Why COVID-19 Is Hitting Some Illinois Nursing Homes Harder Than Others
Who owns a nursing home can be the difference between life and death, according to a new WBEZ analysis.
Criminal Justice
The investigative reporters on WBEZ’s criminal justice desk tell the stories of the thousands of individuals churning through the legal systems every year in Chicago, Cook County and Illinois and hold to account the powerful officials in charge of those systems. Covering policing, jails and prisons, gun violence and solutions to it, WBEZ’s Criminal Justice team works to bring understanding to some of the most difficult problems facing our region.
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Illinois Teen, Charged In Kenosha Protest Slayings, Posts $2M Bail
Kyle Rittenhouse, the 17-year-old charged with killing two people during a Wisconsin protest, posted bail and was released from custody.
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60 People Sue Over Alleged Police Brutality At Chicago Protests
The lawsuit is the latest effort by Chicago activists to force accountability on the Police Department for its handling of demonstrations.
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New Study: Bail Reform Not The Cause Of Rise In Chicago Gun Violence
Chicago leaders have repeatedly blamed gun violence on judges’ decisions about who gets released pretrial. Reforms in 2017 increased releases.
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Cutting Illinois’ Prison Population Won’t Mean More Crime, A New Report Says
A new study has found that long-term crime trends are driven by economic and demographic factors, like unemployment and teen pregnancy, and not by incarceration.
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Pandemic’s Deadly Toll Behind Bars Spurs Calls For Change In U.S. Jails And Prisons
More than 1,500 inmates and prison staff have died from from the coronavirus so far, according to a UCLA study.
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Sheriff Asks For Help Limiting COVID-19 Spread At Cook County Jail
Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart, who runs the jail, said Thursday he needs help reducing the jail’s population to slow COVID-19 spread.
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What Kim Foxx’s Reelection Says About Racial Politics, Fear And Justice In Chicago And Beyond
Cook County’s reform-minded prosecutor faced a law-and-order challenge from a white candidate in the midst of a crime spike.
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Bail Has Been Set At $2M For Accused Kenosha Shooter Kyle Rittenhouse
Rittenhouse, a 17-year-old from Antioch, Ill., is accused of fatally shooting two people during a Wisconsin protest. The court commissioner who set the bail called him a flight risk.
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Electronic Monitoring Is On The Rise In Illinois. How Is It Working?
WGN took a closer look at the rising number of people on electronic monitoring and how hundreds of participants are going AWOL.
