The state of Illinois’ backlog of unpaid bills has climbed to nearly $4 billion – the largest total in state history.Comptroller Daniel Hynes warned on Thursday that state finances are so bad that the backlog could hit $5 billion by next spring.The Chicago Democrat says it would be an understatement to call this an imminent […]
MALIBU, Calif. — Ryan O’Neal and his son have delayed entering pleas in their felony drug cases until after the new year.The Oscar-nominated actor and his son appeared in court Thursday morning, where attorneys asked a judge for more time to review evidence. The 67-year-old actor and his 23-year-old son were ordered to return on […]
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A white supremacist charged with plotting to kill President-elect Barack Obama and other black people wants his indictment dismissed, arguing that the federal grand jury that charged him had too many black members.Twenty-year-old Daniel Cowart of rural West Tennessee and 18-year-old Paul Schlesselman of Helena-West Helena, Ark., face charges including threatening a […]
WASHINGTON — The Postal Service ended its fiscal year $2.8 billion in the red, battered by a faltering economy that cut the amount of mail being sent.Postmaster General John Potter said the agency is making sharp cuts in hours and overtime, but added there are no plans for layoffs. The mail being sent dropped by […]
A Chicago family filed a federal lawsuit today alleging that police officers unlawfully broke into their West Side home and assaulted them verbally and physically on election night during a neighborhood celebration of Barack Obama’s victory.Five members of the Arnold family, ranging in age from 1 to 18, were on their front porch in the […]
According to a Times source, the paper has assigned Patrick Healy, one of its up-and-coming political reporters, to cover Broadway. He replaces Campbell Robertson, who recently relocated from the Great White Way to the Green Zone, joining the paper’s Bagdad bureau over the summer.Among Healy’s more widely-read stories on the politics beat was a nudge-nudge […]
LOS ANGELES — Fashion designer Anand Jon Alexander was convicted Thursday of sexually assaulting girls and women, some of them aspiring models who authorities say were lured to Los Angeles with rarely fulfilled promises of jobs and stays at luxury hotels.After nearly two weeks of deliberation, a jury found the 34-year-old designer guilty of 20 […]
WASHINGTON — A high-level aide to California Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer has been charged in federal court with receiving and distributing child pornography.The aide, Jeff Rosato, 32, was arrested last Friday. Boxer’s office fired him that same day upon learning of the charges. Rosato appeared in federal court in suburban northern Virginia on Wednesday and […]
With the school year well under way, and Thanksgiving on the horizon, many fall athletes are winding down their seasons while winter athletes prepare to gear up for theirs.But as student athletes take the field, some parents worry about potential injuries to their children.Fear not. While students are at play, researchers are gathering data in […]
LONDON — Talk about an apprentice. By the time he turns 60 Friday, Prince Charles will have spent a lifetime in line to become king.That’s put him in quite a bind. The longest-waiting heir in British history only ascends to the throne when his beloved mother dies or decides to step down. Queen Elizabeth II […]
The extra 50-cent surcharge being added to Chicago cab fares will expire early Friday morning.City Consumer Services Commissioner Norma Reyes announced Thursday that the 50-cent gasoline surcharge for Chicago taxicabs will expire at 12:01 a.m. Friday.The surcharge was established through an ordinance approved April 9 by the City Council to provide relief for cab drivers […]
Fox is closing the book on ‘Mad TV’ after 14 seasons.Net confirmed Wednesday that the Saturday night sketch series, which had barely escaped cancellation in recent years, will end its run at the end of this season.