WBEZ News

A new musical based on John Berendt’s best-selling book, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, opens this week.

Highland Park’s first fourth of July parade following the mass shooting two years ago drew a smaller than usual crowd. The parade was also shorter. Still, children were delighted by the various decorated cars, the Jesse White tumblers, as well as trinkets and candy being handed out. Some said they hope it is a good memory for the children.

A new investigation by The Marshall Project found over 100 cases of survivors who were punished for a crime committed by their abusers.
 
 The cases the Marshall Project found in Illinois involve a little known law called “The Theory of Accountability”
 
 It allows a person to be prosecuted for another person’s crime- if they assisted or helped. 
 
 Even -- in some cases -- if that help was provided only under threat of violence. 
 
 The Marshall Project’s Shannon Heffernan explains.
 **A heads up, this story includes descriptions of violence***

Two people were injured Saturday at 31st Street Beach after an argument left a 17-year-old girl shot in the shoulder and another person with a stab-wound to the arm. 
 
 Four people have been shot at the South Side beach in less than a month. 
 
 In response to the violence, Fourth Ward Alderman Lamont Robinson has implemented several measures to tighten security - and is calling on the Park District to enforce a 9 p.m. curfew at the beach. 
 
 Alderman Robinson is in the studio with me now.

The Chicago White Sox are looking to move from their home stadium in Bridgeport and set up shop closer to downtown.
 
 It comes 33 years after the team tore down Old Comiskey Park and erected what is now known as Guaranteed Rate Field in its place.
 
 A new book .. “Last Comiskey” provides dozens of photos from the last year of that beloved stadium at 35th and Shields. 
 
 Ken Smoller is the book’s author. 
 
 He joins us this morning. 
 HOST: PUENTE

In Illinois, hair stylists, barbers, nail techs and estheticians must have hundreds of hours of training to get their license. 
 
 80 percent of these beauty and cosmetology programs are run by for-profit companies. But after investing thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours, graduates are rarely better off than those with just a high school degree.
 
 WBEZ’s Esther Yoon-Ji Kang has the story. 
 Host: LANE

Yesterday’s stunning court hearing for the man accused of the mass shooting in north suburban Highland Park two years ago has victims’ families, survivors and residents reeling.
 
 Robert Crimo the Third rejected a plea deal from prosecutors during the hearing.
 
 Some family members of people killed in the 4th of July shooting believe Crimo intentionally went back on the deal in an effort to cause more pain.
 
 WBEZ’s Michael Puente reports. Host: Mary Dixon

A lot of Black, Brown and low-income students in Illinois who need a college degree to move up in the world go to for-profit colleges to get one.
 
 These companies promise a fast-track to graduation and a better job – one you can do while you’re working the job you already have or raising your kids. 
 
 But a WBEZ investigation found these schools too often leave students worse off than when they started.
 
 WBEZ’s Lisa Kurian Philip reports. Host: Mary Dixon

Defense attorneys for four former ComEd lobbyists and executives say a Supreme Court decision could win their clients a new trial. A jury convicted the lobbyists and executives last year of bribing ex-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan. But the high court today (WED) narrowed the bribery law used in-part to win those convictions. Prosecutors used that same law to charge Madigan - who is scheduled to go on trial in October. Federal prosecutors did not comment. Host: LARA

A road in west suburban Wheaton has seen dozens of car crashes with pedestrians and bicyclists over the past decade or so. 
 
 Many have resulted in severe injuries, including three deaths. 
 
 For years, residents of one apartment complex have been calling for the installation of a traffic signal to address the issue.
 
 WBEZ’s Jessica Alvarado Gamez has been following their journey.
 Host: Dixon

Ex-Chicago Alderman Ed Burke spent 54 years in city council — the longest reign in history.
 
 Now, he’ll spend two years in prison after a jury convicted him of using his power in office for private gain.
 
 A federal judge handed down the sentence today.
 
