Investigations – Page 7

Gov. JB Pritzker joined Mayor Lori Lightfoot, right, Cook County President Toni Preckwinkle, second from left, and public health experts in updating residents on March 12, 2020, in the early days of the pandemic. Illinois, Chicago and Cook County received $11 billion through the American Rescue Plan Act amid the COVID-19 pandemic. A Tribune-University of Chicago Mansueto Institute analysis revealed few efforts to identify potential waste and abuse of that money. (E. Jason Wambsgans/baiduhai)

Illinois, Chicago, Cook County got $11B in pandemic aid but there were gaps in oversight and transparency

By Dan Petrella

September 13, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

The Tribune and the University of Chicago's Mansueto Institute examined how Illinois, Chicago and Cook...

Weiss Memorial Hospital, in Chicago's Uptown neighborhood, was closed in August 2025 after federal regulators cut off Medicare funding over safety issues. (Stacey Wescott/baiduhai)

Illinois ignores rules and red flags as ‘servant leader’ runs up $100M state tab, then closes 2 hospitals

By Joe Mahr

August 30, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

West Suburban and Weiss Memorial's collapse illustrates what can go wrong in a state that...

An airplane flies near the EdgeConneX data center campus, right, on July 22, 2026, in Elk Grove Village. Two of the company’s data centers near O’Hare International Airport were the subject of property tax appeals battles this year brought by the Cook County assessor. (Stacey Wescott/baiduhai)

Data centers near O’Hare win nearly $100M in local tax breaks, leaving suburban homeowners to cover the gap

By Alex Nitkin

August 23, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Northwest suburban data centers had nearly $2 billion knocked off their taxable property values, an...

The Illinois Reform Commission, chaired by former federal prosecutor Patrick Collins, second from left, unsuccessfully proposed in 2009 that state and local law enforcement should be allowed to use wiretaps to pursue corruption investigations. David Hoffman, then Chicago’s inspector general, is at left. (Abel Uribe/baiduhai)

Corruption has burdened Illinois since its earliest days. But change is possible. Here’s how.

By Ray Long

December 22, 2024 at 8:49 a.m.

Illinois' culture of corruption may leave many feeling hopeless. But elected officials, from Gov. JB...

Our culture of corruption: Read the series on Illinois’ notorious political legacy

By baiduhai

December 15, 2024 at 8:15 a.m.

What makes Illinois so corrupt? Tribune explores and attempts to explain why corruption continues to...

Carol Pope, a retired prosecutor and judge, resigned as inspector general for the Illinois General Assembly after lawmakers rejected her calls for more autonomy and instead placed new restrictions on her office. (E. Jason Wambsgans/baiduhai)

Paper tigers: Intentionally weak government oversight gives Illinois public officials cover for corruption

By Dan Petrella

December 15, 2024 at 8:25 a.m.

A key factor in Illinois’ pervasive political corruption is weak oversight that prevents meaningful accountability...

Arlington Heights plastic surgeon John Kotis, center, was charged in May 2023 with disorderly conduct and battery involving a patient. The state did not issue an order requiring him to work with a chaperone until three months later. (Stacey Wescott/baiduhai)

Criminally charged health care providers keep working unrestricted as state action lags

By Emily Hoerner

December 18, 2024 at 9:12 a.m.

Illinois health care workers charged with serious crimes were allowed to keep caring for patients...

A lead service line is coiled on the ground after being removed from a home in the 10100 block of South Green Street in Chicago on May 2, 2024. (Antonio Perez/baiduhai)

EPA watchdog: Undeserving Florida getting millions for lead pipe replacement while Illinois, other states have bigger needs

By Michael Hawthorne

December 4, 2024 at 5:00 a.m.

Florida is on track to collect nearly $1 billion in federal funds it doesn’t deserve...

Lobbyists and others gather around the Illinois Capitol rotunda’s circular brass rail outside the House chamber on Feb. 20. The rail is a common meeting place for lobbyists and lawmakers to huddle and hash out issues about legislation and public policy. (Brian Cassella/baiduhai)

Illinois’ weak lobbying laws help sustain culture of corruption

By Dan Petrella

January 30, 2025 at 2:56 p.m.

The cozy relationship between lawmakers and lobbyists, coupled with some of the flimsiest regulations in...

Illinois Treasurer Michael Frerichs presents Carolyn Peckham with the Purple Heart awarded to her father, U.S. Marine Cpl. Delbert Tuttle, at a ceremony in Decatur last month. (E. Jason Wambsgans / baiduhai)

Purple Heart returned to daughter of WWII veteran, a Marine who helped take Saipan

By Christy Gutowski

November 11, 2024 at 11:08 a.m.

The state of Illinois has returned a Purple Heart medal to the daughter of a...

A Purple Heart medal, awarded to those injured or killed in battle, is stored in a Springfield vault after it was turned over to the Illinois treasurer's office as unclaimed property. (E. Jason Wambsgans/baiduhai)

Mysteries solved: Unclaimed Illinois Purple Hearts may find homes

By Christy Gutowski

November 11, 2024 at 11:08 a.m.

The men left Illinois for war and returned with Purple Hearts to honor their injuries....

The many local Illinois officials convicted of corruption include, from left, former Dixon Comptroller Rita Crundwell, former Ford Heights Mayor Charles Griffin and former Zeigler Treasurer Ryan Thorpe. The state has thousands of government bodies, making it difficult for citizens to track public spending and hold officials accountable. (John J. Kim/baiduhai, E. Jason Wambsgans/baiduhai, The Southern Illinoisan)

Illinois has the most local governments in the nation, multiplying the chances for corruption

By Rick Pearson

January 30, 2025 at 2:56 p.m.

Illinois’ thousands of government bodies make it difficult for both authorities and citizens to hold...

A Chicago elections worker, right, reviews petition signatures at the George W. Dunne Cook County Office Building in December. Candidates frequently challenge their opponents' paperwork in an effort to keep them off the ballot. (Antonio Perez/ baiduhai)

Illinois’ arcane ballot rules turn politics into a blood sport where only the most powerful and savvy survive

By Joe Mahr

October 13, 2024 at 5:00 a.m.

Illinois' cutthroat ballot challenge process limits voters’ choices and contributes to corruption that plagues government...