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. There were no witnesses to that fatal shooting, police said.
The slain man was identified as Tobias McNeal, 41, who lived in the same block where he was killed, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office.
In other shootings:
About 1:45 a.m. Saturday, a 33-year-old man was shot in the Austin neighborhood in the 600 block of North Lockwood Avenue. Police said he was standing outside when an argument ensued with someone in a passing black sedan who fired shots at the man, striking him in the abdomen. He was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was listed in fair condition, police said.
About 1:20 a.m., a 37-year-old man was shot in the Parkway Gardens neighborhood in the 6400 block of South King Drive. Police said the man was arguing with three unknown males when one of them took out a gun and opened fire, grazing the man’s head and striking him in the lower back. He was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he was listed in fair condition, police said.
Shortly after midnight, a 30-year-old man was shot in the 400 block of East 61st Street in the West Woodlawn neighborhood. The man was driving when he heard shots and felt pain in an ankle. He was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center in good condition, police said.
About 9:15 p.m., a 21-year-old man was shot in the Park Manor neighborhood in the 7100 block of South State Street. The man was exiting a vehicle when he heard shots then felt pain in his pelvis area. He was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he was listed in fair condition, police said.
About 4:20 p.m. Friday, a 22-year-old man was shot during a narcotics-related transaction in the South Shore neighborhood in the 2500 block of East 79th Street. An argument started, and the victim was shot in the right shoulder. He was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where his condition was stabilized, police said.
No one was in custody, and detectives were investigating.
Note: This story was updated on May 24th, 2020 to reflect the 15-year-old had not died.


chicagotribune--2020-05-25--Daywatch: Pritzker announces reopening rules for businesses, an exclusive look at Cook County Hospit

Daywatch: Pritzker announces reopening rules for businesses, an exclusive look at Cook County Hospital and more than 1,000 attend drive-thru Eid celebration

With all four regions of the state as defined under Gov .
J.B. Pritzker ’ s phased-in reopening plan slated @ @ @ @ @ stage Friday , the state rolled out detailed guidance Sunday for what precautions restaurants and @ @ @ @ @ place to be able to serve customers outdoors , how manufacturers and some offices can @ @ @ @ @ how barbers can offer those badly needed haircuts .

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Good morning, Chicago. Here’s the coronavirus news and other top stories you need to know to start your day.
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Curious about what restaurants will look like when they reopen? Find out in this week’s Food & Dining newsletter. Sign up today.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker speaks during a coronavirus pandemic briefing at the Illinois State Capitol on May 20, 2020, in Springfield. (Erin Hooley/Chicago Tribune)
With all four regions of the state as defined under Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s phased-in reopening plan slated to advance to the next stage Friday, the state rolled out detailed guidance Sunday for what precautions restaurants and bars need to have in place to be able to serve customers outdoors, how manufacturers and some offices can resume operations with restrictions and how barbers can offer those badly needed haircuts.
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The industry-specific guidance the state released Sunday for the sectors of the state’s economy that will see loosened restrictions in the third phase of the governor’s plan provides a glimpse at a gradual return to normalcy after more than two months under a stay-at-home order meant to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
Illinois Senate Republican Leader Bill Brady, R-Bloomington, stands with Senate Republicans during a news conference on May 22, 2020, outside the Illinois State Capitol in Springfield, as they called for a longer session to deal with more issues. (Justin L. Fowler/The State Journal-Register)
The Illinois legislature’s historic pandemic-driven special session ended in overtime early Sunday morning after lawmakers approved a maintenance-level $40 billion state budget that depends heavily on federal funds and made another effort to get a Chicago casino off the ground.
Rocio Acuna inspects a flooded area adjacent to her home on Hawthrone Lane in Des Plaines after a huge amount of rain fell over the course of a couple days on May 20, 2020. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)
The record-setting spring rains that pummeled the Chicago region this May overwhelmed northern Illinois rivers, knocked out power to Willis Tower, filled Lake Michigan to the brim and forced thousands of residents to tackle soaked basements, muck-covered yards and damaged foundations.
The exterior of the former Cook County Hospital in Chicago on May 21, 2020. The hospital, originally completed in 1916, has been converted into a Hyatt House hotel and an extended-stay Hyatt House, food hall and a medical office. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
The renovation and reinvention of the old Cook County Hospital is a triumph of historic preservation, one that should resonate far beyond the walls of the beloved Beaux-Arts landmark on Chicago’s Near West Side, writes Tribune architecture critic, Blair Kamin.
Bashar Kashlan waves at passing cars during drive-thru Eid al-Fitr celebrations on May 24, 2020, at the Mecca Center in Willowbrook. (Erin Hooley/Chicago Tribune)
More than a thousand local Muslims celebrated Eid al-Fitr — the holiday marking the end of the month of Ramadan fasting — at a drive-up gathering Sunday at the Mecca Center in southwest suburban Willowbrook.