 WBEZ’s Mariah Woelfel joins us from federal court now for more.

At its peak, nearly 15,000 asylum seekers were living in 28 migrant shelters across Chicago. 
 
 More than half of those migrants have left since the city began rolling out shelter evictions this spring. Many moved to other cities, or are now renting. 
 
 About 600 migrants have re-entered the shelter system. Some others are ending up on the streets.
 
 WBEZ’s Adriana Cardona Maguigad has the story.
 Host: Mary Dixon

Anthony Freud, who has led Chicago’s Lyric Opera since 2011, is retiring this summer.
 
 The Lyric, like opera companies across the country, faces big challenges, like fewer subscribers … and a need to diversify the artform. 
 
 But Freud is hopeful. Before his departure, he gave WBEZ’s Courtney Kueppers a tour of the Lyric’s massive downtown building and shared what opera needs to do to stay relevant.
 Host: Mary Dixon

The use of automated license plate readers are having a big impact on investigations into highway shootings in Illinois. 
 
 That’s according to the Illinois State Police. 
 
 There have been 42 shootings on interstate highways so far this year.
 
 Illinois State Police Director Brendan Kelly says license plate readers have helped to identify an individual involved in the majority of the cases. 
 
 Director Kelly joins Michael Puente this morning to talk about this technology.

Around 30,000 Venezuelans have arrived in Chicago over the last two years.
 
 The influx has led to a backlash — to claims the migrants are fueling crime and taking up resources that longtime Chicago residents need.
 
 WBEZ’s Chip Mitchell is back from two weeks in Colombia, a country that’s received a much larger influx from Venezuela.
 
 Those two countries share a language, a religion and a nearly 14-hundred-mile border.
 
 But Chip reports that, even in Colombia, Venezuelans face xenophobia.

Residents of Chicago’s West Side have a new way to beat the heat.
 
 Humboldt Park Beach – the city’s only inland, man-made beach – re-opened to the public this week for the first time since 2019.
 
 WBEZ’s Lauren Frost talked to beachgoers on opening day, and has this story.

In Chicago, Venezuelan migrants are desperate for legal status and jobs.
 
 In South America, a country neighboring Venezuela has taken steps to give migrants just that.
 
 That country is Colombia.
 
 This week we’re looking at how Colombia has set up one of the world’s largest migratory amnesties.
 
 WBEZ’s Chip Mitchell spent two weeks there and reports the amnesty has boosted Colombia’s economy, but it’s now faltering.

Over the past two years, about 30,000 Venezuelan migrants have come to Chicago. 
 
 To get here, they cross a lot of dangerous borders.
 
 The first one separates Venezuela from Colombia.
 
 WBEZ’s Chip Mitchell takes us to that border.
 
 The story continues our series on Venezuelan migrants in Colombia.

Excitement was in the air Monday as candidates started filing petitions for Chicago’s first elected school board. 
 WBEZ’s Sarah Karp was there as the first candidates stepped up.

Meet a young mother who survived a harrowing journey across the border with her two young children to start a new life. Reporter: Chip Mitchell

Melina Sandoval is attending North Park University in the fall.
 
 She just graduated from Carl Schurz High School on Chicago’s North Side.
 
 Melina spoke to WBEZ’s Anna Savchenko about the challenges she faced as an undocumented student…and her dreams for her future.
 
 
 Host: LABUZ

nominating convention.
 
 This will be the third DNC held in Chicago since 1968. 
 
 These conventions are thrown with the help of THOUSANDS of volunteers from the Chicago area.
 
 WBEZ’s Mariah Woelfel spoke to volunteers from conventions past and present to get an inside look at the widely watched event. 
 Host: DIXON

Five University of Chicago students are in limbo because they took part in pro-Palestinian demonstrations. 
 
 College officials have put their degrees on hold.
 
 Some faculty say the decision raises questions about the university’s commitment to free speech. 
 
 W-B-E-Z’s Lisa Kurian Philip reports.

