Ward Room The state of Illinois has reached a new level of broke. Come Monday, it won’t have enough cash to bury its indigent dead. Illinois officials sent a letter to more than 600 funeral directors around the state to let them know there’s no money for funerals for individuals …

By Noah Shachtman Email Author August 2, 2011 The secret Patriot Act is staying secret. Two Senators have been warning for months that the government has a secret legal interpretation of the Patriot Act so broad that it amounts to an entirely different law — one that gives the feds …

BY FRAN SPIELMAN City Hall reporter fspielman@suntimes.com August 3, 2011 4:08PM Mayor Rahm Emanuel on Wednesday delivered on his campaign promise to bring college students from across the Midwest to Chicago for a weekend to convince them to start their careers and businesses here. On Oct. 13 and 14, 50 outstanding …

-CNC columnist James Warren: Emanuel’s budget report is “the equivalent of a superficially alluring velvet shiv” to the back of former Mayor Richard M. Daley’s administration. HIGH TIME Emanuel’s new top cop said police would continue to make arrests for marijuana possession but could issue tickets rather than jailing suspects. …

Posted 7/27/11 3:18 p.m. Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, who boldly declared last month that the war on drugs has failed, said she’s talked with Chicago’s new police Supt. Garry McCarthy about halting arrests for low-level drug possession offenses. “It’s pretty well known within the criminal justice system that …

City, CTA bumping up funding for train, bus patrols By Kristen Mack, Tribune reporter July 28, 2011 Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Chicago Transit Authority President Forrest Claypool on Wednesday touted a $10 million investment to hire 50 full-time police officers to patrol the rail and bus system. But a closer …

The Chicago Tribune reported Sunday that the overwhelming majority of Illinois legislators who voted for a narrowly-approved casino expansion bill, which would double the number of casinos throughout the state, have received political contributions totaling about $812,000 from the gaming industry since the beginning of 2010. Going back a full …

Published : Wednesday, 27 Jul 2011, 7:33 AM CDT FOX Chicago News Chicago – There is $100 million dollars worth of good news for Chicago’s hospitality industry: The National Restaurant Show will be in town next May, with 58,000 people attending. The announcement Tuesday came after Chicago presented an incentive …

BY FRAN SPIELMAN City Hall Reporter fspielman@suntimes.com July 19, 2011 2:28PM Former Mayor Richard M. Daley’s director of special events resigned her City Hall job while facing the prospect of being fired for refusing to cooperate in the city inspector general’s investigation into the Chicago Police Department’s handling of a …

By Dave Matthews, June 20, 2011 The trials for an Elmhurst family charged after a March fight and Tasing at Spring Inn have been pushed to Aug. 1 as their attorney continues to compile witnesses. “Ultimately, we’ll get justice,” attorney Vince Solano said. Solano represents Bryan, Brian and Steven Connell …