In preparation for the Fourth of July weekend and the following weeks, the City of Aurora government has launched a citywide campaign for fireworks scofflaws. By City Code, fireworks are illegal in the State’s second-largest city, and the selling, possession, storage, and usage of fireworks now come with hefty fines.
By Peter Hancock A federal judge in Chicago handed down a one-year prison sentence Tuesday for a former State senator who once was chairperson of the Senate Labor Committee. Tom Cullerton, a Villa Park Democrat, pleaded guilty earlier this year to one count of embezzlement for receiving salary and benefits
June is Gun Violence Awareness Month and the statistics for mass shootings in the United States are riveting. The gun homicide rate is 26 times that of other high-income countries (gunpolicy.org). Much of the loss is incalculable. Journalist Fran Briggs asked Dr. Robert Renteria about the gun violence epidemic, the
June 13, 2022Dear editor; Some among us may ask questions of the purpose, or, the value of the public hearings being presented by the January 6 (2021) Committee of the House of Representatives. Most of us who have been paying attention to the various political maneuverings which have taken place
Another mass shooting. In a school. Oh, my. Thoughts and prayers. End of story. Until the next time. There will be a next time, dear reader, some where in these Disunited States of America. No community is immune any more. Even here in River City, we’ve had our own mass
Cyber-terrorism came to the front of my mind with the advent of the war in the Ukraine. If cornered, a thug such as Vladimir Putin might lash back with cyberwar tools. The Russians appear quite advanced at it, based on the many, damaging hacks of American businesses that appear to
As the world watches the atrocities and heartbreak play out, there appears no end to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Yet, sadly, at home, we are duty-bound to look back and pay tribute to the Americans who lost their lives in the domestic terrorist attack in Oklahoma City, Okla., 27 years
Illinois State representative Stephanie Kifowit (D-Oswego) has released the following statement on the reccent federal indictment of former House speaker Michael Madigan: “The federal indictment of corruption charges against former House speaker Michael Madigan is disturbing, but proof that justice will be served if wrongdoing by elected officials is uncovered.
The Kane County Chiefs of Police Association, in partnership with the Batavia Moose Lodge #682, announce the winners of the Louis Spuhler Award for outstanding police work in 2021. The co-winners are Aurora Police detective Christopher Cox, and Elgin Police K-9 senior patrolman Justin Brown. The following is a summary
Naperville Crime Stoppers are offering up to a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of one or more subject(s) involved in two incidents of criminal damage to property along the Riverwalk. The Naperville Park District Police Department is trying to identify the above subjects reference incidents that occurred
By John W. Whitehead & Nisha Whitehead We are a Nation on the brink of a nervous breakdown. Undeniably, the blowback from COVID-19 lockdowns and mandates continues to reverberate around the country, impacting the Nation’s struggling workplaces, choking the economy and justifying all manner of authoritarian tyrannies being inflicted on
By Peter Hancock State attorney general Kwame Raoul joined local and federal prosecutors Monday to announce new efforts to combat a rise in online child exploitation in Illinois. The efforts include greater outreach and education for parents and teachers, and a new mobile computer forensics unit that will be deployed
By Jerry Nowicki A case before the Illinois Supreme Court centers on whether a former Super Bowl MVP has a right to learn the identity of a woman who accused him of sexual harassment, allegedly leading to the termination of contracts between his energy services company and a subsidiary of
May 1, 2021Dear editor; Here we go again with the Monday Morning Quarter Backs (M.M.QBs). This 13- year old so-called “angel boy” was registered as a runaway by his mother. Then he returned home. Why is the media refraining from talking about what he was doing at 2:30 in the
The trial of Derek Chauvin, accused murderer of George Floyd is over, and justice has been served. One observer had noted that the crime scene was egregious and that the evidence against the accused was overwhelming. Had the jury voted to acquit, the response by the African-American community, not only
It’s been more than a year since armed white, plain-clothed, Louisville police officers ripped Breonna Taylor’s apartment door from its hinges and began firing. The botched no-knock warrant is reminiscent of the 1969 predawn police raid that killed Chicago Black Panther chairman, Fred Hampton, and defense minister, Mark Clark. Odds
Friends ask: “Why hasn’t Mike Madigan been indicted yet? After all, he has been under investigation for what must be a couple of years now.” My answer: It’s because the federal prosecutor is not confident he can prove that the former Illinois House speaker personally did anything illegal. I define
Scams abound these days and consumers need information to protect themselves. Did you know the office of the Illinois Attorney General offers help for consumers, not only to avoid scams and frauds, but to help with solving unfair billing and other issues? Find out about their services and how they
By Sarah Mansur Less than a week after a deadly attack on Asian Americans in Atlanta, governor JB Pritzker and members of the General Assembly’s Asian American Caucus spoke out against the murders and against discrimination generally toward the Asian American community. “I do not pretend to know the pain
By Brandy Gilliam, P.O.B.U.M.S. SOCIETY; Sandra González, Aurora Rapid Response Team We, the Aurora Grassroots Alliance, condemn Aurora mayor Richard Irvin and Police Chief Kristin Ziman’s inflammatory remarks about community activists during their February 3 media briefing on the City’s uptick in crime. Irvin opened the media briefing, after reciting
