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Crime Former school official accused of embezzling $1.5 million worth of chicken wings January 31, 2023 / 7:27 AM / CBS News A former official in a school district in the Chicago suburb of Harvey is accused in a bizarre scheme involving more than $1 million worth of stolen chicken wings, CBS Chicago reports. Vera Liddell is the former director of food services at Harvey School District 152. The Cook County State's Attorney's office alleges that Liddell launched an embezzlement scheme that resulted in the theft of wings that cost more than $1.5 million in taxpayer money. The alleged scheme...

CHICAGO - An 80-year-old Chicago man was hospitalized Monday morning after a home invasion on the Northwest Side where he shot and critically wounded one of the suspects. About 10:30 a.m., the elderly man responded to a knock on the door at his residence in the 8500 block of West Catherine Avenue in the O'Hare neighborhood, Chicago police said. 80-year-old man hospitalized after critically wounding home intruder: 'They're gonna fight back' A neighbor in the area says people are fed up with the crime and are starting to fight back. CHICAGO - An 80-year-old Chicago man was hospitalized Monday morning...

An 80-year-old Chicago man was hospitalized Monday following a home Monday morning home invasion in which he shot an intruder. The unidentified man responded to a knock on his door around 10:30 a.m. in the 8500 block of West Catherine Avenue, the Chicago Police Department reported.

Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) urged a pair of senators that previously led talks on police reform to revive their push to pass a bipartisan reform package in the wake of the death of Tyre Nichols after he was beaten by police in Memphis. Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Tim Scott (R-S.C.) led negotiations on a policing reform bill that failed in 2021 after the murder of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minnesota. After the House passed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, its Senate counterparts ultimately gave up on efforts to find a compromise.

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Plans are moving full speed ahead to open a migrant shelter in what was an abandoned school in Chicago's Woodlawn neighborhood, and after a community meeting Saturday afternoon, neighbors have a better idea of a timeline for the shelter to open. The city says it is ready to move in migrants as soon as Monday. But neighbors say they feel the plan was rushed with little community input. "We were hearing them, but they wasn't hearing us," said one neighbor. To start, 250 migrants will move into the shelter. It will remain a shelter for two years...

George Soros is the most dangerous man in America. The investor is intent on remaking the country to his liberal image, from our foreign policy priorities to undermining our criminal justice system. ... To see just how much law and order has eroded under George Soros-backed “progressive prosecutors,” consider Loudoun County, Virginia.. Buta Biberaj .... Soros dumped $659,000 into the Loudoun County commonwealth attorney race backing Biberaj for the position, which she won by a slim 49.5% to 47.5% margin despite the massive cash advantage. ... Biberaj is just one of 75 prosecutors nationwide who were backed by Soros for...

As Gov. J.B. Pritzker was signing a sweeping gun ban and gun registry many law enforcement officers are refusing to enforce, the Pritzker family was opening a gun range as part of a museum under construction in Somers, Wis. The new facility will house the Pritzker Military Museum & Library, located at 104 S. Michigan Ave., in downtown Chicago. Pritzker’s cousin James Nicholas Pritzker, who in 2013 announced he is a transsexual now known as Jennifer N. Pritzker, is behind the push to move the collection north. According to Kenosha News, “the gun range and facility will be about 22,000...

CHICAGO (TND) — Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot has proposed a solution to end rampant crime in her city: Stop using cash. Lightfoot suggested those afraid of being mugged opt to use digital forms of payments instead. During a debate for Lightfoot’s upcoming race to regain control of her seat, the topic of safety concerns, particularly those of street vendors, came up. We have been in Little Village working with street vendors, understanding what the nature of the crime is, making sure we're doing things in concert with them to help them make sure that their money is secure, not use...

CHICAGO -- At least 33 people have been shot, eight fatally, in weekend shootings across Chicago, police said. Two teens were shot, one fatally, Sunday afternoon while trying to buy a pair of shoes from a social media seller in West Pullman on the Far South Side. The teens, 17 and 18, were in a parked car about 2:05 p.m. in the 11900-block of South State Street when they met with the seller, Chicago police said. After the seller took money from them, he opened fire and struck both teens, authorities said. The 17-year-old boy was struck in the chest...

Chicago — A man who has been arrested 32 times by Chicago police since 2014 robbed and then engaged in a “firefight” with a concealed carry holder on a Green Line train during the Friday afternoon rush hour, authorities said Sunday. “It is a pure miracle by the grace of God that no one was killed, that no innocent bystander was killed,” Judge Maryam Ahmad remarked during the bail hearing for Darius Moss, 33. “This is just ridiculous. Ridiculous,” Ahmad continued before ordering Moss to pay a $25,000 deposit toward bail to be released before trial. Officials said a 25-year-old...

