• Gapers Block reminds us that 15 years ago today was the peak of the legendary 1995 Heat Wave that claimed the lives of 700 people.
• Bail has been set at $1.5 million for a West Side woman accused of setting her disabled boyfriend on fire.
• Police want a new gun range in an area surrounding Whitford Pond near 134th street but environmentalists aren't so hot on the idea.

Kaushik Patel, the Glendale Heights man charged in the 2007 murder of his two young sons by burning them alive, has reached an agreement to plead guilty to the crimes in exchange for avoiding the death penalty. Patel made a similar deal in 2008 but prosecutors later rejected that original deal. more ›

This is part of Chicagoist's coverage of the Chicago International Movies and Music Festival, which runs March 4-7. more ›

Prosecutors are still trying to decide if three boys will face charges in last month's burning of 9-year-old Joshua Judkins. The boys, ages 15, 14, and 13, claimed it was a prank gone wrong, but Judkins' parents thought otherwise, calling for hate crime charges. Last week, an announcement was made no charges would be filed, but Lake County juvenile prosecutors spokeswoman Diane Poulton told WBBM AM that the announcement was a "miscommunication." The original police report considered the burning a felony, criminal recklessness causing serious bodily injury. Authorities are awaiting the results of a separate FBI investigation before moving forward with any charges. more ›

Hate crime charges could be coming in the burning of nine year old Joshua Judkins, according to authorities investigating the case. Joshua, who suffered second- and third-degree burns over 20 percent of his body, was visiting his mother in Hammond when the incident happened. He was playing with three older boys he had just met when they allegedly threw alcohol on him and set him on fire. But Joshua is black and the three boys involved are white, leading Joshua's father to call for hate crime charges. Elijah Judkins said, "This is not nothing that just happened by chance. This was a hate crime." Police say the boys claimed the burning was accidental. Authorities also say Joshua isn't well enough yet to give an official statement. [CBS 2 via WBBM-AM] more ›

Judge Kathryn Creswell has ruled that the dying words of 7-year-old Vishv Patel to his mother will be admitted in the trial of Vishv's father, Kaushik Patel. Kaushik has been charged in the November 18, 2007 attack of his two sons, Vishv and 4-year-old Om, by dousing them in gasoline and setting them on fire. Om died two months later, on January 17, 2008 and Vishv died on February 19, 2008. more ›

Prosecutors have rejected a plea deal in the case of Kaushik Patel, the man accused of killing his two young sons be dousing them in flammable liquid and setting them on fire last November. The deal would have sent Patel to prison for life but prosecutors are sticking to their guns and seeking the death penalty for Patel. Patel had originally planned to plead guilty in exchange for the life sentence, but prosecutors are moving forward with the trial, which begins in April 2009. Patel claimed that when he set his sons, 4-year-old Om and 7-year-old Vishv, on fire, he was actually trying to kill himself. Om died two months after the burning, in January of this year, and Vishv died a month after him. more ›