Author: staff
Aurora Police Chief Kristen Ziman takes questions from reporters during a press conference on Feb. 16, 2019, the day after a mass shooting at Henry Pratt Co. in the city saw five Pratt employees killed and five Aurora police officers and a Pratt employee wounded. (Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune)
Hartman spent time in Cook County Jail before being released in March 2020, part of an effort to release low-risk detainees in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. She was put on a county electronic monitoring program with an ankle bracelet, and placed at a West Side facility that provides supportive and transitional housing.
“Breaks or transition times between meetings are not office time,” she wrote, seven times, in an email that cc’d the mayor’s then-chief of staff and a body person, a personal aide who takes care of a politician’s immediate needs, like providing a favorite snack or making sure they know who they’re about to talk with.
On Sept. 13, Cole shot and killed A’Meyah T. Brewton, 21, of Gurnee, as they posed before a mirror and took selfies with a handgun, Assistant State’s Attorney Robert Money told Judge Victoria Rossetti. Money said Cole, who was under the influence of marijuana, had removed the pistol’s magazine and a chambered bullet, but had then inadvertently reloaded the gun.
A state Department of Natural Resources release identified the victim as Donald Turner. The DNR release said he was swimming about 4:40 p.m. with his girlfriend when she began to struggle in the water. Turner went to her aid and got her to safety before going under water and not resurfacing, officials said.
“Six Flags is a great attraction within our community and families should feel safe when visiting Gurnee and the surrounding amenities,” Smith said. “During this incident, it was our priority to secure the area and make it a safe environment for all visitors and employees.”
A spokeswoman for the Anti-Cruelty Society, an animal welfare organization, said there is no “safe heat” for an animal to be left in a vehicle. To avoid injury or illness, the organization does not recommend leaving a dog in a vehicle regardless of weather, she said. Animals can suffer from heatstroke in 15 minutes, according to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
Sgt. Cassandra Williams, a 30-year department member and 18-year sergeant, told the Tribune that Jason Brown, then an acting commander, asked her on June 2, 2020, to take a team to his block after a neighbor saw someone who appeared to be videotaping or photographing his home, which they perceived as a safety threat. Months later, after she said Brown asked her whether officers were talking about the assignment and told her not to discuss it, Williams said she was given new, less desirable work duties.
Now that the pandemic happened, everyone is understanding that being in the great outdoors is a healing and helpful and nurturing thing for our mind, body and spirit. So now people are jumping on the bandwagon of what I’ve been saying for years about connecting with the great outdoors. During this pandemic, I have flourished even more. This pandemic has not stopped me at all because this is already my lifestyle, being in the outdoors, being in remote places. Now people are able to see that what I was trying to get them to experience, try it at least once, it can be beneficial.
West Dundee investigators were informed of the death of Alex T. Hall Jr., of Carpentersville, on Sunday, three days after he was injured at a gas station in the 700 block of South 8th St. during a traffic dispute that turned violent, police said. Hall had been hospitalized at Advocate Sherman Hospital in Elgin at the time of his death, the Kane County Coroner’s Office said.