Crime

Crime

The 59-year-old was found about 7 p.m. in the 6700 block of South Chappel Avenue with a gunshot wound to his abdomen, police said.

By Sun-Times Wire

Crime

Man shot dead at Schiller Park bar

Crime

Services set for Chicago Police Officer Luis Huesca as off-duty killing ruled line-of-duty death

Crime

39-year-old slain in Oak Forest shooting remembered as 'loving father' who'd 'help anyone in need'

Crime

14-year-old boy charged with murder in South Loop shooting

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Crime

Homicides in Chicago: A list of every victim

An interactive database compiled from Sun-Times reporting and information from law enforcement agencies and the Cook County medical examiner’s office, updated daily.

By Sun-Times Wire

Crime

Priority Communities Dashboard

Track the pace of homicides and shootings in Chicago’s most violent areas, based on Sun-Times and city data.

By Sun-Times Wire

Voices from West Garfield Park

The Sun-Times spent months talking to residents who call West Garfield Park home. Read the full series below.

The Conservatory-Central Park Drive Green Line elevated train station overlooks a street lined with parked cars and trees.

West Garfield Park

What it’s like to live in Chicago’s most violent neighborhood

The Sun-Times spent months talking to residents who call West Garfield Park home. We share stories from nine of them.

By Andy Grimm

West Garfield Park

LiFE Restaurant in West Garfield Park aims to nourish community

By Andy Grimm

West Garfield Park

West Garfield Park activist fights to improve ‘wellness’ of community

By Andy Grimm

West Garfield Park

Former West Garfield Park gang member works to pull others out of isolation

By Andy Grimm

West Garfield Park

West Garfield Park business owner chooses to stay despite the violence

By Andy Grimm

West Garfield Park

Former West Garfield Park gang members look for peace

By Andy Grimm

West Garfield Park

West Garfield Park mom wonders if neighborhood is a safe place to raise kids

By Andy Grimm

A combined image using photos of Marlon English, Eroica Del Real, Aja Johnson, Carla Johnson and Jaree Noel.

Commentary

These are the voices of five survivors of Chicago’s violence

Each of their essays offers a peek into the ways violence rearranges a life. There are stories of loss and grief but also redemption, love, regret and shifting notions of justice.

Read

By The Trace

Crime

2 attempted sexual assaults reported in Lake View

Chicago police said they believe the same man attacked both women Monday night.

By Sun-Times Wire

South Deering

Woman dead, 2 children critical after car crash in South Deering

The woman struck a pole in the 3000 block of East 106th Street, police said.

By Sun-Times Wire

From left, Frances Walker's brother Arnold Walker and sister-in-law Maggie Walker wear pink and speak into news microphones at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse.

Crime

Tenant convicted of murdering, dismembering 69-year-old landlord on Northwest Side

After about 7½ hours of deliberations, the jury convicted Sandra Kolalou of all charges including first-degree murder, dismembering Frances Walker’s body, concealing a homicidal death and aggravated identity theft. Her attorney plans to appeal.

By Emmanuel Camarillo and Sophie Sherry

Crime

Police issue community warning in Greater Grand Crossing after string of arsons

All five of the fires took place within a few blocks of each other, and police said in some instances the fires have spread from the trash bins they’re started in to nearby homes and buildings.

By Sun-Times Wire

Chicago Police graduation at McCormick Place. Chicago Police shoulder patch.

Police Reform

Chicago police union files notice of appeal in case that would open serious discipline cases to the public

A judge has affirmed officers’ right to have an arbitrator decide their fate in serious cases, but has also said those hearings should be open because of the public interest in misconduct by police.

By Andy Grimm

Image from a video Chicago Police released of a person of interest they are seeking to identify in the investigation of the murder of Officer Luis Huesca early Sunday in the 3100 block of West 56th Street in Gage Park.

Crime

Chicago police release photos, video of person of interest sought in probe of Officer Luis Huesca slaying

A community alert asks for help in identifying the male “subject,” noting that he “should be considered armed and dangerous.” Meanwhile, those who knew Huesca have been left reeling. Rocio Lasso said she leaned on Huesca after her own son, Andres Vásquez Lasso, was killed in the line of duty last year.