chicagotribune--2020-05-25--His daily ‘Dad jokes’ in Edgewater have become followed, demanded by neighbors, and pandemic therapy

His daily ‘Dad jokes’ in Edgewater have become followed, demanded by neighbors, and pandemic therapy for him

“ It became very important for me , ” Bernstein says .
A few weeks ago , he was having @ @ @ @ @ and “ I saw someone pass by and laugh from the joke , ” he @ @ @ @ @ such a wonderful pick-up for me .
You see how simple it is to make @ @ @ @ @ that really made me feel better .
”

The morning this story was reported, a sign appeared in an Edgewater window.
“The future, the present and the past walked into a bar,” it said. “Things got a little tense.”
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Above it was the line, “Dad joke of the day #29.”
It was, indeed, the 29th in a daily series of broad puns, quick quips and unapologetic groaners, a kind of pandemic diary told through deliberately mild humor of the sort commonly — and, some say, unfairly! — attributed to male parents.
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“How does Moses make coffee?” asked a recent one. “He brews it.”
“What do you call a cow with no legs?” wondered No. 10. “Ground beef.”
People who walk by pause to read the jokes, a fact excitedly reported in the condo behind the window by the 5-year-old girl who gives the joke poster his paternal status.
“When she sees someone, she runs to me, says, ‘Someone is looking at it,’” says the girl’s dad, Yair Bernstein.
Yair Bernstein, seen outside his Chicago apartment, writes out a dad joke each morning and tapes it up in his window for passersby to see. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
When a dad joke stays up for a few days, like over weekends, there is a clamoring from the public out on Rosemont Street.
“I’ve heard people yelling in, ‘Hey, Joke Dad, put up some more jokes,’” says upstairs neighbor Kathleen Rooney, a DePaul creative writing professor and ardent dad-joke-of-the-day fan. “He appears to have a following.”
Since the COVID-19 pandemic became apparent here and the state and much of the country went on lockdown, we have witnessed responses from the stirring to the mortifying. We have made noise for nurses and shared grim pictures of maskless people crowding into re-opened bars.
And some of us, lucky enough to take walks in inspired neighborhoods, have found solace, even inspiration, in small gestures like a child’s hopeful chalk art or in new rituals to replace the ones that are sidelined.
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Bernstein’s motivation was exactly that, he says, a hope that he might create a positive version of the butterfly effect.
He’s been trading such quips for a couple of years with a colleague at work, at Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School in Lakeview, where he teaches Hebrew and Jewish studies to middle schoolers.
Bernstein's pandemic-era dad joke for Thursday, May 21, 2020. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
And as the routine of staying at home and teaching from home evolved, that colleague, school executive assistant Susan Custer, told Bernstein she was going to post daily jokes in her yard.
“I thought, well, I can do that from my window. I thought, well, this is something maybe some people will like,” he says. “I keep telling my kids, my students, that making a positive change is very simple. People think you need to have a plan and you need to raise money.
"A small act of kindness or a small gesture of just making someone feel better can change the course of that person’s day and affect many more threads of life. So if someone reads this joke, and they laugh, and then they smile to the person on the other side of the street, that makes them feel better.
“And then when they go into their car, they drive more carefully, and they let someone pass them. And then that person goes home and he feels better because someone treated him very nicely, and he comes home and gives the kids a wonderful big hug.
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“So I think it’s so simple to make these tiny movements that have a big ripple effect.”
That whole chain of good cheer, recall, began with a joke about a legless cow.
Posting each weekday morning as part of his breakfast routine, Bernstein is drawn to the form in part, he says, because he is not a native English speaker, having moved here from Israel mid-decade.
“So I notice things like that,” he says. “I notice phrases. I first hear them literally. Or I hear words that sound like other words.”
He is not making them up himself, he is quick to point out, a fact you might gather from the quotation marks he puts around the jokes. There’s a dad joke app he culls from and a Twitter account with dad jokes, plus “things I’ve heard in the past,” he says.
“I usually look for things that are not too sophisticated and also that are not too long to read,” says Bernstein, 38, the father of the 5-year-old and also a 2-year-old daughter. “I like things that are kind of like, um, stupid. Like, ‘I was wondering why the Frisbee was getting bigger. Then it hit me.’ That was No. 5.”
