An FBI sting has caught 10 Cook County sheriff's correctional officers, four Harvey police officers and a Chicago police officer accused of running security for what they thought were major drug deals but were actually parts of the sting operation. Officers received as much as $4,000 per incident and were willing to intervene if other law enforcement officials stepped in. An undercover agent acting as a drug dealer allegedly paid 16 of the defendants some......

William Balfour has been formally charged in the murders of Darnell Donerson, Jason Hudson, and Julian King, all relatives of actress/singer Jennifer Hudson. He has been charged with one count of home invasion and three counts of first-degree murder. Sources have told the Trib that most of the evidence is circumstantial, but police are confident they have done the proper legwork to secure a conviction, including motive, witnesses, cell phone records that tracked Balfour's movements......

Chicago's most notorious fundraiser, Tony Rezko, has finally been given a sentencing date of January 6. Rezko's lawyers had previously asked for a delay in sentencing while Rezko talked to prosecutors, but Rezko attorney Joseph Duffy said, “He wants to move on with his life. No one likes living at the MCC [Metropolitan Correctional Center].” Rezko remains in solitary confinement, where he's been since his conviction.......

Five weeks after the October 24 murder of Jennifer Hudson's mother, brother, and nephew, Chicago Police have finally arrested Hudson's former brother-in-law William Balfour in connection with the murders. He has been the prime suspect in the case since the start; he was already being held in a state corrections facility on parole violation charges stemming from a police investigation into his possible role in the murders and was transferred to Chicago Police custody once......

Infrared Photo of Chicago by josefrancisco.salgado Police apparently pulled over the stolen van which contained a missing 7-month-old infant for whom an Amber Alert was issued, but let the driver go when they received a report of shots fired nearby. The infant, and car, remain missing. More than 500 residents in Crystal Lake are protesting a new cell phone tower that has gone up in a nearby park calling it, "an eyesore and a......

Blackout Wednesday took a violent turn in Stone Park where one woman was killed and several others were injured after a nightclub fight spilled into the streets. The incident happened at the Nitro Nightclub. "We encountered multiple incidents," according to [Stone Park Fire Department Lt. Chris] Soda, who said a fight was inside the club moved outside, where three people were stabbed and two people were struck by a hit-and-run vehicle. "Every couple of minutes......

Photo by ekovalev Police have released more information in regards to a sexual assault that occurred at the North/Clybourn Red Line stop a few weeks ago, including a picture of the suspect. A possible serial rapist appears to have been killed in a drug deal gone awry. Hector Valtierrez is suspected of having raped 14 women in 2003 and 2004 and was killed October 1 in Aurora. Jon Valdez, the former University of Illinois......

Photo by BrianHagy New details are emerging about the death of IIT student Benjamin Collen. According to the autopsy, Collen "died of asphyxia from inhaling nitrous oxide from a whipped cream container." Twenty inmates at Cook County Jail have been charged in a scam that involved them making phone calls impersonating officers and scamming people out of thousands of dollars worth of phone calls. Two teens and an older man have been charged in......

Photo by sliz.c Even though it's been shelved for another year, controversy is still brewing over the gay-friendly high school. It seems those reports of Penny Pritzker becoming Obama's commerce secretary were a tad premature as Pritzker has declined the offer. Very cool look by the Sun-Times at the case of a man who may be cleared of murder charges thanks to information uncovered by students at Northwestern University's Law School and Medill School......

Photo by BrianHagy Ayman al-Zawahri, the Al-Qaida Number Two, issued a video statement in which he said some racially inflammatory things about President-Elect Obama. He said Obama is "the direct opposite of honorable black Americans" and called Obama (as well as Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice) "abeed al-beit," which translates to "house slaves," but appears in the video's subtitles as "house negroes." The video also contained the now-typical threats we've come to expect from......

The Saga of Jason Austin continues. The West Side man was originally charged with the murders of off-duty Chicago Police Officer Robert Soto and social worker Kathryn Romberg only to later have the charges dropped. Following his release, he decided to sue the city for mistreatment. One of the reasons given for the dismissal of charges was that witnesses recanting. Now comes an admission of guilt by a teenager who was charged with beating a......

Yesterday, we looked at the Chicago Police Department's efforts with President-Elect Barack Obama's security team and the cost (covered by the federal government) of the extra man hours. Looking to deflect the whisperings of criticism, Mayor Daley took to the press to defend the work being done to protect Obama and the benefit to Chicago. As usual, we can't do his words justice so we'll let him speak for himself: This is a great honor…We’re......

Crime novelist Laura Caldwell, 41, was attacked last week while jogging in Lincoln Park, at 5:30 p.m. near the intersection of Seminary and Altgeld. Two men came up from behind, smashing Caldwell's face into the pavement and knocking out her front teeth, then grabbing her iPod and running off. On her website, Caldwell said, "You might see some media reports about me being mugged while out for a run in my Chicago neighborhood. Yep, kind......

Cook County sheriff's police broke up a dogfight taking place in the basement of a house in the 500 block of West 66th St. on Saturday night. The fight was attended by 50 people, including a pregnant woman and a few teenagers. Three men (pictured from left to right: Donaver Jones, Melvin Trent and Timothy Norris) were charged with felony dogfighting. All others were issued misdemeanor tickets for attending a dogfight. Police swept into the......

Singer/actress Jennifer Hudson took to her MySpace blog this week to issue a quick note of thanks to fans for support since the triple murders that claimed her mother, brother, and nephew. In the post, Hudson said: I want to thank each and every one of you for your thoughts and prayers during this difficult time. My sister and I take great comfort and strength from your love and concern. jhud......

