Free Republic

Dorothy Hoffner, a 104-year-old Chicago woman whose recent skydive could see her certified by Guinness World Records as the oldest person to ever jump from a plane, has died. Hoffner's close friend, Joe Conant, said she was found dead Monday morning by staff at the Brookdale Lake View senior living community. Conant said Hoffner apparently died in her sleep on Sunday night. Conant, who is a nurse, said he met Hoffner — whom he called Grandma at her request — several years ago while he was working as a caregiver for another resident at the senior living center. He said...

Multiple people are feared dead after a shooting during a Fourth of July parade in a Chicago suburb on Monday, officials said. Witnesses told local media that crowds of people fled the scene after shots were heard in Highland Park, Illinois. The Lake County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that a shooting took place and told people to stay away. The office did not confirm the number of victims. Local media reported that several people possibly died in the incident. Law enforcement sources told Fox32 that one person died. A video posted by a reporter showed people watching the parade before gunshots...

(WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- A video posted to social media shows dozens of teenagers fighting, as well as shouting and running from police outside Gurnee Mills Friday night. Latrisha Cole, who was parked at a nearby McDonald's, witnessed the incident and caught it on video. As of Saturday, the video has been viewed 15,000 times. She said teens were at the mall trying to go to the movies, but the theater closed at 7 p.m. and they were told to leave the property. "It was more of personal reasons with teens as to why they were fighting," Cole told WBBM. "Other...

The Latest on delays in counting votes cast for Tuesday's election in some Indiana counties (all times local): 4:20 p.m. Officials in a northwestern Indiana county plagued by vote counting delays are asking the FBI to investigate alleged violations of state election law. Porter County's commissioners asked the FBI on Wednesday to investigate "scores of alleged violations of Indiana Election Law submitted by poll workers, voters and the public" that the commissioners had received. The county hasn't reported any Election Day results due to an array of problems on Tuesday, including the need for 12 county polling sites to stay...

A dispute that threatens decade-old plans to build a western access road to O'Hare International Airport is headed to a federal agency, as the Illinois Toll Highway Authority sues the Canadian Pacific Railway. In a petition filed today, the tollway asked the U.S. Surface Transportation Board to allow it to force CP to sell or grant easements to the tollway for portions of railroad property immediately to the north of the railway's huge Bensenville Yards. The tollway indicated it also may eventually need access to the yard itself. The Surface Transportation Board is the federal agency that regulates railroads, and...

Just moments ago Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott, Jr. posted the photo above with the caption “FBI and Indiana State Police parked in front of Lake Ct. Gvt Ctr-approx 30 officers entered offices of Sheriff John Buncich”

They may not ride in crammed trains or carry angst over potholes but feuding presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton both want to fix America's infrastructure. The focus on improving public transit and highways couldn't come soon enough for local commuters, say two experts. "There is a desperate need to invest more into mass transit in Chicagoland," Regional Transportation Authority Chairman and former state senator Kirk Dillard said. "Most states significantly assist in the mass transit arena, but that is not the case today in Illinois," Dillard added, noting New York City budgets about $196 per capita on mass...

A Chicago man featured in a CNN documentary about the Windy City — talking about gang violence — was shot dead at the age of 22. Lee McCullum was featured in a 2014 episode of “Chicagoland" that focused in part on his desire to leave the high-crime Roseland neighborhood and go to college. He was previously pulled by gang affiliation, he said, but was eventually named to the honor roll and crowned prom king at his high school. The young man was found dead early Thursday morning with a gunshot wound to the head in the neighborhood just south of...

The president of CBS News is standing by one of the network's journalists who was arrested outside a Donald Trump rally that was canceled amid violence between Trump supporters and protesters. David Rhodes tweeted that journalist Sopan Deb, who was covering the rally at the University of Illinois' Chicago campus on Friday, was handcuffed and charged with resisting arrest. "On tape you see he did not resist, identified himself as working press," Rhodes said in his tweet. CBS News also aired footage of the rally and of Deb's arrest, which he managed to capture on tape. In the accompanying article,...

Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner has announced with members of the state general assembly a plan allowing the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) to add at least one additional lane in each direction to a 25-mile stretch of Interstate 55 near Chicago using a public-private partnership (P3) agreement. IDOT is allowed to use P3 agreements only if the general assembly adopts a resolution supporting a proposed project, a state law in place since 2011. This would be the first P3 managed lane project in the state. “By using existing resources to leverage private investment, we can build the type of infrastructure...