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Scrawled out in handwriting that is, let’s say, not wedding-invitation caliber, his first posting, he says, was about formerly being addicted to the hokey pokey, “but now I’ve turned myself around.”
Rooney, the neighbor, says she noticed and began enjoying the efforts right away. She posted a picture of the third joke to her Twitter account, attributing it to “Garden Unit Dad.”
That joke: “Two satellites decided to get married. The wedding wasn’t much, but the reception was incredible.”
Garden Unit Dad with some grammar humor pic.twitter.com/t0yMiKshau — Kathleen Rooney (@KathleenMRooney) May 20, 2020
“At that point, I wasn’t as much of a completist, I think,” she says. No. 10, however, the ground beef joke, set the hook, and she began sharing Bernstein’s dad jokes daily with her Twitter followers.
“That is my favorite one because it’s so terrible in the best way,” says Rooney. “Auden described poetry as ‘memorable speech.’ Jokes are also memorable speech. Part of why I tweet them is I want to remember them. I want to tell them to someone else.”
She and her husband, the writer Martin Seay, go out of their way to check the Bernstein window on their daily walks, and they’ve noticed others doing the same.
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“I think people have really appreciated him, to the extent that this past weekend he had to put up a sign saying he was taking a break” and would be back on Monday, she says.
What does it all mean? If only there were a college English professor, poet and soon-to-be three-time novelist (“Cher Ami and Major Whittlesey,” out in August) who’s had some time to form an opinion.
“I’ve been thinking a lot about this,” says Rooney. “I think a lot of neighborhoods have this kind of DIY public art that’s been cropping up, the signs in the windows, the chalk art, things like that. The reason Yair’s stands out to me is it’s not a one-time thing, and it has this serial daily nature.
“And to me he’s especially resonant because in a pandemic, the things we have to concretely look forward to have been dramatically reduced. We don’t know if we can even go to school in the fall, let along go to a party or visit a grandma.
“I think Yair, by numbering them and making that a part of his process, is really uplifting people by giving them something small and silly and delightful to look forward to.”
Custer, the joke-loving colleague of Bernstein’s, is doing the same thing in her Jefferson Park neighborhood, she says, although she puts hers up on lawn signs and, as a single mom, doesn’t call them “dad jokes.”
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“Once stuck at home, it was really hard to distinguish days and hard to think of a reason to get out of bed in the morning,” Custer says via email.
But she remembered the weekly jokes she used to post by the candy jar in the school office, and now she and her 12-year-old daughter collaborate on the content and artwork for their Joke of the Day signs.
This was their Day 26: “How do you organize a space party? You planet.”
“I started an instagram account for @JokesOnAustin to share with my out-of-town friends,” says Custer. “People have been very positive about it and neighbors stop to enjoy them.”
Bernstein says his 5-year-old tries to help out with the jokes, too. Although she doesn’t really get them yet, he recently heard her giving a question-and-answer in a recognizable pattern that mimicked the structure of a dad joke.
With a month of daily publication under his belt, he’s been thinking a lot about what makes a dad joke, he says: “There has to be some kind of play on words there. They have to be short, they can’t be stories. And they can’t be something that makes you laugh out loud. If they make you laugh too much, you move it to the regular joke section. It’s something that is more fun than funny.”
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But, again, not only that. When Bernstein began he thought he was doing something for his students, his neighbors, for the world at large.
As the routine has settled in, though, he’s realized it isn’t just for others.
“It became very important for me,” Bernstein says. A few weeks ago, he was having a very tough day, and “I saw someone pass by and laugh from the joke,” he remembers. “That was such a wonderful pick-up for me. You see how simple it is to make people feel better, and that really made me feel better.”
Despite his thoughts about the simplicity of the form, one of his personal favorites, dad joke of the day No. 27, is kind of next-level: “I did a theatrical performance on puns. It was a play on words.”
“I’ll be corny,” says Rooney. “The best medicine is medicine. But laughter is good medicine, and it helps.”
sajohnson@chicagotribune.com
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Twitter @StevenKJohnson


