* Cook County: We can’t afford to police towns — unless they pay

Squeezed by budget cuts, several suburban police departments have talked with Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart’s office about policing their towns — but Cook County Board members say those law enforcement agencies would have to cover the costs and get county board approval.

* Stroger pulls appointment of ex-campaign manager

The county board typically endorses the president’s nominations, but some commissioners told the Sun-Times last week they were balking at the appointment of Williams.

* Watchdog: Stroger using county jobs to reward supporters, punish foes

* Stroger stymied in appointing former campaign manager to post

* Cook County Board nixes suburban police takeovers

Cook County suburbs looking to save money by dropping their police departments and handing over law enforcement to the sheriff would be out of luck under a measure the County Board approved Tuesday.

The resolution, approved with only one commissioner voting against, opposes allowing the sheriff’s department to take over primary police responsibilities in municipalities, as it did in Ford Heights. To hammer home the point, the measure states that no new funding will be provided for such efforts.

* Prognosis: Progress

The symptoms are troubling: Thousands of impoverished patients rely for their health care on Cook County facilities that don’t match their needs and that cost more than taxpayers can sustain.

The prognosis, though, has brightened. Apply the right treatments and everyone could win — the county health system’s patients, the underused infrastructure and the taxpayers who pay for it all.

* Mayor Daley: Not making gun owners jump through hoops with new law

“We’re not jumping through hoops. We have to have accountability. … This is protection of the city from lawsuits from a lot of people,” the mayor said.

* Daley: Gun law ‘reasonable’ despite lawsuits challenging it

* The new rules to buy a gun in Chicago

* Alderman wants investigation into offensive graffiti on South Loop building

An alderman who discovered graffiti on a South Loop building that said “we kill cops” just days days after a police officer was gunned down on the South Side wants the defacement removed immediately and criminal charges against its creator.

* Chicago Crime Commission resurrects most wanted list

That new list includes reputed street gang members accused of murder and a former police officer accused of shaking down drug dealers. The nonprofit group’s Most Wanted list has nine men and one woman.

* From Al Capone to today’s ‘Most Wanted’

Chicago Crime Commission releases its 1st list since 1937

* Most-wanted list that once included Capone returns

* Pollution worries cloud Chicago police gun range

Hamilton said the nearest city neighborhood is about a mile away and the nearest suburbs are about three-quarters of a mile away. Studies have shown the range wouldn’t create noise problems for those residents, he said.[…]

But the Southeast Environmental Task Force didn’t know about the proposal until it was placed on the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District’s agenda in June, said Peggy Salazar, the task force’s interim director. The task force has sent letters to the city’s Department of Environment and to police Supt. Jody Weis with questions about possible noise and lead pollution, Salazar said. She also said the task force envisioned the property becoming open land for recreational use.

* Colleagues pay respects to ‘remarkable’ officer

* Slain Chicago Officer Thor Soderberg honored at visitation

* Chicago Carriage cab drivers protest hikes in lease rates

* More black churches take on AIDS battle

[I]n recent years, with more access to information about the disease, increasing numbers of black churches are slowly becoming outspoken advocates for testing, increased government funding and education. For some, it has meant changing their views about religion and opening their doors to gays and lesbians, whom they once shunned.

* Contractor’s error cut off access to riverwalk near Lakeshore East

Residents of Chicago’s Lakeshore East community were denied access to the riverwalk for two days last week when a contractor hired to replace missing aluminum panels separating the riverwalk and Lower Wacker Drive mistakenly installed one too many.[…]

‘’Fifteen thousand people live in that neighborhood. You had people coming off the riverwalk expecting to be able to cut under Lower Wacker and, instead, they were running into this wall. That extended their commute home by five or 10 minutes,'’ said Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd), who drove to the scene to eyeball the mistake before demanding that the Department of Transportation remove the panel.

* Chicago Neighborhood Hit by Mortgage Loan Fraud

* ‘Transformers’ take over Michigan Ave.

* Soldier Field has interest in hosting Big Ten title football game

* Durbin meets with Illinois farm chief

The Illinois Farm Bureau president met there recently with U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois.

Durbin’s office says the two talked about homegrown biofuels and tax credits for biodiesel and ethanol.

* Practicing ‘inclusivity’ at the U of I

It may be too early in the debate to condemn the University of Illinois for firing an adjunct professor whose orthodox Catholic views on homosexuality deeply offended some of his students. But the university’s action against religion professor Kenneth Howell certainly bears more, and careful, scrutiny.

* Not-so-free exchange: The church, the academy and the issue of homosexuality

The University of Illinois finds itself embroiled in an entirely avoidable debate over academic and religious freedom.

* U. of I. to review Catholic instructor’s firing

A faculty group at the University of Illinois’ flagship campus will review the decision to fire an adjunct religion professor for saying he agreed with Catholic doctrine on homosexuality.

