Carol Marin pens an op-ed calling for a grand jury investigation into how the murder case of David Koschman was handled. more ›

Given Hendon's loose cannon reputation, it was doubtful that the Chicago Coalition for Mayor ever seriously considered Hendon a viable candidate for mayor. Moreover, Hendon's announcement was curiously timed, coming one week after a federal grand jury sent out subpoenas looking into how dozens of state grants awarded for job training and educational programs, many of them sponsored by Hendon, were spent. more ›

Cook County Commissioner William Beavers once famously declared himself "the Hog with the Big Nuts." Now it appears a grand jury has Beavers and his self-congratulatory manhood in its sights. Internal Revenue Service investigators have subpoenaed contingency account expense reports from Beavers for 2008 and 2009 to check for any discrepancies in how Beavers spent his contingency expenses. more ›

First there was the low approval rating and then his toughest competition yet. Now, Todd Stroger will feel even more heat as a probe into county finances has grown. Citing a "current grand jury investigation," the Cook County state's attorney's office subpoenaed 2008 financial records from Stroger's office. According to the Sun-Times: more ›

Blackhawks star Patrick Kane and his cousin James have been indicted on a pair of misdemeanor charges in their alleged attack on a Buffalo, NY cab driver: third degree assault and theft of services. The grand jury also indicted both on the lower charge of harassment but passed on the second-degree assault charge. [Sun-Times] more ›

A grand jury is hearing from the cab driver and a witness today in Patrick Kane's case. Neither Kane nor his attorney are present. When asked about their absence, Kane's attorney, Paul Cambria, said, “We don't participate in the grand jury because it's a one-sided process. It permits the district attorney to question our witnesses but it doesn't permit us to question his witnesses so I see no point in it because it's just so one-sided." [WBBM] more ›

A Lake County grand jury has ruled the shooting of an alleged robber by a grocery store clerk was justified and the clerk will not face any charges. The incident occurred on October 13 when the alleged robber, Brandon Starks, held up People's Market, using a gun. Once Starks fled on a bicycle, according to police, the clerk - who remains unnamed by authorities - followed Starks outside and shot him twice in the torso. Starks, who was on parole for a previous burglary conviciton, was pronounced dead shortly after the shooting. more ›

Perhaps crime will slow down tomorrow, when all that water lying around freezes and turns Chicago streets into one giant ice rink. But for now, let's see what's been going on this weekend in the world of criminal justice: more ›

"Warm to the touch." We can't get that phrase out of our heads after reading that a relative of Drew Peterson helped him move a blue barrel that was warm to the touch on Oct. 28, the day before Stacy Peterson was reported missing. The relative — not named by the Trib but identified as Thomas Morphey, a step-brother, by the Sun-Times — then went home and told a friend that he was afraid he... more ›

Today's Sun-Times has an interesting article on restaurateur and Chicago native LaVan Hawkins, who's opening Nancy's Pizza and Al's Italian Beef franchises even as he's set to go to prison on corruption charges. The biography of Hawkins is a true rags-to-riches, rise-and-fall-and-rise-again story starting with his early years running in a gang and battling drug addiction, then from working his way up from the lowest rung at a McDonald's to commanding a fast-food franchise empire... more ›

We were initially trying to believe Drew Peterson could somehow be innocent of any wrongdoing in his wife's disappearance, yet it's becoming increasingly difficult to think anything good about the Bolingbrook policeman. At best, he's a chronic philanderer, a domestic abuser, and a bad cop. At worst... the man's been married four times, and wife #3, Kathleen Savio, turned up dead, wife #4, Stacy Peterson, is missing, and wife #2, Vicki Connolly, has finally spoken... more ›

With all the investigating and convicting going on these days, the case against the Hispanic Democratic Organization and its leadership hasn't been in the news much lately. With George Ryan out the way, the feds can get back to taking down the Chicago Machine. The first casualty of what will likely be many in that case came yesterday, with John Resa, an HDO coordinator who controlled some 70 city jobs, getting 15 months in prison... more ›

Things were jumping at the Will County Court House. Lisa Stebic's children testified in front of a grand jury yesterday about their mother's disappearance six months ago. Craig Stebic, Lisa's estranged husband and person of interest in the case, hasn't allowed the police to interview his kids, even though they're two of the last people to see her. Lisa's family says they wanted the kids to be interviewed at a child advocacy center instead,... more ›

