The seventh U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled yesterday that the Chicago Fire Department must hire 111 African-American firefighters who passed the entrance exam 16 years ago, as well as pay a large sum of money to some of the people who took the exam and passed it. This case has been an ongoing issue for the city of Chicago and isn't the first court ruling regarding the controversial firefighter entrance test from 1995. A federal judge ruled back in 2005 that the test discriminated against black applicants. Additionally, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled last year that the applicants were still eligible to sue the city for the incident in 1995. more ›

This news is an unfortunate and fearful symmetry with today being the centennial of the Union Stock Yards fire. A 3-11 blaze in an abandoned warehouse on the South Side claimed the lives of two firefighters and injured 14, including two more firefighters, when they were trapped inside the structure after a wall collapsed on them. more ›

There are separate chili cookoffs tomorrow and Thursday that are very budget conscious. Tomorrow Rock Bottom Brewery (1 W. Grand Ave.) hosts a firefighter chili cookoff from 6-8 p.m. 25 firefighters will be serving up their best chili recipes and vying for top honors from a judges panel that includes Audarshia "312 Dining Diva" Townsend, former Chicagoista Lisa Shames and me. Bottomless cups of chili are $5; $10 gets you the bottomless chili and a Rock Bottom beer of your choice in a souvenir glass; we recommend Fire Chief Ale. Proceeds from this cookoff will benefit the Chicago Fire Department's charitable endeavors. more ›

• A hearing date of March 10 has been set in the battle over Medill's Innocence Project and the involvement in the Anthony McKinney case.
• Indications are that the Supreme Court will rule in favor of black firefighters who have sued the City of Chicago.
• Bones were discovered at a Gold Coast construction site and authorities are trying to determine if they're human.

It's a familiar story: after taking an entry-level test, would-be firefighters claim racial discrimination kept them from getting a job and take their case to the highest court in the land. But unlike last year's New Haven, Conn. case where white firefighters were the plaintiffs, this year more than 6,000 blacks from Chicago are making the same claim, the Tribune reports. more ›