A Wisconsin woman disappeared at O'Hare last week somewhere between customs and the waiting area. Sumei Hu, 38, had been visiting her family in China since September and was returning to the US via Tokyo on February 26. She definitely got off her flight at O'Hare and went through customs, according to surveillance footage. But her husband was waiting for her in the stand-around zone, and she never came out. more ›

Former alderman Dorothy Tillman was arrested over the weekend in Alabama. She was charged with criminal tresspassing after refusing to leave an Montgomery hospital, according to the police. Tillman says the cops used excessive force and that she was brutalized. more ›

Late Friday, Todd Stroger and nine other county commissioners worked to close the Cook County budget for 2008. The compromise deal doubled the county parking taxes and raised the sales tax to 1.75 percent - making Chicago one of the highest taxed cities in the nation. Those tax hikes, coupled with an agreement to cede control of the county Health Services Bureau to an independent oversight panel yielded the elusive ninth vote that Stroger had been seeking to pass his budget. Larry Suffredin, who brokered the health services deal, was the swing vote. more ›

href="http://londonist.com/2008/02/air_bound.php"> remove one man from Gatwick.

The Sun-Times takes a look at "elimination communication," a technique some parents are using to toilet train their very young children. Perhaps you read about it. In the New York Times. In 2005. [S-T, NYT.] more ›

While the talk around town has focused on the implications of Tony Rezko's indictment for Blagojevich, the national story has been how close he was to Obama. more ›

Did the president of Medill use made-up quotes in a newsletter? We...barely care. What really bugs us is journalists citing the existence of Facebook group as some kind of indicator of anything--"students and alumni joined the new 'Save Journalism at Medill' group on Facebook. On Tuesday afternoon, there were nearly 90 members ...." There are 650 fulltime students at Medill. Fewer than 90 of them . Agh, not news. [Trib] more ›

Artists have a reputation of being snobbish, standoffish and altogether pretentious loners. Some are glad to claim that title while others, like the members of The Post Family are out to prove it wrong. The troupe of mostly paper-goods artists share a loft space and website where they collaborate and hawk their wares. They also encourage anyone to say "hello." In their own words: more ›

This is the first photo emerging of Stephen (we're also seeing it spelled Steven, but NIU announced it as a ph) Kazmierczak, the gunman in yesterday's shootings at NIU. more ›

CNN is identifying the shooter as 27-year-old Steven Kazmierczak. more ›

More reports out of NIU tonight: more ›

Johanna Vera, 23, was charged with attempted murder for allegedly giving her children, 3 and 10 months, juice with rat poison and boric acid in it. Vera also apparently drank it herself. All three survived the November 29th incident, which Vera says stemmed from a domestic dispute that left her wanting to "die and take her children with her." [S-T] more ›

An unrelated mystery has been solved as police investigate the Tinley Park murders. A con woman, evading police for years, was apprehended this weekend because police tracked down the owners of the cars parked near the Lane Bryant, where the fugitive Esther Reed had left her car, which was registered under an assumed identity. more ›

21st Ward Alderman Howard Brookins accepted Jesse Jackson's endorsement for Cook County State's attorney Sunday at Jackson's South Side Rainbow/PUSH headquarters. more ›

Sha na na na, sha na na na, Sears CEO Aylwin Lewis. Lewis's official last day is Saturday, but his bank account won't know the difference--he'll be collecting his $1 million salary and benefits through 2010. But that's just cause he did so well a godawful job that led to four quarters of net losses. Burn! more ›

Thanks to Bill M, we know that it isn't just Chicagoists who read... Chicagoist. And if you are part of that select group of ex=pat Chicagoans who keep up with our city, you're probably interested in voting in the upcoming presidential primary. And now, for the first time, Democrats living abroad can vote in the upcoming presidential primary. Democrats Abroad, the official overseas branch of the party will hold a global presidential primary from Feb. 5 to 12. Americans living outside the US can vote in the Democratic primary via internet, fax, mail and in-person in 34 countries around the globe. (The Tribune says there are 100 countries, but the website managing the vote says 34.) To participate, you must join Democrats Abroad, register, and request a ballot from the last US state you lived in before February 1. more ›

Joseph Pannell was 19 years old when he shot a Chicago police officer in 1969. And then he skipped bail. And skipped bail again in 1974, this time fleeing to Canada, where he changed his name to Douglas Gary Freeman and lived under that identity for almost 40 years. But in 2004, Chicago's cold case squad tracked him down and started extradition proceedings, which Parnell fought....until this week. more ›

Let’s just get it done. Let’s pass it. They have to pass this legislation…with the change. Everybody will accept that. Who cares? Let’s just pass this legislation. That’s how important it is.