Jessie Montgomery is a leading voice of a new generation of classical composers. 
 
 She’s finishing up a prominent residency at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
 
 Her time at CSO will wrap after a series of concerts this weekend. But she’s not leaving Chicago. 
 
 WBEZ’s Courtney Kueppers sat down with Montgomery after a rehearsal at Symphony Center.

If prosecutors have it their way — ex-Chicago alderman Ed Burke would spend 10 years in federal prison.
 
 That would amount to one of the harshest public corruption sentences handed down in the city’s federal court in the last decade.
 
 Burke’s defense team is asking the judge for NO prison time for their client. 
 
 WBEZ’s Mariah Woelfel joins us now for more of what’s to come for the longest serving alderman in Chicago history.

You can drive from one end of Chicago to the other and never see or even hear a cicada. 
 
 But in certain pockets of the city where nature has persisted, they are loud and present. 
 
 WBEZ’s Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco spoke with residents on the far south side and far north side of the city to see how they’re coping with the overwhelming numbers of flying, red-eyed insects.
 Host: Mary Dixon

Chicago bluesman Buddy Guy will headline the city’s Blues Festival on Sunday. Guy’s set is an opportunity for audiences to see the blues great in the city that made him. WBEZ contributor Robert Loerzel has more. Host: Mary Dixon

The City of Evanston has a new flag, thanks to 7-year-old Bernie Allen-Harrah. 
 
 The rising second design was chosen as the winner of the Mayor’s Youth Flag Redesign Contest. 
 
 The competition was open to Evanston K-12 students. Finalists worked with professional designers who volunteered to help the contestants polish their creations. 
 
 Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Cianna Greaves

Illinois lawmakers wrapped up their legislative session last month once again without passing Karina's bill - or even calling it for a full vote.
 
 The measure would require judges to order the confiscation of guns from people who have emergency restraining orders against them. 
 
 The bill had bipartisan support, and advocates for domestic violence survivors say it would save lives. 
 
 So why is this popular, uncontroversial bill still stuck in committee?
 
 WBEZ’s Mawa Iqbal tried to get some answers.

Saturday saw the much anticipated match up between the Chicago Sky and the Indiana Fever. 
 
 The game featured three of the WNBA’s top rookies: 
 
 The Sky’s Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso against the Fever’s Catlin Clark. 
 
 In this match down in Indy, the Fever won by one point … 71 to 70. 
 
 Clark – who finished with 11 points – talks about an aggressive shove by the Sky’s Chennedy Carter.

Getting your driver’s license…going to prom … your first kiss.
 
 Now, for many teenagers in Chicago, you can add one more rite of passage to the high school experience: the launch of your very own streetwear brand.
 
 Most of the young people jumping on the trend are boys…motivated by a desire for money, fame or a way to express themselves.
 
 WBEZ’s Anna Savchenko picks up this story starting in the Roscoe Village neighborhood. Host: Mary Dixon

In the crucial hours after a shooting at a Pilsen high school… Chicago Public Schools staff slowed down the police investigation.
 
 That’s according to new reporting by the Illinois Answers Project, from the Better Government Association.
 
 Investigative reporter Peter Nickeas interviewed sources and reviewed thousands of pages of emails and other documents.

An election more than 7,000 miles away is impacting how Hindus in Chicago engage with their faith.
 
 WBEZ’s Adora Namigadde spoke with local Hindus who are grappling with how the leading candidate in India is representing their faith on the world stage.

Many migrants in Chicago are getting married, having babies, joining churches and sending their children to local schools. 
 
 But that’s not the end of THEIR journey. 
 
 WBEZ’s Adriana Cardona Maguigad takes us to two neighborhoods where newly arrived asylum seekers are adapting. Host: Mary Dixon

Joshua Allen has written for Empire on FOX, The Morning Show on Apple TV, and From Scratch on Netflix. 
 
 He has taken a short break from Hollywood to return to Chicago – as a playwright. 
 
