* The story of why they won’t stop shooting in Chicago

It’s told by the wounded, the accused and the officers who were on the street during a weekend in April 2008 when 40 people were shot, seven fatally.

Two years later, the grim reality is this: Nearly all of the shooters from that weekend have escaped charges.

“You don’t go to jail for shooting people,” says Dontae Gamble, who took six bullets that weekend, only to see his alleged shooter walk free.

“That’s why m————- think they can get back on the streets and kill again. You feel me?”

So far, not one accused shooter has been convicted of pulling the trigger during those deadly 59 hours from April 18-20 of that year, a Chicago Sun-Times investigation has found.

* FBI Chides Daley for ‘About Time’ Crack

Chicago Police and the feds were bragging and feeling good Thursday about a bust that took drugs and guns off the city’s streets.

But the head of Chicago’s FBI said his agents were demoralized after seeing a comment from Mayor Daley in the Sun-Times that it was “about time” the feds helped out.

“It might have been an off hand, unfortunate comment but it demoralizes individuals,” said Robert Grant, Special Agent in Charge.

* Steinberg: Feds livid over slap-happy mayor

Bashing the federal government is easy and fun, and anyone can play. But there is a trick to it. You should be as general as possible, shaking your fist at the camera and inveighing against “Those bastards in Washington” and “Those idiots in Congress.”

If you get too specific and say, oh, “Those loafers in the Ag department in Des Moines,” it will turn out there actually is a real Department of Agriculture office in Des Moines, staffed by real people who actually do stuff and will not take kindly to the suggestion they don’t.

* Reward in murder of cop now $100K

* Reward in officer’s death up to $100,000

* Weis: Officers’ deaths won’t weaken our mission

Williams joined more than 900 other bikers Sunday who rumbled through Chicago as part of the sixth annual Ride to Remember sponsored by Harrison Area Detectives to raise money for the Chicago Police Memorial Foundation, which helps the families of Chicago police officers who are severely injured or killed while on duty.

* Street-smart U.S. prosecutor is moving on

Funk, 41, made his mark in the Chicago office, which he is leaving after a decade for family reasons to head to Denver. Funk, who was raised in Germany before attending college in Illinois, will join the law firm of Perkins Cole.

“Markus has worked on some incredibly important cases over the years … and done an incredible job,'’ U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald said.

Funk “would go the extra mile,” said FBI Special Agent Michael Maseth, who worked with Funk on the historic Family Secrets mob prosecution.

* 3rd Wal-Mart gets OK from City Council panel

The Finance Committee approval came on a voice vote Friday afternoon and goes to the full council, which meets Wednesday.

* Another Wal-Mart could be on the tracks in Chicago

Some committee members said Friday they are troubled by company officials’ reluctance to publicly commit to paying at least $8.75 per hour at its Chicago stores, a key concession that helped a proposal for a Wal-Mart in the Pullman neighborhood clear the council June 30 by a 50-0 vote.

* Chicago City Council Expected to Vote on 3rd Wal-Mart

* Massive Storm Cleanup Effort in City and Suburbs

* Chicago area continues cleanup efforts after storm

* City Begins to Dry Out

* Some still without electricity in Evanston

* Westchester declares state of emergency

* Carol Stream residents angry about flood response

* Property owners, developers in dispute over New Lenox land sale

* Suburban residents now favor more transit spending, poll shows

* Libertyville residents campaigning for televised meetings

* Mosquitoes with West Nile found in Bloomington

* [Bloomington] City Council to hear update on special service area

* Business owners split on Bloomington tax district

* Eureka considers policy on hiring city officials’ relatives, firms

* Unpaid bills hurting Livingston County mental health

* State analysis questions St. John’s renovation plans

* SJ-R: County must respect voters’ will on tax hike

* Rail delay seen as blessing for Springfield

Under a deal signed late last year among the state of Illinois, Sangamon County and Springfield, engineers were given 16 months to complete a draft environmental impact statement evaluating the best route for trains through the city, and the study had to be final in two years. At the time, officials said the deadlines were tight.

But the clock doesn’t start ticking until the Illinois Department of Transportation executes a grant with the Federal Railroad Administration to fund all or part of a high-speed rail project between St. Louis and Chicago. That still hasn’t happened.

* Durbin upbeat on high-speed rail in Illinois

* News-Democrat: Eliminate the stipend

When Madison County Recorder of Deeds Kyle Anderson donated his $1,651 state stipend to the county last week, his political opponent Matt Rice called it an election-year stunt.

Probably; the oversized, cardboard check that Anderson presented to County Board Chairman Alan Dunstan was a tipoff.

* Southern Illinois tourism steady, but late state money makes marketing difficult

* Thousands lose power in Madison County

* Ameren says power back on for most

In Illinois, Ameren reported about 16,000 customers lost power. By 6 p.m. Sunday, the utility said it had restored power to almost all of those hit by outages.

* Madison in waiting game for pre-k funding

* Chicago Reader replaces ousted editor, fills two other top posts

Alison Draper has been appointed publisher and Geoff Dougherty named the associate publisher, Reader media writer Michael Miner reports.

* Conrad Black can’t go back to Canada, judge says

* Photographer documented Chicago, fostered photography