'Just Cause For Evictions' Ordinance Gets New Life At City Hall; Will Get Public Hearing, But Fate Unclear
Chicago currently allows "no-fault" evictions, but the ordinance backed by a group of progressive aldermen seeks to put an end to that.
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Chicago currently allows "no-fault" evictions, but the ordinance backed by a group of progressive aldermen seeks to put an end to that.
A class action lawsuit against the city claims police have routinely refused to release cars seized in drug cases, even after charges were dropped, and owners were entitled to get their vehicles back.
"We're excited to be playing baseball again. It's good to be back on the field, even without fans in the ballpark," Cubs executive vice president Mike Lufrano said.
Housing Commissioner Marisa Novara said tenants currently can be forced to move out of their homes with as little as 30 days' notice when a landlord decides to terminate or not renew their lease, or to increase their rent.
Austin missed City Council meetings in May and June, and was absent last week for a meeting of the Committee on Contracting Oversight and Equity, which she chairs.
Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd) said some pet stores circumvented the ban on selling animals from large-scale for-profit breeders by setting up fake non-profits as front organizations posing as rescue groups.
City Council committees will meet to talk about Chicago Police School Resource Officers in public schools.
The ordinance unanimously approved by aldermen on Wednesday would allow bars and restaurants with liquor licenses, but not liquor stores, to offer pre-mixed cocktails for pickup or delivery.
A group of aldermen this week sent Lightfoot a letter demanding a promise not to spend any of those funds on policing, but the mayor's office has made no such promises.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot has opposed entirely removing police officers from public schools, arguing it should be up to elected Local School Councils to decide if police should be stationed at individual schools.
Ald. Leslie Hairston (5th) said "it is time for this City Council to wake up and stop being dismissive" of progressive legislation, and urged aldermen to stop allowing progressive measures to get stuck in committee without a vote.
"He was unapologetically black, he was well studied on African history, and he made sure that everybody knew it. He will truly, truly be missed," Ald. Leslie Hairston (5th) said.
The "Police Free Schools Ordinance" would require CPD to terminate its $33 million contract to provide police officers as security at CPS buildings within 75 days.
The measure would set up new rules for landlords to follow before they could move forward with eviction proceedings against tenants over unpaid rent.
The family of Charles Myers filed a lawsuit against the city in 2017, accusing the paramedics of negligence.
The lawsuit comes two days after Mayor Lori Lightfoot blasted an unnamed alderman for recording and leaking a May 31 conference call in which she traded profanities with Ald. Raymond Lopez (15th).
The measure would allow the city's Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection to issue permits to any business that meets the requirements, without first needing City Council approval.
The ordinance would allow bars and restaurants with liquor licenses, but not liquor stores, to offer pre-mixed cocktails for pickup or delivery.
Ald. Raymond Lopez (15th) accused the mayor of being unprepared when looting spread from downtown to the neighborhoods more than a week ago.
"Any developer or any contractor that seeks City Council approval needs to take into account and consideration that there be some diversity and some parity when awarding some of these contracts," Ald. Gilbert Villegas (36th) said.
The measure would require landlords to provide 90 days notice to tenants who have lived in their units for more than 6 months before terminating or deciding not to renew their lease.
The City Council voted to prohibit employers from firing, demoting, or otherwise retaliating against workers who stay home because they have the virus, were exposed to it, or are caring for someone who does.
The building would include a 200-room hotel, 564 condos and apartments, a 687-stall parking garage, and 14 loading docks on Lower Michigan Avenue and Lower Illinois Street.
Sgt. Khalil Muhammad shot Ricardo Hayes, then 18, in the arm and chest in the Morgan Park neighborhood on Aug. 13, 2017. City attorneys said Hayes functions at the cognitive level of a first-grader.
Early on Aug. 13, 2017, Sgt. Khalil Muhammad shot Ricardo Hayes, then 18, in the arm and chest on the 11100 block of South Hermosa Avenue in Morgan Park.
Two people were rushed to the hospital from the scene of a fire in Chicago's South Shore neighborhood early Sunday morning.
A woman appeared in court Sunday on charges that she stabbed her 2-month-old daughter to death in a home on Chicago's Southwest Side.
One person was killed and four others were injured in a multi-vehicle crash on the Eisenhower Expressway in Chicago's western suburbs early Sunday.
A Chicago woman was killed overnight Saturday into Sunday on Interstate 65 in Crown Point, Indiana.
Six people were injured Saturday evening in a crash in Chicago's South Loop.
In a move aimed at curbing the growing problem of "teen takeovers," D.C. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro is threatening to bring charges against parents if their teens violate the local curfew.
State Rep. Josh Turek and State Sen. Zach Wahls squared off Thursday over which candidate can flip Iowa's open Republican-held Senate seat, as millions in outside spending reshapes the primary's final stretch.
Sens. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin say their concern is there may be more emergency exit doors than flight attendants in the event of an evacuation.
Ald. Jim Gardiner (45th) is suing the city of Chicago, its inspector general's office, and the Board of Ethics, accusing them of defamation.
The Supreme Court has maintained mail access to the abortion pill mifepristone, setting aside for now a lower court order that blocked abortion providers from prescribing the widely used drug through telehealth and shipping it to patients.
Chatham residents say they're losing a vital resource as Walgreen's prepares to close its store near 86th and Cottage Grove.
