When Lisa Creason was a 19-year-old single mom, she robbed a Subway shop. Or, at least, she tried to. One evening in 1993, she walked in without a plan, without an ultimatum, and demanded money from the cash register. When she was denied, she took off.

That spontaneous decision, which she said she made out of desperation to provide for her baby girl, would cost her for the next two decades.

But it never defined her.

By a one-vote margin, a bitterly divided Illinois Supreme Court today rejected as unconstitutional a proposed referendum to change the manner in which state lawmakers remap House and Senate district boundaries every decade.

Splitting along partisan lines, four Democratic justices ruled that, “no matter now appealing” the Independent Maps plan was, “It is our role to review all ballot initiatives for constitutional merit only.”

A sharply divided Illinois Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a voter referendum seeking to change how the state draws political boundaries is unconstitutional — a decision Gov. Bruce Rauner blasted as “an affront to our democracy.”

The ruling, which means the referendum can’t appear on the November ballot, affirms a Cook County judge’s decision that the proposal violated provisions of the state constitution.

Taxpayers fed up with ever-increasing property taxes have more options to voice their displeasure to elected officials, many of whom don’t seem to care.

Every five days, on average, a Chicago police officer fired a gun at someone.

In 435 shootings over a recent six-year span, officers killed 92 people and wounded 170 others.

While a few of those incidents captured widespread attention, they occurred with such brutal regularity — and with scant information provided by police — that most have escaped public scrutiny.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel on Thursday intensified his efforts to round up the 26 City Council votes needed to slap a 29.5 percent tax on water and sewer bills to save the largest of four city employee pension funds.

One day after beleaguered Chicago homeowners got hit with a $250 million property tax increase for teacher pensions, top mayoral aides asked aldermen during closed-door briefings to lower the boom on their constituents once again to save the Municipal Employees pension fund.

Last year: Gov. Bruce Rauner wants to reduce the state’s prison population by 25 percent within 10 years. This year: Rauner “wants to let 25 percent of the state’s prisoners loose into our communities.”

Put another way:

Last year, the governor’s pledge to overhaul the criminal justice system was met with rare bipartisan enthusiasm. This year, there’s an election.

Kraft Heinz laid off about 200 employees in the U.S. and Canada on Thursday, including some in Chicago, as part of ongoing efforts to reduce costs, the company said.

In a statement, Kraft Heinz spokesman Michael Mullen called the layoffs a “difficult but necessary decision.” He declined to say how many jobs were cut from the company’s Chicago workforce, which totals more than 2,000 people. The food manufacturer, which is co-headquartered in Chicago’s Aon Center and in Pittsburgh, also has a research and development facility in Glenview.

“We regret the impact this decision has on employees and their families. We appreciate the many contributions our colleagues have made to our company, and, as always, we are committed to treating all employees with the utmost respect and dignity throughout this process,” Mullen said in the statement.