Mother Of Man Who Killed Chinese Scholar Begs For His Life
The mother of a former University of Illinois student convicted of killing a Chinese scholar told the jury deciding his fate that it would be horrible if he is put to death.
Watch CBS News
The mother of a former University of Illinois student convicted of killing a Chinese scholar told the jury deciding his fate that it would be horrible if he is put to death.
Brendt Christensen has shown very little emotion in this trial, but on Wednewsday, he broke down in tears and put his head down in his hand while his father also fought through tears in tears during his testimony.
A federal judge will allow jurors at the sentencing hearing of a former University of Illinois doctoral student to watch videos made by the mother and friends of the Chinese scholar he was convicted of kidnapping, torturing and killing.
Authorities say a Peoria man died after a 40-foot tree limb fell and struck him during a storm.
Brendt Christensen, who was found guilty Monday in the kidnapping and killing of Yingying Zhang, spoke about harming others months before he killed Zhang.
The remains of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen have been removed from St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York and are on their way to central Illinois.
Michelle Zortman described her ex-husband as a man with a bad drinking problem that derailed their marriage.
A central Illinois man who pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in the fatal stabbing of another man will likely spend the rest life behind bars after a judge sentenced him to 70 years in prison.
A federal prosecutor has shared with jurors grisly details of how they claim a former University of Illinois doctoral student kidnapped a visiting scholar from China, then brutally beat and killed her.
Opening statements are set for Wednesday in the death-penalty trial of a former University of Illinois graduate student charged with kidnapping, torturing and killing a visiting Chinese scholar, a case closely watched by Chinese students across the U.S.
A jury has been selected in the trial of a former graduate student accused of kidnapping and killing a University of Illinois scholar from China.
A lawyer for a Chinese family attending the U.S. trial of an ex-University of Illinois student charged with killing their daughter says he has been explaining to them how the American justice system works.
State climate experts say Illinois had the third wettest May on record and it was the sixth-consecutive month with above-average rainfall.
Bradley University posted a job opening for an Assistant Director of Diversity and Inclusion, however, the the job description stated the candidate "must be able to access non-ADA compliant building."
Angela Farnan has helped care for the tiniest patients in Peoria for more than 30 years, but when one mother said she could no longer care for her newborn, the pediatric intensive care nurse went above and beyond.
U.S. bishops are holding a retreat outside Chicago for "prayer and reflection" upon the sex abuse scandal in the Catholic Church.
Their son, Jose Ramirez, has also been charged in their deaths. The 21-year-old allegedly beat and stabbed them to death.
The bodies of Bradley University professor Susan Brill De Ramirez and her husband, Antonio Ramirez Barron were found near the Spoon River Bridge in Henry County, Ill., authorities said.
Authorities say a Peoria police officer fatally shot a 19-year-old man who fled from a vehicle after a traffic stop in the central Illinois city.
The lawsuit filed in federal court in Peoria late Sunday alleges officers shot Edward Russell Jr. at least 17 times as he lifted a garage door at the family's Peoria home with both hands. He was a suspect in a bank robbery.
A 16-year-old male has been charged with murder for a shooting that left a Bradley University student from Chicago and a Peoria man dead.
Federal law enforcement officials on Thursday executed search warrants at three Caterpillar locations, including the corporate headquarters in Peoria.
Senior Chief Petty Officer William "Ryan" Owens was the first U.S. combat casualty since President Donald Trump took office in January.
After nearly a century in central Illinois, Caterpillar Inc. has abandoned plans to build a new headquarters complex in Peoria, and has announced it is moving its corporate offices to Chicago.
The U.S. Navy sailor who died over the weekend in a raid against al-Quaida has been identified as a sailor from Peoria.
At least two people were shot Wednesday afternoon in Chicago's Auburn Gresham neighborhood, just steps from St. Sabina Parish.
With U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky retiring at the end of her term, voters in Illinois' 9th Congressional District face a crowded field of candidates to fill the seat with a new representative for the first time since 1998.
A man who was arrested on child sexual abuse charges in Illinois is facing additional charges in the Bay Area in connection with the alleged sexual assault of a child in Vallejo, police said.
Arlington Heights fire officials said two people are safe, and one was rescued by a neighbor, after a garage fire Wednesday morning.
A man was critically injured after being struck by a vehicle Wednesday morning in northwest suburban Rolling Meadows.
With U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky retiring at the end of her term, voters in Illinois' 9th Congressional District face a crowded field of candidates to fill the seat with a new representative for the first time since 1998.
Hillary Clinton will appear for a deposition on Feb. 26, while former President Bill Clinton will appear on Feb. 27, according to the House Oversight Committee.
The House on Tuesday voted 217 to 214 to fund major parts of the government and end the partial shutdown.
All federal immigration agents in Minneapolis will begin wearing body cameras, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem said Monday, a policy that could be rolled out nationwide.
With U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi giving up his seat in the House to run for the Senate, voters in Illinois' 8th Congressional District face a crowded ballot in the Democratic primary on March 17.
This week marks Identity Theft Awareness Week, and Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza emphasized some safety tips Monday for avoiding and dealing with identity theft.
A controversial data center in Naperville, Illinois, could be the cause to pack a city council meeting there on Tuesday night.
Police in the west Chicago suburb of Geneva are warning of a scam involving spoofed phone numbers.