The Illinois State Senate yesterday unanimously approved legislation that would allow the dead to testify (in addition to voting) from beyond the grave. This piece of legislation appears to help Will County prosecutors in their case against Drew Peterson, who is suspected of killing two of his wives, by admitting hearsay statements as evidence in murder trials. That means if I tell you, “I saw Chicagoist Editor-in-Chief Marcus Gilmer kill Anderson Cooper,” and I turn......

William Balfour, the "person of interest" in the Hudson murders, will remain in police custody. The Illinois Prisoner Review Board considered testimony from William Balfour's girlfriend that she saw him with a gun on the day of the shootings matching the murder weapon as evidence enough to revoke his parole and keep him in police custody while investigators continue to examine how he's connected to the triple-murder. The Parole Board also ruled the June 19th......

William Balfour, the "person of interest" in the killings of the mother, brother, and nephew of Jennifer Hudson, is scheduled for a parole hearing this morning that many news outlets are touting as something that could allow Balfour to "go free." The parole hearing, which was to happen at 9 a.m. this morning in Stateville, will determine if there is enough evidence in the Hudson case to constitute a violation of Balfour's parole and keep......

A menu of my dinner tonight, by reillyandrew Thinking of ordering a "Choose Life" license plate? A federal appeals court ruled the state doesn't have to issue them.Two Englewood teens were shot dead thus putting the city past its 2007 murder total.The Sun-Times reported a net loss of $168.8 million during the third quarter of 2008 and it looks like more staff cuts are on the way.A flurry of threatening text messages sent amongst......

An estimated 2,500 mourners paid their respects yesterday morning at the funerals of Jennifer Hudson's mother, Darnell Donerson; her brother, Jason; and her nephew, Julian King. Oprah, Missy Elliot and Queen Latifah were in attendance, as well as Hudson's former American Idol colleague Fantasia Barrino, who also sang a tribute during the service. Mayor Richard Daley, Cook County Board President Todd Stroger and Rev. Jesse Jackson also paid their respects to the family in person,......

Three people, two women and one man, were injured in a stabbing outside of Rite Liquors in Wicker Park early this morning. The three were involved in a “physical altercation” with another person they all knew just before 2 a.m. outside the bar/liquor store, located at 1649 W. Divsion St. One of the women and the man were in serious condition at John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County; the other woman was taken......

Hundreds of mourners gathered yesterday for a public memorial honoring Jennifer Hudson's slain family members: her mother Darnell Hudson Donerson, brother Jason Hudson, and nephew Julian King. The public service followed a private service attended by extended family and close friends at Pleasant Gift Missionary Baptist Church in Hyde Park. Afterwards, members of the public were able to file through the church signing sympathy cards and viewing images of the victims. Friends, coworkers, and classmates......

As Chicago police announced the gun they had found earlier this week in an alley was indeed the gun used in last week's killings of Jennifer Hudson's mother, brother, and nephew, they're now trying to track the gun from it's origins to Chicago. The ATF has traced the gun back to its original owner in Michigan, who reported it stolen. Now it appears that Jason Hudson may have owned an identical gun that was stolen......

Police say forensic tests have confirmed that the .45-caliber Sig-Sauer semiautomatic pistol recovered earlier this week is indeed the weapon used in the shootings of Jennifer Hudson's mother, brother, and nephew. ATF officers tracked the gun to its original owner in Michigan who reported it stolen.......

There haven't been any new major breaks, but some details in connection to the high-profile triple homicide which has come to be a tragic symbol of Chicago's violent year have steadily been streaming out. Police continue to test the gun found in an alley on Wedensday, hoping they've found the murder weapon. The gun is a .45 caliber SIG-Sauer P220 pistol; police believe a .45 caliber gun was used in all three shootings in the......

The gun found yesterday in an alley a block from where the body of murdered 7-year-old Julian King was discovered matches the caliber of gun (.45) used in the murders of Jennifer Hudson's mother, brother, and nephew, based on comparisons with shell casings found at the murder scene. A witness reported seeing a white vehicle drive through the alley and dump something. Still, police are remaining cautious since the area has high gang activity and......

Photo by jvoves A South Side teacher has been charged with sexual assault after it was discovered she had recently engaged in sex with two current students and one former student from the school. Not to be outdone, former Spring Grove Elementary principal Daniel Markofski was sentenced to a year in prison and 18 months of supervision after pleading guilty to engaging in a sexual act with a child 16 years old or older.......

Police recovered a handgun in a search of an alley near the area where the body of 7-year-old Julian King was found in a white SUV. Autopsy results have found that all three victims were shot with a .45 caliber gun; officials haven't said what caliber the discovered gun is.......

As police try to piece together what happened Friday in the triple homicide that claimed the lives of actress Jennifer Hudson's mother, brother, and 7-year-old nephew, some evidence points to multiple perps involved in the killings. It appears as if someone may have driven suspect William Balfour back to the West Side the afternoon after the murders, possibly with Julian King in tow. Witnesses said Balfour drove his teal Chrysler to the Hudsons' block Friday,......

Word comes this afternoon that the Cook County Medical Examiner has unsurprisingly yet officially ruled Julian King's death a homicide. From the press release: "'The cause of death is multiple gunshot wounds, and the manner of death is a homicide,' said Sean Howard, a spokesperson for the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office." Also, the AP reported suspect William Balfour had been arrested in June on drug charges but didn't have his parole revoked. Balfour also......