Gianno Caldwell is a Fox News contributor, author and activist. Raised on the south side of Chicago, Caldwell often credits his upbringing with helping him to be resilient and driven. When his teenage brother was murdered by random gunfire on a Chicago street corner one Friday morning last summer, Caldwell became a passionate spokesperson for justice. In particular, Caldwell has railed against the lax crime policies of liberal legislators and prosecutors in cities across the nation. He even testified in front of Congress recently, as someone who has been directly affected by the unchecked violence plaguing American cities. Caldwell...

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — A judge issued a temporary restraining order Friday blocking the new Illinois law banning assault-style weapons and high-capacity magazines. Effingham County Judge Joshua Morrison issued the order after former Republican candidate for attorney general Tom DeVore sued to block the law. DeVore said he’s representing hundreds of people from dozens of counties who argue the law violates their constitutional rights. Morrison’s ruling only applies to 850 plaintiffs listed in the lawsuit in Effingham County and four licensed gun dealers.

Left-leaning proponents of taxing the assets held by America’s billionaires have a new target: In lieu of a federal wealth tax, state lawmakers want to tax billionaires where they live, in states like California, Washington and New York. A group of legislators in statehouses across the country has coordinated to introduce bills simultaneously in seven states later this week, with the same goal of raising taxes on the rich. “The point here is to make sure we do at the state level what is not being done at the federal level,” said Gustavo Rivera (D), a New York state senator...

When guns are used to threaten or shoot at people, they paint a target on the backs of free expression and democracy as well spreading death and injuries. On Monday, Solomon Peña, a failed Republican political candidate in New Mexico, was charged with organizing and participating in a scheme with four other men to fire bullets into the homes of four Democratic lawmakers. It was just another example of firearms being used in a way that could quell free and open debate. One of the guns the assailants reportedly carried was an automatic rifle that could have, by firing many...

A burglar received a surprise when a Chicago homeowner caught him in the act and then held him at swordpoint until police arrived. Prosecutors said the victim left home in the 5900 block of South Honore to run some errands on Monday. When he opened the garage door upon returning, a stranger was inside. The victim “grabbed a sword and restrained the defendant” until police arrived, Assistant State’s Attorney Paul Sloan said during a bail hearing for the accused man, Eric Smith, on Tuesday. Chicago police officers placed Smith, 55, into custody after allegedly finding the victim’s power tools in...

Students at the University of Illinois Chicago who just started their winter semester are facing a third day of canceled classes Thursday as many instructors continue to strike. Talks between members of the faculty union and administrators failed to yield a contract agreement during bargaining Wednesday. The two sides have been at the table for nine months. The union said no additional bargaining sessions have been scheduled. UIC’s 900-member faculty union is pushing for higher minimum salaries and more investment in student mental health services. Administrators have said they are limited by tuition revenue and state funding. The work stoppage...

The Illinois State Rifle Association has filed a federal lawsuit challenging the state’s newly enacted assault weapons ban, saying the week-old law violates the Second Amendment “right of the people to keep and bear arms.” Plaintiffs also include: St. Clair County resident Dane Harrel; C4 Gun Store LLC; Marengo Guns Inc.; Firearms Policy Coalition, Inc.; and the Second Amendment Foundation. The lawsuit appears to be the first in federal court to challenge Illinois’ new weapons ban, but it is part of a burgeoning legal effort aimed at undoing the new law. Other lawsuits have been filed in state court. More...

CHICAGO (CBS) – At least five people were killed and 21 others were wounded in shootings across Chicago during the holiday weekend as of Sunday. The ages of the victims range from 17 to 56. In the first shooting of the weekend, a 25-year-old man was shot while walking, in the 2000 block of East 87th Street on the city's South Side, Friday evening. Police said around, 7:15 p.m., the victim was walking on the sidewalk when an unknown suspect came out of a gangway and shot at the victim. The victim was shot in the left bicep and was...

At least 80 county sheriffs and prosecutors have vowed not to enforce the new Illinois gun control law that bans 170 kinds of semi-automatic rifles and places limits on ammunition magazines. “The right to keep and bear arms for defense of life, liberty and property is regarded as an inalienable right by the people,” said Iroquois County Sheriff Clinton Perzee. “I, among many others, believe that [House Bill 5471] is a clear violation of the 2nd Amendment to the US Constitution,” he added. Perzee said he would not use his jail to detain people solely for violating the new gun...

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Thursday blamed a staffer working on her reelection campaign for sending out the widely condemned email asking teachers to incentivize students to volunteer for her with class credit, calling it a “mistake” after an investigation was launched into the matter. The “Windy City” mayor on Thursday denounced the recruiting initiative, placing the blame on her campaign staffer for sending the email to the official work inboxes of several Chicago Public Schools teachers a day earlier. According to WTTW News, the email reportedly sent by Lightfoot’s deputy campaign manager Megan Crane, encouraged teachers to offer students...