Investigation Clean Dumps May Not Be So Clean, State Suit Charges Quarries doubling as demolition waste sites threaten to contaminate local water sources, Attorney General Madigan and others warn. Jun 29, 2018 6:00 AM
Investigation Explore CHA Elevator Data Use this database to check the status of CHA residents’ elevators — failed inspections, violations, 911 calls and maintenance records. Jun 18, 2018 4:00 PM
Investigation CHA Tenants, In Their Own Words Hear from CHA tenants who say a functioning elevator is more than a luxury. Jun 7, 2018 6:00 AM
Investigation ‘It’s Not Something That Should Be Left to Politics’ — Tenants’ Lawyer The Chicago Housing Authority paid millions of dollars to private contractors on building upgrades without addressing an aging fleet of elevators, Part Three of a BGA/WBEZ investigation finds. Jun 6, 2018 6:00 AM
Investigation ‘Just Because an Elevator Fails an Inspection Doesn’t Mean It Is Dangerous’ — City Hall A citywide program to keep elevators safe is broken when it comes to public housing for the city’s poor, Part Two of a BGA/WBEZ investigation reveals. Jun 5, 2018 6:00 AM
Investigation Trapped: Neglected Elevators Put Chicago’s Public Housing Residents at Risk Unsafe elevators, shoddy record keeping and failed oversight at the CHA result in tenants, mostly elderly, living in fear of their own buildings, Part One of a BGA/WBEZ investigation finds. Jun 4, 2018 6:00 AM
Investigation Illinois’ Plan For $109 Million Haul From Volkswagen Emissions Scandal Draws Fire Critics say the state is keeping the public in the dark and trying to speed a process that they fear may ultimately benefit corporate interests more than people sickened by air pollution. Mar 30, 2018 12:25 PM
Investigation Strapped for Cash, Suburban Library Chooses Hiatus over Consolidation Residents in south suburban Riverdale get locked out of their public library for three months even while continuing to pay taxes to fund it. The secretive library board refuses to open its books and fails to comply with public records and open meetings law. Mar 16, 2018 6:00 AM
Investigation Berrios Firm’s Lobbying Client Gets Big Tax Break From His Assessor’s Office BGA investigation reveals how tobacco giant Altria saved hundreds of thousands of dollars in property taxes courtesy of the Cook County Assessor’s office run by Joseph Berrios, who co-owns a lobbying business hired by the firm to represent its interests. Mar 7, 2018 6:00 AM
Investigation Pritzker’s Storied Charity Costs Him Little But Taxpayers A Lot The wealthy governor candidate campaigns on his philanthropy, but records show most of his donated proceeds have first been filtered through offshore tax havens and a tax-exempt foundation. Feb 8, 2018 6:00 AM
Investigation A Veteran Cook County Judge Has Been Repeatedly Blocked from Hearing Sex Offense Cases. Here’s Why. An unprecedented investigation of court data finds systematic effort to keep Judge James Linn from deciding sex charges after a controversial ruling he made years ago. Oct 22, 2020 12:01 PM
Investigation Meet the Cook County Judge Defense Attorneys Least Want to Appear Before Judge Diane Gordon Cannon criticized for verbal outbursts, a pro-prosecution bent and jailing of probationers for sometimes-minor infractions. Oct 22, 2020 11:58 AM
Investigation O’Hare’s Billions in Broken Promises For more than 50 years, the airport has been plagued by corruption and costly delays. The politically connected cash in. Meanwhile, passengers trudge through a transit hub that persistently underperforms. Jul 24, 2019 6:00 AM