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It's Thursday. Read on for the latest headlines. Also, check your inboxes tomorrow afternoon for a brand new nature newsletter from WTTW News and reporter Patty Wetli. |
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(WTTW News) |
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A federal judge is set to decide whether Chicago police officers can turn off their body-worn cameras while being questioned by their supervisor immediately after they shoot a member of the public, court records show.
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s office urged U.S. District Court Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer to order CPD officers to keep their cameras on “in the immediate aftermath of an officer-involved shooting or death” over the objections of CPD leaders and city lawyers.
Those cameras must record the interactions in order to comply with state law and the federal court order requiring CPD to change the way it trains, supervises and disciplines officers, according to the attorney general’s office.
State law requires “officers to record on body-worn camera all law enforcement-related encounters or activities, and the consent decree specifies that, once an officer’s camera has been activated during a law enforcement-related activity, it must” continue to record until the end of the incident, according to lawyers for the attorney general.
More context:
Everything that occurs after a police officer shoots a member of the public and before the scene of the shooting is declared “safe and secure” by the commanding officer must be recorded by a body-worn camera “to ensure transparency, accountability and public trust,” according to the filing signed by Raoul.
However, lawyers for CPD and the city told the judge that officers should be allowed to turn off their cameras during what the department refers to as a “Public Safety Briefing” and “Walkthrough” which are designed to assist the officer in charge of the fatal incident and “address any ongoing life-safety threats and secure the scene.”
After months of negotiations between the Office of the Attorney General and CPD, it will be up to Pallmeyer to resolve the deadlock unless the two agencies reach a last-minute resolution.
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Jeremie Fant, director of conservation at Chicago Botanic Garden, has spent 15 years experimenting with growing native plants in containers on his condo’s small balcony. (Courtesy of Jeremie Fant) |
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As director of conservation at Chicago Botanic Garden, Jeremie Fant oversees programs that preserve, restore and promote native landscapes. While Fant’s “yard” is a 10-foot by 5-foot balcony off his third-floor Wicker Park condo, and his “garden” is a quartet of fiberglass pots, over the past 15 years, he estimates he’s tested some 200 prairie species in containers on his balcony.
Bucking conventional wisdom about both container gardening and gardening with natives, Fant set out to determine which plants would perform well in shallow pots and are also capable of weathering Chicago’s harsh winters without indoor shelter.
“I think the common dogma for a long time was ‘You’ve gotta put pots back inside.’ If you have a condo like me, and I don’t have a garage, there’s nowhere for me to put it. So my big thing is it’s got to survive the winter,” Fant said.
Native prairie plants’ deep root systems — ironically one of their biggest benefits — were another concern. How do you nurture such plants in a 12- or 18-inch pot?
For Chicago gardeners who, for lack of available green space, have felt left behind in the native gardening movement, Fant offers a rough blueprint to follow. |
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Charlie Kirk hands out hats before speaking at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025. (Tess Crowley/The Deseret News via AP) |
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Charlie Kirk, 31, the CEO and co-founder of the conservative youth organization Turning Point USA, was shot and killed Wednesday at an event at a Utah college.
President Donald Trump confirmed his death in a post on Truth Social, the president's social media platform.
Videos posted to social media show Kirk speaking into a handheld microphone at Utah Valley University, at Sorensen Center courtyard, sitting under a white tent emblazoned with the slogans, “The American Comeback” and “Prove Me Wrong.”
Kirk was raised in suburban Arlington Heights and attended Wheeling High School.
His shooting was one of an escalating number of attacks on political figures, from the assassination of a Democratic state lawmaker and her husband in Minnesota to last summer’s shooting of Trump, that have roiled the nation.
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Back in the Day: September 11, 1950 - Actress Amy Madigan Born in Chicago
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Actress Amy Madigan has had a career resurgence thanks to her role as Aunt Gladys in the popular 2025 horror movie “Weapons,” but her five-decade career features major appearances in beloved films like “Uncle Buck,” “Field of Dreams,” “Gone Baby Gone,” and dozens of others. On this day in 1950, the Academy Award and Golden Globe-nominated artist was born in Chicago. Her mother, Dolores, was an amateur actress who performed in community theatre, while her father, John, was a journalist who worked for Newsweek and was the news director for WBBM (AM). After growing up in Chicago, Madigan attended Marquette University in Milwaukee and moved to Los Angeles in 1974. She still lives there with her husband, the actor Ed Harris.
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This Week’s Arts and Culture Events
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Each Thursday, WTTW News arts correspondent Marc Vitali highlights the city’s must-see cultural events.
Marc Vitali: The arts scene in Chicago has zero chance of moving to Arlington Heights. Not to sleight the Heights, because it is home to the Metropolis Performing Arts Center and the fine, live music club Hey Nonny.
But Chicago arts hit higher heights. They’re deeply rooted, part of the city’s DNA, and they aren’t as moveable as a football team. Here are this week’s cultural points of interest, taking you from the South Loop to the North Side to… Arlington Heights.
“Mr. Wolf” – Steppenwolf Theatre
Steppenwolf launches its 50th anniversary season with a provocative show about a teenager, kidnapped as a toddler, who reunites with her family. Written by ensemble member Rajiv Joseph, the play pursues hard truths about familial bonds and the wolf at the door. A strong cast in a juicy family drama sounds tailor-made for the Steppenwolf syndicate. Previews start Sept. 11.
The Chicago Immigrant Orchestra – Epiphany Center for the Arts
Make plans to see a show at Epiphany, the former church renovated into a cultural hub that, not surprisingly, has a spiritual vibe. Here’s a good one: the Chicago Immigrant Orchestra, a 20-piece ensemble led by guitarist Fareed Haque. They played a rousing show in Millennium Park a few years back, and this album release concert is shaping up to be a mind-expanding melting pot of music. Sept 14.
“Faking the Band” – The Revival
The Revival is a sharp spot for improv and comedy on South Wabash. A recent addition to their roster is Faking the Band, in which a trio of comedians perform in a genuine band — a legendary group that never existed. The audience picks the songs while the band spin stories and play hits and obscurities. This sounds absurdly fun. Fridays and Saturdays in September.
“The Box Band with Howard Levy” – Hey Nonny / Arlington Heights
I just checked the nightclub Hey Nonny to see if anything of interest was happening this weekend. Oh, just one of the great harmonica players of our time, Howard Levy, sitting in with The Box Band. The Box Band is new to me, but if they’re okay by Howard, they’re okay by me. Yes, a Saturday night in the suburbs and a Grammy winner sits in with the band. We’re spoiled. Sept. 13.
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What’s your favorite Chicago Public Library or suburban branch? Tell us where, why and a recent thing you read from there.
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Email DailyChicagoan@wttw.com with your responses and your answers might be published. |
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