Banks should brace for assault as Arthur Andersen annihilator now controls world’s largest criminal conviction machine Meet Leslie Caldwell. President Obama has installed Ms. Caldwell, known as a “terror of a prosecutor,” as head of the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice. It has been over a decade since Ms. Caldwell destroyed Arthur Anderson, and with it, 85,000 jobs—only to be reversed by the Supreme Court nine to nothing (well after she went into private practice). Now the president has brought her back—with a big promotion—and the vengeance of DOJ already aimed at Credit Suisse, BNP Paribas and others....

An Illinois House committee endorsed a plan today to contribute $100 million in state funds toward construction of a Barack Obama presidential library in Chicago. The proposal, pushed by House Speaker Michael Madigan, goes to the full House next. Madigan said it's appropriate for Illinois to commit public funds for the library even though the state is grappling with serious financial problems.

Thirteen people, including a 3-year-old boy who suffered a gunshot wound to the head, were shot at a Chicago park in the Back of the Yards neighborhood Thursday night, authorities said. Ten adults and the 3-year-old were transported by Fire Department ambulances after the attack in the 1800 block of West 51st Street in the Back of the Yards neighborhood, said Fire Department Deputy District Chief James Mungovan at the scene. A 12th victim was believed to have driven himself to Little Company of Mary Hospital in Evergreen Park, a source said, citing preliminary information. Police said later a total...

Seven people were injured in an overnight shooting at a record release party at a nightclub in Chicago's South Side Gresham neighborhood. Police said three men opened fire inside Mr. G's Supperclub on the 1500 block of West 87th Street around 1:15 a.m. A fight had started at the release party for a local rapper, police said, and three men pulled out handguns and fired into the crowd.A 19-year-old woman was struck and taken to Christ Hospital in Oak Lawn. Six men, mostly in their 20s, were also wounded. Only one was transported by ambulance.

A federal appeals court has affirmed the convictions for the five defendants from the so-called Family Secrets trial against the Chicago Outfit as reported by Ann Pistone and Chuck Goudie for WLS. However, Judge Diane Wood -- a liberal hack who is on President Obama's short list for the Supreme Court -- would have reversed the convictions against one-time boss James Marcello and hitman Frank Calabrese Sr. on double jeopardy grounds. In expressing her complete ignorance on how the Mafia is structured she contended that because Marcello and Calabrese previously were charged with conspiracy for their roles with subsidiary street...

For Sale: Nine bedrooms. 19 bathrooms. One indoor basketball court. Den suitable for six NBA titles, five NBA most valuable player wards, two dunk contest titles and various championship rings and accolades — trophies not included. *snip* “Every weekend people from all over the world came to see Michael’s house,” Jordan’s former neighbor Lou Weisbach said. “There would be 1,500 to 2,000 cars every weekend. Limos would bring Navy personnel. Having his number on the gate, some people tried to paint that negatively. But it wasn’t about ego. He put it there so people could take a photograph to prove...

Lawyers for the five defendants convicted in the 2007 Family Secrets trial against the Chicago Outfit argued yesterday before a federal appeals court for a new trial as reported by Annie Sweeney for the Chicago Tribune: The criminal-defense lawyers faulted U.S. District Judge James Zagel for failing to inform lawyers on both sides during the trial after a juror expressed concern about her safety. The lawyers only learned of the issue weeks later when Zagel excused the juror, the attorneys said. Although U.S. Circuit Judge Diane Wood -- a liberal hack who is on President Obama's short list for the...

It's a good gig if you can get it. In 2002 James Capasso Jr. applied for a pension upon his supposed retirement from Laborers' Local 1001 as reported by Jason Grotto for the Chicago Tribune. However, he apparently never had a paying job with the local but merely served in "something of an honorary position" as an unpaid auditor. He was appointed in 1984 to the mysterious post by Ernest Kumerow, son-in-law of reputed Chicago Outfit overlord Anthony Accardo, and his timesheets were signed off "by two Local 1001 officials who were eventually ousted from the union because of ties...

Join us for the Chicagoland Speedway's 10-Year Anniversary and the first of the 10 races to determine the 2011 Chase Cup Champion.. 12 drivers have a chance to GIT R DONE! See ya there!

Hyatt apologized Friday morning for an incident in which heat lamps were turned on above workers on strike at the Park Hyatt Chicago hotel Thursday, saying a manager is responsible for the controversial move. Hotel workers on strike were taken by surprise Thursday morning when 10 heat lamps hanging above their picket line flipped on and stayed on for what they claim was nearly an hour.