Good morning, Chicago.
DuPage County and county Sheriff James Mendrick have reached an $11 million settlement with the estate of Reneyda Aguilar-Hurtado, a 50-year-old mother who died in June 2023 after being held in the county jail for 85 days while awaiting transfer to a state-run mental health center.
The settlement caps a federal lawsuit brought by Aguilar-Hurtado’s daughter, Cristal Moreno Aguilar, accusing the county, Mendrick and 11 jail medical staff members or corrections officers of repeatedly failing to act as her mother’s health rapidly deteriorated.
A county pathologist determined her death was due, in part, to “medical neglect.”
Mendrick, who recently announced his intent to forgo a third term as sheriff and instead seek the Republican nomination for Illinois governor in 2026, declined to comment through his spokesperson. So, too, did County Board Chair Deborah Conroy.
“Reneyda’s tragic death never should have happened,” said Michael Mead, an attorney for the family, in a statement. “It was preventable and the loss that her family experienced cannot be made whole. We hope that the settlement provides justice and some closure for her family.”
Read the full story from the Tribune’s Jonathan Bullington.
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DOGE cuts impact U.S. Army Corps Griffith location; lease being terminated
As the Department of Government Efficiency continues to make cuts, one Northwest Indiana agency is affected.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Griffith lease will be terminated, according to DOGE’s website. The Griffith location’s annual lease is $85,467, according to the agency, and the cancellation will lead to $370,357 in total savings.
Five years ago, COVID gripped the world in fear. Now local scientists, doctors warn Trump’s policies are weakening public health.
As the five-year anniversary of the pandemic approaches, the threat of the virus has been drastically reduced, with low rates of transmission and hospitalization across much of the nation.
Yet local medical experts and scientists caution against letting down the nation’s guard against the ever-evolving virus as well as other health epidemics — and even another potential pandemic — that might emerge in the future.
Illinois Democratic lawmakers hear from public frustrated about President Donald Trump’s initiatives
Across the Chicago area — and, indeed, the country — thousands of people are ramping up their political activity in response to the whirlwind early days of the second Trump administration. Some members of Congress are feeling the public outrage in the sheer volume of people calling their offices, attending virtual gatherings and appearing at rallies and public events.
Data from hundreds of thousands of CPS students exposed in recent breach
Information from hundreds of thousands of current and former Chicago Public School students has been exposed following a data breach, according to district officials. In a letter to parents Friday, they said there was no evidence suggesting any information had been misused.
Some groups want federal protection for Great Lakes gray wolves dropped as role of Endangered Species Act examined
Gray wolves represent a success story for conservationists after the species almost went extinct in the lower 48 states by the mid-20th century due to rampant hunting and trapping. They are also an example of how the Endangered Species Act of 1973 has become a political football.
Last week, Republican lawmakers in the U.S. Committee on Natural Resources argued at an oversight meeting that the Endangered Species Act was an overreach of federal authority and an ambiguous statute, as part of a broader reexamination of conservation laws.
Angel Reese is dominating in Unrivaled. Has the league prepared her to take the next step with the Chicago Sky?
Unrivaled offers WNBA players plenty of perks — warm weather, shiny new facilities, a lucrative contract without the need to play abroad. But for Angel Reese, the league’s most important benefit is the opportunity to develop her game ahead of her second season with the Sky.
Reese is dominating in her comfort zone in Unrivaled, averaging 13.3 points and a league-high 12.1 rebounds. But with only one week left in the Unrivaled season, Reese faces a new question: Can that success translate to the WNBA?
Column: Chicago Cubs — back as NL Central favorites again — will only go as far as their bullpen takes them
The Chicago Cubs enter 2025 as the consensus favorites to win the National League Central, thanks to the addition of Kyle Tucker and a general lack of offseason spending by their division counterparts.
While it should be a given considering the team’s many resources and big-market status, this is a new feeling for some in the organization, writes Paul Sullivan.
Premier League coming to Chicago for Summer Series at Soldier Field
Grab your banners and get ready for some English football, Chicago.
The Premier League announced it is coming to Soldier Field in July for its Summer Series exhibition tournament, the first time its storied teams will meet head-to-head in Chicago, and the latest high-profile event to put the city on the international sports stage.
A timeline of how actor Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa died at their New Mexico home
Actor Gene Hackman died of heart disease a full week after his wife died from hantavirus in their New Mexico home, likely unaware that she was dead because he was in the advanced stages of Alzheimer’s disease, authorities revealed.
Here’s a timeline of events surrounding the couple’s deaths.
Chicago Woman’s Club led the way on issues from juvenile justice reform to birth control
Long before women could vote, the Chicago Woman’s Club was a vocal champion of social reform. In 1904, its president offered a newspaper reporter an assessment of the organization that must have seemed candid, or self-serving, depending on the eye of the beholder.
“While men’s clubs spend their time drinking, smoking, telling stories, and perhaps gambling, women are planning in their organizations for the establishment of kindergartens and for caring for their unfortunate sisters,” Ellen Martin Henrotin wrote in the Tribune under the headline, “Superiority of Women’s Clubs.”
Chicago restaurants and bars with St. Patrick’s Day specials
With the annual St. Patrick’s Day parade and Chicago River dyeing happening at 10 a.m. Saturday and the actual holiday falling Monday, the Windy City is going to be spending a long weekend celebrating its Irish heritage this year. Bars and restaurants are getting into the spirit by serving traditional food, hosting bashes with spectacular riverfront views and bottomless drinks and bringing in Irish musicians and dancers. Wear something green and celebrate St. Patrick’s Day Chirish style at one of these 57 spots.