Two men posing as police officers have robbed several people in six different incidents in the Little Village neighborhood on the Southwest Side, police said via the Chicago Sun-Times. Victims were approached by the men who claimed to be police officers and then took the victims' money between 8 p.m. and midnight from December 18 through last Friday. more ›

Chauvet Stiggers, the man suspected in a pair of rapes last week on the Southwest Side, has turned himself in to police. Stiggers, who has used aliases including Rashaun Little, Andre Harris and DeAndre Harris, turned himself in last night but as of late last night had not been charged with anything. Besides the two rapes, he's also accused of exposing himself to a teen and trying to abduct another teen who was able to escape. more ›

Police have issued a community alert for the Southwest Side after multiple attacks over the last few days. The man is accused of raping two teens, flashing a third girl, and attempting to attack another who managed to escape. The first rape occurred last Thursday in the 8200 block of South Sacramento and the second last Friday near 79th and South Maplewood. more ›

A two-car crash on the South Side killed four people and injured four others this morning. 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 ›

In a political season that has been marked by the theme of change, Illinois's 3rd Congressional District has become one of the battle grounds over what the Democratic Party might look like going forward in 2008. Critics of the incumbent, Dan Lipinski, are unhappy with his opposition to abortion rights and stem cell research, and his siding with moderate Republicans on the war in Iraq and domestic spying. Besides his voting record, they also don't like how he came to congress: If you don't remember the 2004 general election, the elder Lipinski won renomination in the primary, withdrew during the campaign year, and then led the process to pick his replacement on the November ballot - his son Dan, a political science professor from Tennessee. Although Dan won handily in 2004, angry challenges in 2006 held him at only 54% in the primary, with the opposition split between two opponents. more ›

It’s official now, the frozen woman found yesterday is not the body of Lisa Stebic or Stacy Peterson. The identity of the woman has not been released, but those two have been eliminated as possible victims. more ›

The first time we ate the chicken focaccia sandwich from Miceli's Deli and Food Mart in the Heart of Italy neighborhood, the weather was markedly different. Specifically, it was about seventy degrees warmer and we didn't appreciate it as much. Focaccia sandwiches are much more agreeable in cold weather, don't you think? There's something about all those heavy ingredients and flavors that simply cry out for consumption when the mercury takes a nosedive. more ›

The Chicago City Council held off on voting on a controversial ban on urban chickens yesterday. Since urban chickens are all the rage, it seems like a perfect time to ban them, right? Southwest Side Alderman Lona Lane (18th), who proposed the ban, said she didn't know why the vote on the ban was held up. Maybe it is, as the Sun-TImes suggests, because Mayor Daley has a thing for urban poultry: "Let's be realistic,"... more ›

Two little boys, ages 2 and 3, died in a Southwest Side fire this morning, where two adults were also seriously injured. The cause of the fire is still unknown. At least 10 people were living in the 1 1/2-story single-family house on 66th Place and Kedzie, and so far the fire department can't tell if the smoke alarms in the house were operational or not. Remember: Get smoke alarms! According to the Illinois State... more ›

Southwest Side Alderman Lona Lane (18th) isn't feeling like chicken tonight, chicken tonight. She's introduced an ordinance to amend a four-year-old pigeon ban to include chickens. The ordinance would make it a crime to "import, sell, own, keep or otherwise possess any live chicken" in a district zoned for residential use. It would also require a separate food establishment license for those who want to slaughter chickens. "I was alerted that some of the people... more ›

After a long hiatus, we deemed this weekend’s goings-on worthy of a crime roundup. There was a definite family vibe in the air, although in these cases that’s not really a good thing: An elementary school janitor was arrested last week on suspicion of sexually assaulting two teenage family members. Eric Vaughn, 41, worked at Tilton Elementary School on the West Side. Though there’s no evidence of wrongdoing with students, Vaughn is not to have... more ›

Over the years, revered authors, scholars, educators and the cast of have tried to get people to stop banning books. The beat goes on. more ›

Former WKQX-FM 101.1 radio host Erich "Mancow" Muller filed a lawsuit Tuesday against his former employer, saying radio officials disparaged his show and blocked him from getting other work. We are getting pretty sick of the cell phone drivers, but we are always amazed at the cell phone bikers (not in a good way). Yesterday, an 19-year-old woman who was struck and killed by a garbage truck on the Northwest Side, was apparently talking... more ›

Here are some other newsworthy items on the day the earth stole Heaven. A Southern Baptist Church in Romeoville had problems with their divorced pastor remarrying, but turned the other cheek when they allowed another preacher/convicted sex offender to become more involved in church business. Both resigned last week. A local plastic surgeon was reprimanded by North Carolina authorities for unprofessional conduct when a woman seeking laser hair removal died undergoing treatment at a... more ›

