• 13-year-old Ronald Freeman, an incoming eighth grader at Oglesby Elementary School, was killed while riding his bike in West Pullman last night, shot 22 times by a gunman who police are continuing to search for.
• Convicted former police commander Jon Burge will continue to receive his pension until the moment he is sentenced.
• At the press conference where Mayor Daley took on Michigan, oil, and Asian Carp, it was also announced 225 “non-instructional” employees will be laid off from City Colleges.

The Cohen Affair continues to show its far-reaching effects. Nevermind that it was just a year ago that Lieutenant Governor Pat Quinn got called up to the big leagues to take over for ousted governor Rod Blagojevich. That position could soon become a thing of the past if State House Speaker Michael Madigan gets his way. Madigan introduced a bill yesterday that, if passed, would put the issue on the November election ballot and, if approved, would eliminate the Lt. Gov. position altogether come January 2015. Not that anyone else had a choice, as ABC 7 reports it appears Madigan introduced the bill without consulting anyone else on the subject. Meanwhile, there's currently a bill in the Senate that would require the Lt. Gov. and Governor candidates to run together, a la Presidential elections. Either way, it looks like the latest kerfuffle has finally pushed action on the position even as we await the decision of who the Dems will slate for this November's election. more ›

Gov. Quinn has signed into law a bill that amends the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Practices Act. The bill raises penalties and gives the state more power to enforce laws preventing "cramming," when scammers pile on unauthorized fees on your phone bills. David Kolata, of the Citizens Utility Board, said, "Cramming is just another name for fraud. It's a scam that must end, that should end and we believe with the extra protections in here including strong third party verification and disclosure and enhanced ability when you are crammed to know who you should call to solve the problem, we believe all these provisions will lead to a dramatic reduction in cramming." [ABC 7] more ›

When a race horse’s career is over there are few options: euthanize, slaughter or rescue. A new resolution introduced into the Illinois House late last month hopes to do more than save the retired equines -- it hopes to give inmates a chance to learn caretaking skills and compassion for the animals. more ›