chicagotribune--2020-05-25--Column: Nothing divides America more than tossing politics into a heated religious debate

There is an inherent danger in allowing politicians to take over a religious movement .
It gives someone like Trump @ @ @ @ @ to be particularly religious , to score points with those who are .
Trump saw @ @ @ @ @ on the side of church people , who likely have not supported him in the @ @ @ @ @ over .

Members of the congregation stand during a service May 17, 2020, at the Metro Praise International Church in Chicago. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)
Since the founding of America, religion has been at the center of many of the most contentious conflicts our nation has encountered. We should have known it would be only a matter of time before the church was inserted into the coronavirus pandemic.
Throughout history, religion has brought us together when our survival as a nation was under siege. But just as often, it has ripped us apart when politicians sought to use it to justify selfish deeds.
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The unholy alliance between religion and politics is an effective tool in creating discord, dissension and division. That’s why politicians find it so appealing.
The debate over whether churches should be included as essential businesses that are allowed to reopen during the pandemic began before Donald Trump officially entered the fray on Friday. But like everything he touches, the focus is now all about him.
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In Illinois and other states, churches have filed lawsuits to force governors to exclude churches from stay-at-home orders and allow them to hold in-person services. Across the country, several churches of various faiths and denominations have united in a call to keep the government away from religion and allow people to practice their faith during the statewide shutdowns.
Any other time, it would be a worthy debate. But in the midst of a pandemic, the push to reopen churches seems like a hypocritical demand by those who use the Bible as a guide for how they should treat the weakest and most vulnerable. Most parishioners realize that congregating at this stage would be both risky and selfish.
The church service is as much about socializing as it is spiritual rejuvenation. If that were not the case, online services would sufficient. The ritual of the Sunday service is rooted in the practice of fellowship, in which parishioners draw upon each other for emotional support in times of sorrow and despair.
It makes sense that they would long for that structure now that the coronavirus has taken away everything familiar and made the future uncertain. But the religious rights of some should not outweigh the health and safety of others.
The argument is legally complex, and even the courts don’t always agree. Last week, Trump gave churches an opening to defy state orders by offering blanket immunity he does not clearly have the authority to give.
“Today I am identifying houses of worship — churches, synagogue and mosques — as essential places that provide essential services,” he said during a White House briefing. “Some governors have deemed liquor stores and abortion clinics as essential but have left out churches and other houses of worship. It’s not right.”
That statement was not meant to calm the anxiety of churchgoing people who congregate to bring order and purpose to their lives. Those were fighting words, designed to force unsuspecting God-fearing people into a standoff with state officials who refuse to bow to Trump’s wishes.
The comments drew a solid line of demarcation between church people and the mostly Democratic governors who ordered the closures. But it also put churches on the front line of the politically polarizing argument over whether the country is ready to fully reopen so that the economy can begin to revitalize.
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If Christians, Jews, Muslims and other religious groups are not careful, they will become pawns in Trump’s ongoing mission to stamp out anyone who dares to oppose him. He will fuel the rising fever of discontent to the point where the fight is no longer about religious freedom but rather his self-serving personal agenda.
Those who sincerely believe that requiring church to remain closed as other businesses begin to reopen is a violation of the First Amendment should tell Trump to butt out. Though they might ultimately lose a legal appeal, their argument is much more compelling without the partisan politics he brings to it.
There is an inherent danger in allowing politicians to take over a religious movement. It gives someone like Trump, who never has appeared to be particularly religious, to score points with those who are. Trump saw a chance to line up on the side of church people, who likely have not supported him in the past, and win them over.
Most will not be fooled. In the case of Trump, it’s important to take note of what Pope Francis said during the 2016 presidential campaign.
“A person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian,” he said.
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Indeed, Trump has said and done many things in his presidency that violate the moral standards of people of all religious backgrounds. Yet some have chosen to overlook those flaws.
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Evangelical Christians, for example, are a substantial part of his base. His appointment of ultraconservative judges and support for their anti-abortion stance has allowed them to turn a blind eye when he violates their tenets of faith. That doesn’t mean that other religious groups will do the same.
It is interesting that Trump included Muslims in his statement. His overt contempt for Islam was an integral part of his election strategy and the Muslim travel ban became a cornerstone of his first year in office. Only now is it convenient to include Muslims in his devious appeal for religious rights.
Make no mistake. Trump is an opportunist. The sole purpose of his remarks was to get people moving about before the November election. He doesn’t care how many people die by filling up the pews. He would have had people return to church by Easter if wiser voices had not prevailed. For him, reelection is all that matters.
Religion crosses every racial and ethnic line. It transcends blue states and red states. Right now, it is the most lethal weapon Trump has to further divide us when the health of our nation depends on us standing together.
dglanton@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @dahleeng