Before we turn the controls to this lean, mean rocket over to the Tims this weekend, here are some other items in the news. A new law aimed at helping teenagers become better drivers allows their parents to review their driving records online. Two 911 operators who royally screwed up a call for police help during a July brawl at Durkin Park on the Southwest Side have been suspended without pay. A new program... more ›

Remember growing up, there was that one graveyard you just didn’t go into? You weren’t sure why, but something about the place just gave you the creeps at any time of day. Chicagoist recalls wistfully (maybe not wistfully; more like hysterically) one dare-fuelled drive into Barrington's famed White Cemetery, where two of our friends wouldn’t even breathe the open air, opting instead to cover their mouths with their shirts. And when the car became mysteriously stuck in the boneyard’s driveway … well, it wasn’t a feel-good situation. (Later reflection points to the winter weather rather than impish ghosties.) more ›

One of the many things we pay taxes for is local and community help during emergencies. One of the most universally known emergency services is 911, which saves lives daily. Most people assume it is the best possible option for them — unfortunately for some residents on the Southwest side last weekend, though, it wasn't. Fifty-one calls were made to 911 last weekend reporting a brawl in Durkin Park, but it was 26 minutes before... more ›

The Agudas Achim North Shore Congregation in Uptown was robbed late Friday of computers, audio-visual equipment and donated food on Friday. This is just one of several crimes committed at the synagogue in the last year. We're not sure how we feel about this ... Wendy's International will begin selling breakfast in Chicago, part of a national expansion into the breakfast market, the Dublin, Ohio-based hamburger chain said last week. Steve Irwin is helping... more ›

Techies and geeks, rejoice: goddesses walk among you. These aren’t high-maintenance, untouchable fantasy goddesses. Nor are they freaky tentacle-fresh hentai maidens, either, you otaku junkies. They’re gearheads just like you, only made from softer parts. At least, they will be with enough guidance and teaching at a young age. Enter the Geek Squad. That’s right, Best Buy’s computer repair mavens are making young girls’ dreams come true by introducing them to technology. It all started... more ›

We were told it would be in the 80s and sunny today. We are upset. But enough about us: A drunk driver struck an ambulance in Joliet early Saturday morning. 40-year-old Eric Perry was driving drunk in his minivan when he blew a red light and slammed into the ambulance, which was carrying David Powers, 46. The force of the crash sent the ambulance into two other vehicles; a total of five were injured. Powers... more ›

"Suet...not just for birds anymore.." via photoshopabuser. more ›

If you're a fan of the weed, like to smoke grass, are down with mary jane, get mellow with reefer, do the diggity dank, or just plain like to get high, you may have a hard time with all that if you're not growing it or have some out-of-state connections. The Tribune tells it straight: "Chicago police have seized about 2,800 pounds of marijuana in a four-day series of drug busts, representing the largest cannabis... more ›

Huzzah, the holidays are over and the blotter is back! An SUV rolled off the Skyway at around 3:30 a.m. Sunday morning and caught on fire. Driving the vehicle was an unidentified 18-year-old female; she had with her three male passengers, two of them 22 years of age and one 20. Her GMC Envoy hit a guardrail at the 67th Street exit, rolled off the ramp, and burst into flames. All passengers were taken to... more ›

We might not have gotten a shiny new game console this weekend, but we have crime to comfort us: A 58-year-old patient at Provena Mercy Medical Center in Aurora died in a police shootout on Saturday. Johnnie Russell holed himself up in his room in a 4.5 hour standoff with local police, at one point taking a 71-year-old fellow patient hostage. Russell eventually opened his door and fired a shot; police opened fire in kind.... more ›

For your perusal, please find enclosed this weekend's wrapup of murder, mayhem and all things in between: more ›

The last time Chicagoist tackled eating on the Southwest Side, our map reading skills were called into question. So, knowing that this week's installment of "Cheap Eats" is located in the Heart of Chicago neighborhood, we'll let you debate whether this qualifies as a south side cheap eat, or a west side cheap eat. We're here to tell you about the food, which is worth the trip, with or without a compass. When Chicagoist last... more ›

After a two week hiatus, which probably lowered our cholesterol levels by at least eighty points, Chicagoist’s “South Side Cheap Eats” series returns with a visit to one hidden gem of a diner in Brighton Park, on the city’s Southwest Side. We stumbled upon the Golden Heart Snack Shop and Restaurant some weeks back, while taking photographs along Archer Avenue. With its malfunctioning neon marquee, it looked like the kind of place where ward business... more ›

A little light this week, with most of the action happening on Monday. Child neglect and police chases are this week's themes: more ›