Protesters on Tuesday were cranking up the heat on Peoples Gas over a recently proposed rate hike that would add an additional $10 to $11 a month to utility bills.
A lawsuit filed late last month took Chicago-based McDonald's to task over the McRib sandwich, calling its name a form of false advertising.
Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital announced this week that it is planning to open a new pediatric hospital in the west Chicago suburb of Downers Grove.
It has been nearly six years since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and one of the many questions doctors are still working to answer concerns the long-term effects.
Leaders from Cook County, the Illinois Department of Human Services, and the Greater Chicago Food Depository denounced changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program on Wednesday.
The University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center has received a grant from The Ralph Lauren Corporate Foundation for a new cancer center.
Chicago's Lurie Children's Hospital said Tuesday that it is no longer initiating gender-affirming medical treatment for minors.
January may be the coldest time of the year, but Chicago is already looking forward to summer farmers' markets.
A development proposal issued this month calls for the replacement of a building housing a Giordiano's pizzeria in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood with a new mixed-use building with 28 residential units.
United Airlines flight attendants picketed outside Chicago's Willis Tower Thursday morning as they fought for a new contract.
WSCR-AM, 670 The Score, will begin a simulcast on 104.3 FM next month.
Does the Chicago Bears' dramatic improvement this season, culminating in their first playoff run in five years, change the discussion about where they will build a new stadium?
The members of Ratboys were teenagers when they met by chance, and now in their 30s, the Chicago band formed by two college friends almost two decades ago appears to be on the brink of something big.
Chuck Negron, a founding member of Three Dog Night whose lead vocals powered a string of hits for one of the top rock acts of the late 1960s and early '70s has died. He was 83.
Bad Bunny used his Grammy acceptance speech on Sunday to denounce U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and call for the end of the ongoing immigration crackdown.
The 2026 Grammy Awards recognized the best of the best in music from last year, with big wins for Kendrick Lamar and Bad Bunny. Here's the full list of winners and nominees.
Complete closure of the performing arts center in Washington, D.C., will start on July 4, Mr. Trump said. It's not yet clear how extensive the changes to the building might be.
On Wednesday, organizers of the South Side Irish Parade in the Beverly neighborhood the Tunnel to Towers Foundation as this year’s grand marshal.
Meteorologist Kylee Miller has the extended forecast.
President Trump has signed legislation that could change treatments and outcomes for pediatric cancer patients, and a 7-year-old boy from Illinois helped make it happen.
The members of Ratboys were teenagers when they met by chance, and now in their 30s, the Chicago band formed by two college friends almost two decades ago appears to be on the brink of something big. Dana Kozlov report.s
If you are mailing in your ballot, here's what you need to know.
Two shootings on Chicago's Near West Side remain unsolved Wednesday. A woman was killed in a UI Health parking garage, and 2 men were killed at White Castle.
Arlington Heights fire officials said two people are safe, and one was rescued by a neighbor, after a garage fire Wednesday morning.
Jasbleidys Hernandez details how life has been for her and her children after her husband was arrested by federal agents last October.
Illinois state Rep. Kam Buckner (D-Illinois) has introduced a bill that would authorize autonomous vehicle pilot programs in several counties.
At least two people were shot Wednesday afternoon in Chicago's Auburn Gresham neighborhood, just steps from St. Sabina Parish.
Cynthia Eason recounted the moment Chicago police officers raided her family's home in 2018.
Water bills could be going up in several Chicago suburbs and other parts of Illinois, as Illinois American Water seeks a rate increase to fund infrastructure improvements.
The case involves a Chicago grandmother, her daughter, and her four grandchildren, who all said that Chicago police officers pointed guns at them during the botched raid.
Former Mayor Rahm Emanuel no longer will have to testify about an alleged "code of silence" at the Chicago Police Department, after a federal judge reversed an earlier ruling that would have allowed him to take the stand in a lawsuit over a botched police raid.
John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County, the busiest trauma center in Illinois, is sounding an alarm, as doctors brace for an influx of patients because of federal funding cuts under the Trump administration's "One Big Beautiful Bill Act."
Chicago cut Milwaukee's lead to 90-84 late in the third quarter, but couldn't get any closer.
The Chicago Bulls are sending center Nikola Vučević to the Boston Celtics in exchange for guard Anfernee Simons, and the teams will also swap second-round draft picks as part of the deal.
Davis was the first player in the program's history to win the Illinois Gatorade Player of the Year.
The Detroit Pistons have agreed to acquire Kevin Huerter from the Chicago Bulls in a four-player, three-team deal, according to two people with knowledge of the trade.
The Northwestern Wildcats won't play in their new $862 million football stadium until their third home game of the 2026 season, when they'll host their Big Ten home opener at the new Ryan Field on Oct. 2.
At least two people were shot Wednesday afternoon in Chicago's Auburn Gresham neighborhood, just steps from St. Sabina Parish.
A man who was arrested on child sexual abuse charges in Illinois is facing additional charges in the Bay Area in connection with the alleged sexual assault of a child in Vallejo, police said.
Ryan Routh, the man convicted in a 2024 assassination attempt of President Trump at his Florida golf course, has been sentenced to life in prison.
The shooters remained at large Wednesday in two attacks that happened less than a mile apart on Chicago's Near West Side a day earlier.
The disappearance of "Today" show co-host Savannah Guthrie's mother, Nancy Guthrie, is being investigated as a crime.