Anyone know the artist behind this work? Ian's dying to know, and frankly, so are we. Crain's is reporting today that Apple, Puma, Zara, J. Crew and Coach are all in talks to set up shop in the Block 37 project. File under: Things We Will Believe When We See Them. Also, we cannot hear "Block 37" without thinking "Block. Thirty. Seven. Starbucks." Alleged dirty cop Jerome Finnigan waived his hearing today, which means... more ›

Calling the sentence imposed on Lewis "Scooter" Libby "harsh" and "excessive," George W. Bush commuted the 30-month sentence on Monday. Not quite the full pardon that some conservatives wanted — he still has to pay a quarter million dollar fine and serve 2 years probation for lying under oath — it certainly left Bush open to criticism, from both sides of the congressional aisle. “He was indicted by a grand jury and convicted beyond the... more ›

...are condemned to repeat it. more ›

Mohammed Salah and Abdelhaleem Ashqar were acquitted of racketeering charges in the feds case against them, claiming they helped lead the militant Palestinian group, Hamas. more ›

It seems that another battle is brewing with Rod Blagojevich. In a last-minute press release Friday evening, G-Rod announced he was suspending a program designed to stop predatory lending in the Chicago area, claiming that it hurt development in those areas. The five-month-old Illinois Predatory Lending Database Pilot Program set up rules for people that wanted to buy a home in 10 ZIP codes on Chicago's west and southwest sides. These rules required residents who... more ›

Although iPods have been hot commodities for years, moving from the hands of in-the-know hipsters to soccer moms, they continue to be as popular as ever, making their way onto gift lists…and thieves’ shopping carts. more ›

The Cook County government may be corrupt, but apparently they have some limits. For example, they won't let you expense more than $185-an-hour for private attorney fees. Cut it a little close, and maybe they'll give you a break, but try to charge $485-an-hour, well, that's where they put their foot down. The Sun-Times reports that the County Board rejected a request by an employee to pay their attorney's exorbitant $485-an-hour rates. The firm of... more ›

This could be the best lede we’ve read all week: more ›

It’s been a while since we talked about City Clerk James Laski’s involvement in the Hired Truck scandal. We’re sorry about that, but we were too busy trying to learn keno to write an update. And what a waste of time that turned out to be. So what’s been going on with Laski? Well, he vowed to stay on as City Clerk after being charged with taking bribes from trucking companies and lying to... more ›

It looks like Judy Baar Topinka, the Republican party’s frontrunner for the governor, has found herself a running mate. Topinka has tapped DuPage County State’s Attorney Joe Birkett to be her lieutenant governor. Birkett, who had considered running for governor himself, lost the 2002 general election for attorney general to Lisa Madigan. Birkett has not officially agreed to run with Topinka quite yet, but all signs point to him doing so. Most recently Birkett... more ›

Chicagoist knew it was getting bad when we asked our friends, “Hey, did you hear the latest about the hiring scandal?” And they said, “Which one?” Of course, you might say it got bad when you realized this is the kind of stuff we talk to our friends about. Not to be outdone by the corruption in Chicago’s hiring practices, Governor Blagojevich’s office is now dealing with its own hiring scandal. Today the Chicago... more ›

Keeping up with the scandal at the Sun-Times isn't easy. The story has unfolded like a Greek tragedy, without (so far) the murder and incest. more ›

Have you ever had or witnessed a violent run-in with Haroon Paryani the man killed in February with his own cab? If so, a new Web site, www.endcabviolence.com, wants to hear from you. The site provides an e-mail address and phone number for you to report any violent incidents with the cab driver promising that the information will be kept private and confidential. Michael J. Jackson, a former Chicago Department of Public Health Employee, allegedly... more ›

The Chicago Tribune released a poll on Saturday showing Governor Rod Blagojevich's approval ratings at a bottom-scraping 35% among 1,200 voters polled across Illinois. The poll results, conducted between May 5-10, came only days after the Governor's proposed campaign finance reform took a dive in the General Assembly. And on same day as the poll release, Saturday, news came that Attorney General Lisa Madigan served Alderman Dick Mell (33rd) and the governor's office with subpoenas for a grand jury investigation. Mell confirmed the report, but the governor's office would neither confirm or deny the report. more ›

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Long time Chicagoans know that now and then some federal prosecutor digs up a bunch of guys with broken noses, hauls them in front of a grand jury and gets some indictments. Most go to jail, a few walk. Now and then. more ›