According to AAA, the average price of a gallon of regular gas in Chicago was $5.17 on Friday, up from $3.75 a year ago.
Peoples Gas and North Shore Gas Company customers are likely to see minor credits on their bills for the next three years, thanks to a $125 million settlement agreement announced Thursday by Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul.
Chicago gas prices are spiking as the war with Iran drags on, with regular gas nearing $6 in some spots and premium already selling for more than $7 in some places.
In the legal venue of anti-trust enforcement, the state is not taking on the Trump administration, but rather filling a void that state officials say the Trump administration has vacated.
Engineers at Northwestern University have created a wireless polygraph to detect stress.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson on Wednesday announced an expansion to the city's CARE Program, a specialized team that responds to mental health crises without police.
A Texas couple is filing a lawsuit accusing the AI company of guiding their teenage son in using drugs, resulting in a fatal overdose.
An American on the repatriation flight began showing symptoms of hantavirus and another "tested mildly PCR positive for the Andes virus," the Department of Health and Human Services says.
More than 100 people from a cruise ship dealing with an outbreak of the rare and deadly hantavirus are set to be disembarked.
Flight attendants at Chicago-based United Airlines have approved a new labor contract, marking their first pay increases in six years.
The Chicago Fire FC announced Wednesday morning that its new stadium in the South Loop will be named McDonald's Park.
U.S. prosecutors allege a man with multiple aliases used the name of the famed Astor family to scam a Mexican billionaire out of $450 million.
Thousands of people marched from the West Loop to Daley Plaza in downtown Chicago on Friday for May Day, with activists calling for workers' rights, stronger labor protections, and increased school funding.
A $170 million-plus plan announced this week will redevelop the Water Tower Place mall on the Magnificent Mile.
The Chicago-born house music track, which began as a personal poem in 1982 and became a defining anthem of the city's house music scene, has been selected for permanent preservation by the Library of Congress.
The Library of Congress revealed this year's list of 25 recordings to be preserved for future generations on the National Recording Registry.
David Allan Coe also had hits with "You Never Even Called Me By My Name" and "The Ride" among others.
Some youngsters got a behind-the-scenes look at the magic of making opera Sunday at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
Matt DeCaro, an actor who was a familiar face on the Chicago stage for many years, died this weekend.
Officials from Pakistan are spending the weekend in Tehran trying to negotiate a peace deal between the U.S. and Iran, while the U.S.S. Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier has returned home to Norfolk, Virginia. Wendy Gillette reports.
Suzanne Le Mignot’s cats, Luna and Luce, left a layer of fur on her hardwood floor in the living room, while Mary Kay Kleist introduces us to Fr. Daniel Kelly, who is celebrating his platinum jubilee as a priest.
The World Health Organization has declared the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda to be a global health emergency.
Meteorologist Mary Kay Kleist has your 7 a.m. First Alert Weather forecast for Sunday, May 17, 2026.
Jackie Kostek spent the morning at the starting line for the race.
One person was killed and four others were injured in a multi-vehicle crash on the Eisenhower Expressway in Chicago's western suburbs early Sunday.
One person was killed and seven were injured early Sunday morning in a four-vehicle crash that shut down the Eisenhower Expressway on Chicago's Near West Side.
A woman appeared in court Sunday on charges that she stabbed her 1-year-old daughter to death in a home on Chicago's Southwest Side.
Two people were rushed to the hospital from the scene of a fire in Chicago's South Shore neighborhood early Sunday morning.
A Chicago woman was killed overnight Saturday into Sunday on Interstate 65 in Crown Point, Indiana.
Pothole complaints continue everywhere, but especially on one street in the Pullman neighborhood on the South Side of Chicago.
People in Lincoln Park and Lakeview have rallied against a plan to build a new industrial ComEd electrical substation in their neighborhoods, pushing local and state leaders to get involved.
Monday marks one year since Illinois enacted Karina's Law — legislation aimed at taking firearms out of the hands of people accused of domestic abuse.
Tenants at a South Shore apartment building said they've noticed their rent fluctuating by hundreds of dollars a month due to a change in how their utility billing system is set up.
A man from the Chicago suburbs lost $69,000 of his savings to a scam by a thief using an AI-generated U.S. Marshals badge to intimidate him.
Murakami added his 17th homer in the fifth, a two-run shot to center off Jameson Taillon that traveled an estimated 428 feet.
Chris Brady had six saves for Chicago and has six shutouts this season.
Carson Kelly hit a tiebreaking single in the seventh inning and drove in four runs as the Chicago Cubs stopped a five-game White Sox winning streak with a 10-5 victory over their crosstown rival.
Randal Grichuk hit a two-run homer and drove in four runs, leading the Chicago White Sox to a 6-2 victory over the Kansas City Royals.
Ian Happ hit a long home run and five Chicago Cubs pitchers combined for a 2-0 shutout of the Atlanta Braves that snapped a four-game losing streak.
A woman appeared in court Sunday on charges that she stabbed her 2-month-old daughter to death in a home on Chicago's Southwest Side.
A motorcyclist was found with a gunshot wound on the Eisenhower Expressway on Chicago's West Side Saturday night.
The ages of the victims range from 19 to 55, according to Chicago police.
A Davison Township police chief released body camera video showing how a senior "water wars" prank brought an officer within milliseconds of opening fire on a student.
A man was found shot to death Thursday morning in Chicago's West Garfield Park neighborhood.
