The Rundown | Chicago News

Nine people filed reports with the Chicago Police Department on Monday alleging crimes committed by immigration agents during Operation Midway Blitz. More scattered thunderstorms are expected Monday night and throughout the week. Former Chicago White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson is retiring. Plus, Lollapalooza recently brought thousands of people to Grant Park along Chicago’s lakefront. Amid the headliners and packed crowds, another group made its way through the festival: parents.

The superintendent of Chicago Public Schools is now confident that school will start on time. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and Republican challenger Darren Bailey are trading blows over misconduct investigations into several members of the House. Plus, the Women's Professional Baseball League kicked off in Springfield, Illinois this week, marking the first women's professional baseball on American soil in over 70 years.

Cities across Illinois range widely in their regulations on data centers. The Chicago Cubs swept the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday, beating them 7-6 in the last of their three-game series. A Batavia woman thought dogs in her community deserved their own free little library – just like people have. Plus, the Trump administration is shifting tactics in its deportation campaign. Last year, the focus was aggressive arrests, highlighted by Operation Midway Blitz. This year, Chicago advocates say the strategy is much more subtle. They accuse the administration of weaponizing immigration courts – speeding up cases and creating a chaotic process that’s causing many immigrants to miss hearings, leading to deportation orders.

Alaina Hampton is calling for Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch’s resignation. The Chicago Cubs’ newest starter, Kevin Gausman won’t be pitching against his former team, the Toronto Blue Jays, on Thursday. The National Beep Baseball World Series is underway this week in west suburban Aurora Plus, while growing up on the city’s blue collar northwest side, musician and comedian Al Scorch would imitate a classic Chicago accent as comedic relief with his friends. Scorch has tapped into that character for many creative projects since, from a poem about hot dogs to a popular series reviewing Park District bathrooms. Now, he’s embarking on a major endeavor: to read the city of Chicago’s roughly 3,000 page municipal code out loud, for a podcast, in his Chicago accent.

Illinoisans with home and auto insurance will see more protections against unjustified rate hikes. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson says his budget director is resigning to care for her ailing mother who lives out of state. The Major League Baseball trade deadline was Monday, and Chicago’s teams walked away with a handful of roster changes. Plus, to the uninitiated, a Rainbow Cone might seem like a recent Instagram-inspired creation. Five colorful layers stacked on top of each other. But Chicagoans, especially those on the South Side, know the Original Rainbow Cone shop is a long-loved, local institution. Launched in August 1926 in a small shack in Beverly, Rainbow Cone turns 100 this year.

Illinois residents can save some money on clothing and school supplies for ten days this month. The nation's first women's professional baseball league in nearly 30 years is officially underway. Illinois State Treasurer Mike Frerichs is setting up for an iCash auction at the Illinois State Fair later this month. Plus, the number of Illinois residents enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) has declined by 16% over the past year, according to the Illinois Department of Human Services.

A former sheriff’s deputy convicted of murdering an unarmed Black woman in her Springfield, Illinois area home will not get out of prison early. Cook County Health expects the county will provide nearly $500 million in charity care next year – the largest amount in more than a decade. The historic 400 Theater in Rogers Park reopened today [FRI] under new ownership. Plus, WBEZ’s Chip Mitchell brings us the story of a man serving a 30-year sentence for murder who says he’s innocent – so much so that he turned down a deal that would have released him from prison, in order to continue fighting for exoneration.

After matching a decade-long high in heat-related deaths just last week, Cook County has recorded another three. Voters in Evanston will not be asked whether Northwestern University should make payments to the city for commercial events it hosts. People in Chicago’s music community are remembering Irish musician Glen Hansard. Plus, funk legend George Clinton is best known as a writer for Motown and as the leader of the popular Parliament-Funkadelic movement. But starting with the COVID pandemic, Clinton got serious about painting. A major exhibition of his work just opened at Chicago’s Mariane Ibrahim Gallery.

People around Chicago and the suburbs are cleaning up and rebuilding after severe weather on Monday. A Chicago man is suing the federal government over a raid of his home at the height of Operation Midway Blitz. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson wants his administration to establish stricter standards for purchasing guns. Plus, Chicagoans with big dreams of becoming this city’s mayor fanned out across town Tuesday to collect the signatures needed to get on the ballot. That’s 12,500 valid signatures, to be exact. Tuesday marked the unofficial start to what’s sure to be a jam packed and contentious mayor’s race.

Illinois now has a statewide cell phone ban in public schools. Gambling addiction is now officially considered a public health issue in Illinois. A new class has been enshrined into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Plus, the Joliet Treatment Center – about an hour outside of Chicago – is a specialized Illinois prison meant to provide intensive mental healthcare. But some incarcerated people and civil rights lawyers say the treatment there is abysmal, and men are frequently left isolated in their cells for long stretches, their mental health deteriorating. Desperate for help, some have chosen to do something extreme to bring attention to their troubles. They set their locked cells – or their own bodies – on fire. In the last three years, there have been more than 70 fires at Joliet Treatment Center, including at least a dozen cases of self-immolation.

