A fast-moving fire in the 7900-block of South Coles Avenue gutted one home and heavily damaged two neighbors, aerial footage shows.

Residents in unincorporated Bensenville say rats from one property have spread through yards, prompting calls for village and county inspections and abatement.

A person was shot multiple times Monday night inside Midlothian’s Halftime Lounge. Two people drove off and police are asking witnesses to come forward.

Prosecutors say Gabriel Wilkins posed as an art student to photograph women and sexually abused one; he was ordered held and faces criminal sexual abuse and indecency counts. Investigators say more related reports are active.

Raging Waves reopens May 23 with a new temperature‑controlled wave pool and lazy river. Tickets start around $55 and season passes are available via payment plans.

State bills would add a 4% excise on short‑term rentals and deposit proceeds into a Community Land Trust Fund to buy and preserve permanently affordable homes. The measures shift collection toward platforms and could start Jan. 1, 2027.

Mayor Brandon Johnson urged the CTA board to pick a permanent president before the Northern Illinois Transit Authority law reshuffles who controls the agency. The law takes effect June 1 and board terms reset Sept. 1, compressing the timeline.

A teenage swimmer pulled from Lake Michigan near Waukegan’s harbor channel died after rescue crews recovered him and rushed him to a hospital, authorities said. The Lake County Coroner has not yet identified the boy.

One year after city crews cleared an Englewood junkyard, Chicago has filed to foreclose on eight vacant lots tied to the same owner to recover about $1.15M in fines.

A city commission backed $5 million in TIF and a land sale that advances Morgan Park Commons, moving phase one — about 70 apartments plus retail — closer to construction.

Security video shows a masked suspect robbing a suburban Chicago Venezuelan restaurant while the owner says he feared for his life.

A fight at Thornwood High's commencement in South Holland scattered families and prompted police to detain several guests, officials say. The ceremony later resumed.

Bob Grogan was elected Illinois GOP chair as certified primary data shows record-low Republican turnout and a steep suburban decline.