 WBEZ’s Mike Davis has the story.
 Host: Mary Dixon

The Illinois state legislature wrapped its Spring Session before most alarm clocks rang this morning (WED)... after hours of back-and-forth theatrics.
 
 WBEZ statehouse reporter Alex Degman joins me now to break down what made the cut in the new state budget. 
 Host: Mary Dixon

It's a big day for Chicago foodies: Today is National Italian Beef Day. Reporter: Lauren Frost

Experts at the Field Museum say it's likely to stay that way. Reporter: Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco; Host: Melba Lara

FINOM — the experimental indie band from musicians Sima Cunningham and Macie Stewart — has a new album out today. 
 
 ‘Not God,’ is the Chicago duo’s first album under their new name. 
 
 Over the last decade, Cunningham and Stewart have carved a unique creative path across Chicago’s sonic landscape. 
 
 Sima and Macie join me now to talk a little bit about that journey and their new music. Host: Mary Dixon

President Michael Schill is one of three university leaders to face harsh questions and criticism from House Republicans today. Reporter: Lisa Kurian Philip; Host: Melba Lara

Singer-songwriter Andrew Bird spent most of his twenties hanging out at the Green Mill, the legendary jazz club in Uptown. 
 
 Now, the indie rocker is putting his own spin on classic jazz standards. 
 
 His latest album, Sunday Morning Put-On, features veteran improvisers like guitarist Jeff Parker and pianist Larry Goldings. 
 
 Bird walked WBEZ contributor Hannah Edgar through the creative process behind a few tracks. 
 Host: Mary Dixon

Greyhound could be evicted from its West Loop Chicago terminal come October. Transportation advocates are slamming the city for not stepping in with a solution. Half a million passengers pass through the station yearly. Flixbus, the company that owns Greyhound, says bus services aren’t ending. WBEZ’s Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco visited the terminal to talk to riders about why Greyound is important to them. :

Two experts from the regional EPA office join WBEZ to tell us what we can expect. Reporter: Lauren Frost; Host: Melba Lara

A North Side Chicago woman was one of the first advocates to help migrants when they were sent to police stations. 
 
 She's an immigrant herself, living here on a religious visa. 
 
 Due to backlogs with the federal office that oversees immigration, she and her husband are having a hard time finding a path to stay in the United States legally. 
 
 WBEZ’s Adriana Cardona Maguigad has her story. Host: Lisa Labuz

Northwestern University has come under fire from multiple directions.
 
 Northwestern President Michael Schill will face a Congressional committee next week for his part in it. 
 
 But the people who brokered the deal think it should be a model for resolving conflict on campus without calling in the cops.
 
 WBEZ's Lisa Kurian Philip reports. Host: Lisa Labuz

After confusion in the Democratic Cook County State’s Attorney race, city and county election officials look to report joint vote totals. Reporter: Noah Jennings; Host: Mary Dixon

From endorsing a new Bears’ stadium to revoking the subminimum wage, Johnson’s critics and allies examine where he and the city are going. Reporters: Fran Spielman, Mariah Woelfel, Tessa Weinberg; Host: Mary Dixon

As a musician, sound engineer and provocateur, Steve Albini was a dominant force across Chicago’s musical landscape for more than 40 years.
 
 He died of a heart attack late Tuesday at 61.
 Host: Mary Dixon

The abrupt closings of 17 Foxtrot and Dom’s stores in Chicago late last month are still reverberating. 
 
 It’s not just employees who were caught off guard with layoffs. 
 
 Dozens of Chicago-area vendors – from cold brew to snacks – are now trying to find new and creative ways to sustain their businesses. 
 
 WBEZ’s Esther Yoon-Ji Kang has their story.
 Host: Mary Dixon

This time of year, millions of birds cross Illinois each night on their spring migration north. Many will hit the windows of Chicago's skyline. Reporter: Lauren Frost; Host: Melba Lara