Severe weather continues to move through the Chicago area, and a severe thunderstorm watch is in effect for the Chicago area until at least 7 p.m. Monday. ComEd says the western and northwestern suburbs were hit with the first wave of outages during Monday’s severe storms. A new investigation finds some men locked inside one Illinois prison have become so desperate, they set themselves on fire. Plus, several times a year, our show Prisoncast sends hundreds of surveys inside prisons and jails in Illinois. One thing we ask the people incarcerated there: What’s a sound from the outside world that you miss hearing the most? The idea is to connect our listeners behind bars, with the communities they’ll return to. Recently, Prisoncast got a letter from Scott at Sheridan prison, requesting the sound of a hockey game at a local ice arena.

Four beluga whales who arrived at the Shedd Aquarium this week are showing signs of “relaxed behavior.” The city of Chicago is marking the completion of a years-long campaign to commemorate the 1919 race riot. Patrick Kane was reintroduced as a member of the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday. Plus, America is celebrating its 250th anniversary this month. At a recent reading of the Declaration of Independence at Chicago’s Newberry Library, some Chicagoans shared their thoughts on the milestone.

A new state law makes July 25 Emmett Till Day in Illinois. More than 800 unionized workers at the BP refinery in Whiting, Indiana, have been blocked from returning to work for more than four months. One of the greatest Chicago Blackhawks in franchise history is returning to the team. Plus, Annie Clark, the superstar guitarist who performs under the name St. Vincent, will play with the Chicago Symphony this weekend at Ravinia. It’s a stop on her nationwide tour, appearing with local orchestras. It’s part of a larger trend that puts Clark in the company of many of her pop peers.

Chicago Police have finally issued guidelines on how to collect and retain evidence against federal immigration agents suspected of violating state law. The National Archives at Chicago is closing within the next few years. One of the few living Negro League Baseball players will be at tonight’s Double Duty Classic game at Rate Field. Plus, brothers and restaurateurs Teddy and Alexis Vejar spent their childhood surrounded by great cooks both in Mexico and the U.S. Now, they run the restaurant Jarabe on the city’s Near West Side, where they serve cochinita pibil. The dish reminds them of when their dad would cook it for them when they were kids.

Six people in Cook County have died from heat-related causes so far in July. Two independent candidates seeking to replace Congressman Jesus “Chuy” Garcia won’t appear on the fall ballot. A new study from Northwestern Medicine says women experience more severe neurological symptoms of long COVID than men. Plus, school districts across the country are seeing a spike in students with autism. As it has in other places, the increase in students with special needs is putting a tremendous strain on Chicago Public Schools’ budget. It’s a key reason why, despite declining enrollment, CPS has added staff.

The National Weather Service is predicting scattered thunderstorms will roll through the area this evening in addition to the air quality alert already in effect as pollution from Canadian wildfire smoke persists. Illinois' former state public health director has dropped his bid to be the next U.S. Senator from Maine. Current Blackhawks star Connor Bedard hopes he can team up with a star of Blackhawks past. Plus, it’s been more than three months since West Suburban Medical Center in Oak Park suddenly closed. Now, patients nearby on Chicago’s West Side are traveling farther for care and ending up in crowded emergency departments at other hospitals. These are the unintended consequences when a community hospital shuts down. Doctors worry more hospitals like West Suburban could close.

Rain could be returning to the Chicago area this weekend, which could potentially help improve the poor air quality we’ve seen. Judges with the Illinois State Board of elections do not think two independent candidates should be on the ballot in the state's fourth congressional district. The 19th annual Silver Room Sound System Block Party returns this Saturday. Plus, indie rocker Lucy Dacus performs this weekend in Millennium Park. She is backed by the Chicago Philharmonic, and it’s a full circle moment of sorts.

Chicago’s air quality today is among the worst in the world. The candidates for Illinois governor show a stark contrast in campaign spending as they face off for the second time. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has less than $1 million in the bank roughly two weeks before candidates for mayor start collecting signatures to get on the ballot. Plus, layoff notices went out to more than 1500 Chicago Public School staffers yesterday. This includes nearly 800 teachers. The cash-strapped district plans to furlough staff for five days when students aren’t in class to save money. This is part of the budget plan for the school year that starts next month, and the deficit is $732 million.

Wildfire smoke from Canada is moving into the Chicago area Wednesday night. It could cause hazy conditions, reduced visibility and a slight smoky smell. Northwestern Medicine recently performed a rare quadruple organ transplant. A new whimsically-colored piano has popped up at Navy Pier, thanks to the group Chicago Plays. Plus, the big draw in Chicago theater this summer is “Iceboy! The Musical.” The world premiere currently running at the Goodman is a spoof of playwright Eugene O’Neill’s process for writing the play “The Iceman Cometh.” It features real-life married couple Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman, who have both starred in popular TV comedies.

The appointment of Dr. Garth Walker to lead the Chicago Department of Public Health has sailed through a key city council panel. People who live in Chicago’s most heat-vulnerable neighborhoods will soon have improved cooling options. A new analysis says Illinois residents lost nearly $8 billion to sports betting last year. Plus, Vladimir Putin’s government made it illegal to criticize the war after Russia invaded Ukraine. But one Russian family couldn’t hold back their outrage. That led to persecution and a frantic effort to seek asylum in the U.S. — a country with a long history of protecting Russian dissidents. Instead of being welcomed, some of the family has been in detention for almost nine months. The rest of the family is in Chicago’s northern suburbs, trying to get them out.