Get the latest news from around Illinois.
The Center Square: While some states move to secure voting, Illinois looks to expand access
As states around the country limit access to voting to prevent fraud, Illinois is going in the opposite direction.
During an Illinois House Ethics and Election Committee hearing, numerous proposals were discussed to make it easier for Illinoisans to vote. One measure being discussed, House Bill 4198, would allow an election authority to mail a vote by mail ballot to all qualified voters instead of sending notices and applications for permanent vote by mail status.
Chicago Tribune: Migrants go without showers, dig for food in trash at city’s ‘landing zone’ as they wait for shelter
Hundreds of migrants who recently arrived in Chicago have been staying in warming buses provided by the city and they haven’t taken a shower for days.
Many are hungry and sick with colds. Each night, they climb into eight warming buses to sleep at the Office of Emergency Management’s “landing zone” in the West Loop. The number of migrants has climbed to 324.
Chicago Sun-Times: CPS assistant principal stole $273K from after-school program, prosecutors say
The assistant principal first transferred money, thousands of dollars at a time, from her school’s PayPal account to a personal bank account.
Then, she faked checks to many of her own family members.
Daily Herald: More towns act to deter migrant drop-offs
More suburbs this week enacted rules to prevent migrant drop-offs, joining a growing list of municipalities that have adopted similar restrictions over the past month.
The latest regulations were adopted in towns including Palatine, Mount Prospect, Elk Grove Village, Bloomingdale, Libertyville, Mundelein and Oak Lawn.
Capitol News: Illinois Supreme Court to determine if cannabis odor can be cause for vehicle search
The Illinois Supreme Court heard arguments Wednesday as to whether the smell of cannabis alone is grounds for police officers to search a vehicle, marking a test of the state’s 2020 recreational marijuana legalization law.
The court heard two consolidated cases of individuals who were in vehicles that were searched after an officer used the smell of cannabis as probable cause.