By Tom Schuba and Jessica Ma

Crime

1 killed, 3 hurt in Oak Forest shooting

A person was detained at the scene for alleged involvement, police said. One of the victims, a 39-year-old man, died of a gunshot wound to the head, according to police and the Cook County medical examiners office.

By Sun-Times Wire

Officer Luis Huesca wears a light blue police uniform as he poses for a portrait in front of an American flag.

Crime

Chicago police officer is shot to death as his car is taken in Gage Park

Officer Luis Huesca, 30, was going home from work about 3 a.m. in the 3100 block of West 56th Street when a ShotSpotter alert went off, police Supt. Larry Snelling said. No one has been arrested.

By Mohammad Samra, Tom Schuba, and 1 more

Crime

Woman found fatally stabbed in Ashburn home

The 20-year-old was found Saturday in a bedroom of a home in the 7700 block of South Trumbull Avenue, police said.

By Sun-Times Wire

Crime

Man killed, another critically wounded in South Chicago shooting

Around 1:55 a.m., two men, both 42, were on a sidewalk in the 2500 block of East 83rd Street when both were struck by gunfire, Chicago police said.

By Mohammad Samra

Crime

1 killed, 2 hurt in Dan Ryan Expressway shooting

State troopers responded late Friday to the northbound lanes of Interstate 94 at Canalport Avenue for a report of shots fired, Illinois state police said.

By Sun-Times Wire

Crime

Woman killed, man injured in West Garfield Park

The two were driving in an alley just before 5 p.m. when several people started shooting from two cars, police said.

By Sun-Times Wire

Crime

Woman accused of killing, dismembering landlord takes stand in defense

Sandra Kolalou, 37, denied killing and then cutting up Frances Walker in 2022 at the Northwest Side home they shared.

By Matthew Hendrickson

Back of the Yards

A party, a cake — and then gunfire: Toddler and 7-year-old brother remain hospitalized after Back of Yards mass shooting

Aaron Mendez, 22 months old, suffered kidney damage and may have to have a kidney removed. His older brother, Isaiah, has been sedated since undergoing surgery. “I’m devastated to think I could have lost both of my kids that night,” their mother told the Sun-Times.

By David Struett and Kaitlin Washburn

Crime

Kim Foxx won't take sides on request by man facing rape trial for 'certificate of innocence' in murder case

William Dukes Jr. was acquitted of the 1993 killings of a Cicero woman and her granddaughter after a second trial in 2019. In 2022, he was arrested in an unrelated sexual assault case in Chicago.

By Frank Main and Matthew Hendrickson

Suburban Chicago

Two dead after apparent murder-suicide in Lemont motel

The bodies of Richard Crane, 62, and an unidentified woman were found shot at the D-Lux Budget Inn in southwest suburban Lemont.

By Sun-Times Wire

Crime

Man stabbed to death in Pilsen

The man was found with stab wounds around 4:15 a.m., police said.

By Sun-Times Wire

Other Views

25 years after my dad was killed, his murder is unsolved. Two bills could spur action on cold cases like his.

Send a message to criminals: Your actions will have consequences — no matter how much time passes. We can’t legislate all our problems away, but these bills now pending in the Illinois Legislature could pave the way for bringing closure to grieving families.

By Alicia Schemel

Crime

Joliet mother charged in death of girl, 12, who ingested heroin, fentanyl

Mya King, 12, was found unresponsive Sunday morning and died Wednesday. Her mother, Colette Bancroft, was charged with possession of a controlled substance.

By Sun-Times Wire

Miracle Boyd, wearing a pink shirt and green headband, gives public comment while standing at a lectern microphone during a Chicago Police Board meeting at CPD Headquarters on April 18, 2024.

Dexter Reed Shooting

Protesters demand firing of top cop and officers who fatally shot Dexter Reed

At a rally at police headquarters, community members called for greater transparency of the investigation, a halt to the use of tactical units and an end to pretextual traffic stops.

By Emmanuel Camarillo