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Sangamon County Circuit Judge Patrick Kelley ruled Wednesday that Governor Blagojevich's administration must disclose subpoenas from federal prosecutors in the ongoing investigation into state hiring. When the governor's office denied a Freedom of Information Act request for copies of the subpoenas last year, the Better Government Association, a Chicago-based government watchdog group, sued. US Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald is investigating charges that the Blagojevich administration traded state jobs for campaign contributions. more ›

Even though Barack Obama came in second last night in New Hampshire, he's still number one in Chicago. In fact, the City by the Lake loves Obama so much that we're throwing him a $1000-a-plate fundraiser "Welcome Home" dinner this Thursday. Peoples Gas Co. President Desiree Rogers will be hosting Obama in her Gold Coast home on January 10. Also listed on the invitation are some of Obama's more monied backers, including developer Neil Bluhm, Commonwealth Edison President Frank Clark, Hyatt Hotels heiress Penny Pritzker, Ariel Capital Management founder John Rogers Jr., and Democratic money man Lou Sussman. One-time rival for US Senate and #1 Obama Superfan Dan Hynes is also listed on the invite. more ›

Apparently, The Bottom Biting Bug is all the rage in Japan, which means 6 months later it's all the rage in the US. more ›

Only the biggest of dreamers gave Illinois a chance of beating the semi-professional USC Trojans in yesterday's 94th annual Rose Bowl. Unfortunately, USC beat the Illini like the proverbial red-headed stepchild 49-17. The academic conclusion to the game also led to some wonderful entendre-laden headlines in the dailies: "Case of California Creamin'", "Too Much Booty Puts Illini on the Defensive", and "Trojans Pull Out All the Stops" are some of our favorites. The loss also provided Jay "the Joke" Mariotti with another opportunity to pen his now-patented "sports in this state really suck" columns, complete with desperate stabs at modern cultural relevance and creating lame-ass nicknames, this time referencing "Knocked Up" and calling Illini head coach Ron Zook "Zooker." more ›

Felipe Rivera of Cicero has been charged with aggravated criminal sexual assault, sexual assault, aggravated battery and a hate crime for allegedly beating, raping and sodomizing a man. Rivera and the victim met at a party on 1200 block of South 50th Avenue, and Rivera thought the victim winked at him. more ›

For a sizable chunk of the US population, Christmas is a time for... wondering when it's going to be the 26th. Jews have the stereotypical routine of Chinese food and a movie (Chicagoist has deemed Charlie Wilson's War the family-friendly-but-still-interesting-enough-not-to-bore-dad-who-likes-foreign-films movie of the season), but what to do for the rest of the day? more ›

Many of the parents we’ve talked to told us that they will go “China-free” this Christmas, refusing to purchase toys constructed in China. This, in large part, is due to the massive number of Chinese-made recalled toys this year (like those beads that turn into GHB when ingested). Toxic toys and poor oversight is a company issue and not necessarily a country-specific one, but patronizing local small businesses, regardless of impetus, should be applauded. For the next couple of weeks, we’ll be posting about some of our favorite places to buy kid gifts this season. more ›

The Chicago Tribune is reporting that the Jim Oberweis campaign will be announcing “a major endorsement” today, and that that endorsement will be from Dennis Hastert. Oberweis is running for the 14th Congressional District seat that was vacated when former Speaker of the House resigned earlier this year. Although Hastert endorsed Oberweis for US Senator in the 2002 Republican primary, Jack Ryan won that race, later withdrawing after his (sexy) divorce files were unsealed. An... more ›

Eeeeheeeheeehehehe. More snow is on the way tonight--maybe another four inches. Anybody got some good boot recommendations? Mama needs a new pair of shoes. Speaking of shoe shopping, Anthropolgie? We vehemently disapprove of the term "shootie." Please join us in this protest. "Shooties" appears to be catching on, so the time to act is now. No to shooties! The term and the shoes, now that we think about it. Loyola is buying Gottlieb Memorial... more ›

Ah, O'Hare. First your flight gets delayed, then there's a stinky but nontoxic cleaning agent used in the terminal, then your plane almost runs into another plane. Indeed, ye olde ORD has the second-highest number of near-collisions of any US airport. And according to a report from the GAO, O'Hare has six runways that don't meet the FAA's "runway safety area standards," and the airport had four "serious incursions," which is when two planes... more ›

Jaylnn Hall, 4, died early yesterday morning after her 15-year-old brother shot her in the chest, apparently accidentally. Her mother, whose name hasn't been released, is a Cook County corrections officer, and the 9mm handgun used in the shooting is her "duty weapon," which corrections officers are allowed to carry outside of jail. The mom was at work at the time of the shooting, and she's been "de-deputized," which is standard procedure according to... more ›