* At least 10 wounded in overnight shootings

* Charges In Woodlawn Shooting That Killed Boy, 14

Cordell Glover, 19, of the 7100 block of South Wood Street, was charged Thursday night with one count of murder and two counts of attempted murder for allegedly shooting Christopher Travis, a 12-year-old boy and a 19-year-old man Sept. 14 at the intersection of 65th Street and Drexel Avenue, according to police.

* Sherrard grad among 9 servicemen killed in helicopter crash in Afghanistan

* Local home sales fall in August for second straight month

In the nine-county Chicago region, sales of single-family homes and condominiums decreased nearly 20% last month, to 5,633, compared to 7,008 sales in August 2009, according to a release Thursday from the Illinois Assn. of Realtors.

Chicago-area sales fell 25.1% in July compared with July 2009, ending a streak of 12 consecutive months of increases.

In the city of Chicago, sales of homes and condos in August dropped roughly 23%, to 1,486, compared with August 2009.

* August Home Sales Increase Over July

That’s according to the latest report from the Illinois Association of Realtors.

Realtor Pat Callan says housing follows jobs, and people are still waiting for an economic upswing.

* Home sales behind last year’s pace in Champaign County

* 15% rebates today on energy-efficient appliances

* Illinois Shoppers Can Get a Rebate on Appliance Upgrade

* State offers 1 day Energy Star appliance rebate

* 15th city inspector convicted

Jose Hernandez, 47, is the 15th city inspector convicted of pocketing payoffs in the Operation Crooked Code probe of bribery. Four other people in the case have also been found guilty, and eight individuals still face trial, said Jon Davey of the city inspector general’s office, which teamed up with federal authorities in the investigation.

* Another City Inspector Convicted for Taking Bribes

* Oak Brook woman is state’s 1st West Nile death this year

* How Illinois higher speeding fines compare to our neighbors

* U. of I. denies William Ayers emeritus status

The University of Illinois on Thursday denied 1960s radical William Ayers emeritus faculty status after trustees Chairman Christopher Kennedy noted Ayers dedicated a book to, among others, the man who killed Kennedy’s father, Robert F. Kennedy.

All nine voting trustees either opposed granting Ayers, a recently retired University of Illinois-Chicago professor, the largely honorary status or abstained from the vote.

* Controversial UIC professor denied emeritus status

* Emeritus status for Ayers denied

* UI trustees approve new budget

* Buyouts save UI $1.4 million a month; some faculty left for better-paying jobs

* CPS to give performance bonuses to best teachers

The investment will target 25 city schools — and an estimated 1,125 teachers who work in them — where educators who improve student performance would be eligible to receive bonuses. […]

The participating schools have not been selected yet, said district spokeswoman Monique Bond. But sources said they plan to focus on elementary and middle schools where at least half of the students are low-income and where an average of 18 percent of teachers leave at the end of every school year.

To participate, schools likely will need to show the support of their classroom teachers. When Chicago launched its first teacher incentive program in 2006, schools were considered only if three-fourths of their staff endorsed the plan.

* December hearing set on Elk Grove police complaint against mayor

* Kane panel OKs more money for judges, jail

* Kane Co. to hand out budget hikes; jail size discussion coming in 2011

* Quinn announces $4 million to raze ‘Blues Brothers’ mall in Harvey

* Grant could redevelop suburban Dixie Square Mall

* Carpentersville will license cats

* Sunday pregame beer runs OK in Naperville

* Oswego: Once and future boomtown now in slow lane

“The last couple of years the economy had a big impact on us,” said Oswego Village Manager Gary Adams. “We had to cut our budget significantly, we cut staff and cut expenses. We had to deal with it as everybody else had.”

But the pain could have been a lot worse. And there now are glimmers of better days ahead.

Through the recent 18-month national economic downturn, Oswego’s growth slowed but never stopped. Retail and commercial space that was added during the good times continued to reliably churn out tax revenue.

* Calumet City fire department gets nearly $190,000

* Nearly $1.3M in cuts OK’d by Rockford Housing Authority

* WIU celebrates 108 years, looking forward to new campus

* Winnebago County government may see slight reduction in taxes

* Dowis questions whether politics played role in ouster

* FutureGen Alliance names new CEO

* Woodford might consider tax hike

* Peoria school board may have openings

* Peoria council making cuts

* Mayors, legislators discuss tough times

The panel discussion, hosted by the Southern Illinois Mayors Association, covered topics such as income and gas taxes, the cost for local governments to file or fill Freedom of Information Act requests, revenue from video gaming in fraternal organizations and bars and pension funding for firemen and police.

State Sen. Gary Forby, D-Benton, joined state Sen. John O. Jones, R-Mount Vernon, and Reps. Brandon Phelps, D-Harrisburg and John Cavaletto, R-Salem, on the panel.

* Former ESL councilman found guilty on 8 of 9 charges

Collins, 49, was convicted of income tax evasion for the years 2003, 2004 and 2005.

Collins also was convicted of two counts of election fraud for providing false residency information. Prosecutors said he voted from an address at 22 Loisel Drive in East St. Louis during two federal elections in March 2006 and February 2008, but really resided at a home in Swansea.

* Fritzler officially announces candidacy for Carbondale mayor