Any day now, Governor Bruce Rauner's criminal justice reform commission is expected to release its final set of recommendations. It's trying to figure out how to safely reduce Illinois' prison population by 25 percent over the next decade.
Ameya Pawar, a two-term Chicago alderman, on Tuesday became the first Democrat to formally announce he will seek his party’s nomination to run against incumbent Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner.
Pawar, who represents Chicago's 47th Ward, said he is running because he wants to tackle income inequality and criticized Rauner’s tenure.
Vermilion County Board Chair Mike Marron is appointing a bipartisan ad-hoc committee to investigate whether the county would function under a part-time chairman and professional administrator, the same leadership structure used in Peoria and McLean Counties. He says the county has expanded to where it may need someone with more experience in public administration.
On the 21st: We learned about a new state law that grants important labor protections to house cleaners, nannies and caregivers. Plus, the latest in Illinois politics.
Once again, an arbitrator acting under terms of the Champaign police union contract has ruled in favor of fired police officer Matt Rush, in one of the two charges cited for his 2016 dismissal.
Independent arbitrator Micheal Falvo determined that the Champaign County State’s Attorney’s refusal to use Rush as a courtroom witness was not valid grounds for firing Rush last April --- and that State’s Attorney Julia Rietz overstepped her bounds in doing so. The Illinois Fraternal Order of Police announced the arbitrator’s ruling on Monday.