chicagotribune--2020-05-25--Man found dead in West Side house fire

Man found dead in West Side house fire

The fire occurred about 12:30 a.m. in the 3900 block of West Fillmore Street in the Lawndale neighborhood on the @ @ @ @ @ .
Five others were in the residence at the time of the fire and were @ @ @ @ @ injuries .

A 35-year-old man was found dead in the basement of a residence early Monday after authorities responded to a fire, according to Chicago police.
The fire occurred about 12:30 a.m. in the 3900 block of West Fillmore Street in the Lawndale neighborhood on the West Side, police said. Five others were in the residence at the time of the fire and were able to get out without injuries.
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The cause of the fire is not yet know, police said.
Check back for updates.
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pfry@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @paigexfry


chicagotribune--2020-05-25--2 Chicago police officers injured while dispersing crowd in Englewood

Afterward , shots were fired nearby and a second man was taken into custody , police said .
A handgun @ @ @ @ @ incident , two officers were injured and taken to a hospital in good condition .
@ @ @ @ @ how the officers were injured or what their injuries were .

Two Chicago police officers suffered minor injuries while dispersing a large gathering Sunday night on the South Side, according to Chicago police.
Officers responded to the call to disperse the crowd about 9:45 p.m. in the 7000 block of South Lowe Avenue in the Englewood neighborhood, police said. One officer saw a man holding a gun and began to chase the man. The man was taken into custody shortly after and a handgun was recovered.
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Afterward, shots were fired nearby and a second man was taken into custody, police said. A handgun was recovered. During the incident, two officers were injured and taken to a hospital in good condition. It was not immediately clear how the officers were injured or what their injuries were.
Three others were also taken into custody for disorderly conduct after they went over to the Englewood District Station, police said.
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The case is under investigation, police said.
Check back for updates.
pfry@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @paigexfry