* Cheng foresees furlough days

CARBONDALE - Despite precautions taken to fight a lack of timely state funding, SIUC Chancellor Rita Cheng told the Faculty Senate on Tuesday that some furloughs will likely still have to happen.

“Even with our savings and the 4 percent reductions, we still do not have enough to support our budget next year,” Cheng said.

* Teens hit the books to get ahead with summer school

[T]oday, many students choose to hit the books in June and July so they can rack up extra credits — for a fee — or learn the ropes before starting freshmen year. High schools cater to the new type of teenager with an array of college-prep courses.

* To cut gridlock, drivers should pay for fast lane, new study says

* Wild bash, tragic end

‘’Based on the investigation conducted by this department, it is determined that Salgado’s death was caused by drowning with no indication of the drowning to have been caused by or at the hands of another,'’ according to the report.

* Mayor says Blue Island not to blame for wild party

The city of Blue Island bears no responsibility for last month’s drowning death of a Calumet Township trustee at an after-hours party on park district property, Mayor Don Peloquin said at Tuesday night’s city council meeting.

* Dead body ruins fun for public officials

As a columnist, I like elected officials throwing after-hours parties in public buildings where women get naked, people get drunk and a couple is seen having sex in a shower stall.[…]

Of course, when a dead body is found the next morning, all of the fun suddenly becomes deadly serious and extremely embarrassing.

* Will Blue Island officials take honorable stand?

The issue: In Blue Island, public officials and employees, using public facilities at public expense for private debauchery that led to tragedy, have been exposed.

We say: It’s time for those responsible to stand up and be counted.

* State continues Southland nursing home shutdown

Though a Southland nursing home is back in compliance with recent care violations, state health officials said Tuesday they are still pressing ahead with license revocation based on a history of substandard care.

* End the denial. Chicago street gangs in the suburbs.

* Dist. 203 treats construction crews to lunch

Naperville Unit District 203 provided a free lunch for construction crews Tuesday in hopes of showing its appreciation for striking workers who returned to the job.

* Aon buys Hewit for $4.9 billion, expands dramatically

Hewitt, based in Lincolnshire, is one of the world’s biggest human resources consulting and outsourcing companies with over $3 billion in annual revenue.

Hewitt, which employs roughly 4,500 people in the Chicago area and 23,000 globally, will be merged with Aon subsidiary Aon Consulting. Aon Corp. employs 36,000 globally, including 6,300 at its Aon Consulting unit.

* Suburbs consider merging firefighting forces

The adjoining suburbs of Alsip, Chicago Ridge and Oak Lawn in recent months have signed on to a study by the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus that explores the feasibility of merging some function of their fire departments or consolidating them into a single fire protection district.

* Schaumburg makes camera opt-out official

Though there was already little doubt about Schaumburg’s negative stance on Cook County’s proposed red-light camera program for the suburbs, village officials Tuesday felt it important there be no doubt at all.

* Tinley Park may pull out of county plan for red light cameras

* Zoning board hears debate on W. Chicago prayer center

History may be a hard thing for leaders of the Islamic Center of Western Suburbs to overcome in their effort to seek permission from DuPage County to convert a house into a prayer center.

* Dist. 26 considers another $2 million in budget cuts

Cary Elementary District 26 will explore closing a second school as it works to cut $2 million from its 2011-12 budget.

* County board questions higher sales tax’s effect on kids

Sangamon County Board Chairman Andy Van Meter said he wants the school representatives to come back with a clearer plan for how improvements to area schools will improve children’s educations.

* 14 years after power market reforms, still few options for homeowners

More than a decade after Illinois changed the way electricity is sold in the state, business customers have more alternatives to traditional utilities than ever, but similar choices have failed to develop for residential users.

* Our View: Morrissey right to shine light on police discipline

We applaud Mayor Larry Morrissey’s decision Monday to release the results of a Police Department internal investigation of officers Oda Poole and Stan North in the Aug. 24, 2009, shooting death of Mark Anthony Barmore in the basement day care of the Kingdom Authority International Ministries Church.

* Boone County’s budget may get second look

BELVIDERE — Boone County departments are on the road to experiencing cuts, either self-inflicted or those forced by the County Board.

* Peoria police will roll out anti-crime strategy to curb violence

* McLean Co. starts search for administrator

* Central Ill. company dumps manure without permit

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency fined the Greenville Livestock Inc. $40,000 last Friday for not following the Clean Water Act when it discarded animal waste.

* Army Corps considering coal ash to fix levees

The corps announced the plan last month, touting the injection of a slurry of water, coal ash and lime into 25 miles of slide-prone levees in 200-mile stretch of the river from Alton, Ill., near St. Louis to tiny Gale on southern Illinois’ tip as the cheapest, longest-lasting fix among several options it weighed.