American Water temporarily pauses billing after suffering cyberattack

American Water temporarily pauses billing after suffering cyberattack

The parent company of Illinois American Water is pausing billing after its computer systems were breached by hackers last week. American Water said in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday that unauthorized activity was discovered in its network and computer systems on Oct. 3. The exact nature or origins of that incident…

Whooping cough cases in Illinois nearly five times higher than last year, CDC reports

Whooping cough cases in Illinois nearly five times higher than last year, CDC reports

As of Sept. 21, 1,058 cases of the highly contagious respiratory disease have been reported in the state this year, nearly five times higher than the 230 cases reported in 2023. Cases of whooping cough spike in the fall, alongside RSV and COVID-19, experts say.   Whooping cough cases are up in Illinois and across…

Mike Madigan
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Madigan judge refuses to toss counts after Supreme Court ruling limited bribery law

U.S. District Judge John Blakey handed down his ruling less than a week before the former Illinois House Speaker is set for trial. The judge also denied a request from Madigan’s longtime friend and confidante to be tried separately.   A federal judge on Wednesday declined to dismiss criminal charges leveled against former Illinois House…

Khadafi Muhammad speaking at press confrence

Illinois juvenile detention centers facing hundreds more sex abuse claims

Over 200 more men and women say they were sexually abused as children at Illinois juvenile detention centers, joining hundreds of others who previously joined in lawsuits. Three new lawsuits were filed Monday describing “a culture of sexual abuse” in Illinois juvenile detention centers between 1996 and 2021, the latest in a series of suits…

Sen. James DeLeo

Court records show two Springfield insiders profited from a controversial state government program

Two longtime Springfield political insiders — a retired Democratic lawmaker and a Republican lobbyist — were paid hundreds of thousands of dollars each through an Illinois government program, according to court records in a civil case. Ex-Illinois state Sen. James DeLeo, D-Chicago, and prominent Republican lobbyist Nancy Kimme each got 1% of the profits from…

Illinois Board of Elections
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FBI investigating after Illinois, more than a dozen other election offices receive ‘suspicious’ package

The Illinois State Board of Elections in Springfield was evacuated Friday after receiving a suspicious package — joining a growing list of election offices that have been targeted nationwide. The FBI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service said last week they were investigating the origin of suspicious packages that have been sent to, or received by, elections officials…

Sonya Massey body camera
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Massey Commission plans first listening session

The newly formed Massey Commission will host its first listening session this month. The commission, which includes officials and members of the public, was created in response to the killing of Sonya Massey this summer. The first session will be to understand the public’s hopes and concerns before finalizing the final mission and goals. Massey…

CPD DNC protests arrests
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Chicago’s top cop defends West Loop arrests as protest organizer calls officers ‘thugs’

Hugs and warm food greeted more than a dozen people released from custody Wednesday morning, the day after protesters clashed with Chicago police in the West Loop, the largest confrontation so far during the DNC. Supporters said they waited for hours outside a police station at Belmont and Western that is being used as a…

Watch party for Kamala Harris’ DNC nomination acceptance planned at Soldier Field
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Watch party for Kamala Harris’ DNC nomination acceptance planned at Soldier Field

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at a campaign event at Hendrick Center for Automotive Excellence on the Scott Northern Wake Campus of Wake Tech Community College in Raleigh, N.C., Friday, Aug. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

opening of grocery store in Cairo, Illinois

The government spends millions in food deserts to open grocery stores. Why aren’t they surviving?

More than 100 people congregated in the parking lot of Rise Community Market on its opening day a little over a year ago. As they listened to celebratory speeches, the audience erupted into joyful exclamations: “Mercy!” “Wonderful!” “Wow!” “All right!” Colorful homemade signs raised by local leaders beckoned the crowd to join in: “We!” “Are!”…

Grayson’s behavior in Logan County led superior to ask, ‘How are you still employed with us?’

Grayson’s behavior in Logan County led superior to ask, ‘How are you still employed with us?’

Before former Sangamon County Sheriff’s deputy Sean Grayson was accused of shooting Sonya Massey after she called police to investigate a prowler, he had a rocky, one-year tenure with the Logan County Sheriff’s Department. Personnel records show that Grayson’s time there was fraught, though he was not fired by the department. Grayson’s file from Logan…

Video shows sheriff’s deputy shoot and kill an unarmed woman in Springfield, Ill.
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Video shows sheriff’s deputy shoot and kill an unarmed woman in Springfield, Ill.

Sonya Massey called 911 to report a potential prowler before being shot inside her home. Footage shows she was cowering and holding a pot when the deputy opened fire. The Sangamon County State’s Attorney released body camera footage on Monday showing then-sheriff’s Deputy Sean Grayson shooting and killing Springfield resident Sonya Massey inside her home….

Most Illinois jails restrain people in chairs. This county ‘violently shocked’ them, too.

Most Illinois jails restrain people in chairs. This county ‘violently shocked’ them, too.

A few years ago, Coles County Jail promised to stop using electrified “stun cuffs” to shock people restrained in chairs. How much has changed? Warning: The following article includes mentions of self-harm. This is the second in a series of stories. Read the first story here. CHARLESTON, Ill. – Brice Fritz was naked, strapped down to…