* Sun-Times…

On a warm day last October, [Mauro Galvan] was released from the state’s Elgin Mental Health Center, where he was being treated since being found not guilty by reason of insanity in an attack on a nurse in 2019.

He was supposed to be delivered to his brother, with whom he was planning to live. But his brother, who works in construction and couldn’t leave his jobsite, coudn’t keep his appointment to pick him up.

So, according to his family, Galvan was dropped off by an Illinois Department of Human Services worker on the sidewalk in front of the Pacific Garden Mission at 1458 S. Canal St. in Chicago, with the state employee then driving away. […]

He was found about two weeks later, on Feb. 4. A friend of his family spotted Galvan in Back of the Yards, where he and his siblings grew up. His family picked him up at a McDonald’s.

He told them he’d been living in tents, “out in the cold,” under blankets, with other people who didn’t have housing. He wasn’t able to give his family a clear account of what happened to him but said his “eye hurt.”

* WBEZ…

Hate crimes, intimidation and extremism are on the rise in Illinois, according to a report released Wednesday by the Anti-Defamation League.

The report, which tracks hate incidents aimed at immigrant, Black, Jewish, Muslim and LGBTQ+ communities, highlighted 1,054 cases of hate, extremism, terrorism and antisemitism in Illinois between 2020-24. Overall, the number of hate crimes in the state rose from 98 in 2021 to 347 in 2023, according to FBI statistics.

*** Statehouse News ***

* Tribune | Illinois House Democrats fail to garner votes for convicted youth resentencing bill: n a surprising loss for criminal justice reform advocates, Democrats on Thursday were unable to pass legislation providing more resentencing options for people in prison convicted of committing crimes when they were under 21. The bill not only was a setback for advocates but also underscored a political divide between progressives and moderates within the Democratic Party, which has a supermajority in the House. The measure sponsored by Chicago Democratic state Rep. Theresa Mah was defeated late Thursday 51-49 — 11 votes short of passage as several Democrats, including from the suburbs and downstate, either voted against the bill or did not vote at all.

* Sun-Times | ‘I want to hang out with u’: Sen. Emil Jones III swapped texts with ex-intern headed to strip club: The intern, Christopher Katz, took the witness stand Friday morning in Jones’ trial. Though Katz initially downplayed his relationship with Jones, jurors saw text messages between the two that went late into that night. […] Prosecutors say Jones agreed to protect Maani in the Illinois Senate in exchange for $5,000 and a job for Katz. Jones had filed a bill in February 2019 that could have prompted a statewide study of red-light cameras, and Maani saw it as bad for business.

* WTVO | Illinois may raise the minimum age a minor can be arrested:
Senate Bill 1784 passed the Senate Thursday and now heads to the House for further consideration. The bill would raise the minimum age at which a minor can be arrested from age 10 to 12. Arrest would only be possible as a last resort and under strict conditions, such as probable cause that they committed a crime and immediate detention is necessary, or have repeatedly failed to appear at scheduled hearings.

* WTVO | Illinois may ban police from using raw cannabis odor as cause for car searches: In September 2024, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled that the smell of burnt cannabis was not cause enough for law enforcement to search a person’s vehicle, but another ruling said the smell of raw cannabis was. “A recent state Supreme Court ruling gave a conflicting directive between raw and burnt cannabis, shifting a huge burden to law enforcement to know the difference,” said Sen. Rachel Ventura (D-Joliet). “This bill aims to bring clarity by directing law enforcement to consider all factors — not just odor — in deciding if the law has been broken.”

* WAND | Illinois House passes proposal requiring Arab American history for elementary, high school students: The plan requires school districts to include a unit of Arab American history curriculum in their social studies classes starting with the 2026-2027 school year. This proposal calls for instruction about the history of Arab Americans in Illinois and the Midwest as well as the contributions of Arab Americans from the 19th century onward.

* WAND | House passes Ammons bill allowing people leaving prison to receive financial aid for college: Rep. Carol Ammons (D-Urbana) said recent Prison Policy data show nearly 70% of incarcerated people have interest in getting a college degree, but only 3% have post-high school education. Her proposal would allow these prospective college students to receive MAP grant funding as they leave the Illinois Department of Corrections.

* WGLT | State Rep. Regan Deering thinks USDA should move to Central Illinois: U.S. Department of Agriculture [USDA] offices would move from Washington, D.C. to Central Illinois under a long shot proposal from a lawmaker who represents parts of Bloomington-Normal. Republican state Rep. Regan Deering of Decatur said the move would provide a big economic boost to the region and improve coordination between farmers and agribusiness leaders.

* The Atlantic | The Problem With Abe Lincoln’s Face: Looking at a picture of Abraham Lincoln in October 1860, the 11-year-old Grace Bedell claimed to have solved the problem of Lincoln’s face and wrote him a letter to tell him about it. The presidential candidate was well aware of the problem. As he came into public view in 1860, jokes about Lincoln’s appearance abounded. A popular anti-Lincoln song imagined his supporters begging not to have his picture shown. Bedell, of Westfield, New York, offered a solution: Lincoln should grow a beard. “If you will let your whiskers grow,” she wrote, “you would look a great deal better for your face is so thin.”

*** Chicago ***

* Crain’s | Kirkland & Ellis among latest batch of firms to strike deals with Trump: A cluster of large law firms — including three with ties to Chicago — have struck deals with the White House that would prevent restrictions on their business by promising to do roughly $600 million of pro bono work approved by the Trump administration. The agreements announced today with Kirkland & Ellis, Latham & Watkins, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, and A&O Shearman contemplate about $125 million worth of pro bono legal services for each firm.

* Tribune | City Council blocks $1.25 million settlement for Dexter Reed’s family: Aldermen voted down a $1.25 million settlement Friday for the family of Dexter Reed, the man shot and killed by police in a Humboldt Park gunfight last year. The deal for the family of the man who shot at police first and wounded an officer during a botched traffic stop sparked fierce debate before aldermen blocked it in a 12-to-15 Finance Committee vote. Proponents of the settlement argued it was sure to save the city millions by avoiding expensive legal costs, but opponents asserted it would send a dangerous message.

* WTTW | Pay Man Who Lost Both Legs After Being Struck by Driver Being Chased by Police $32M, City Lawyers Recommend: Taxpayers should pay $32 million to the family of a St. Louis man who was struck by a driver being chased by Chicago police and lost both legs, city lawyers recommended, the latest massive settlement prompted by a police pursuit that violated department policy. The City Council’s Finance Committee on Friday is set to consider the proposed settlement, which calls for taxpayers to pay $20 million and the city’s insurance company to pay $12 million. A final vote of the City Council could come April 16.

* Sun-Times | Ald. Pat Dowell agrees to pay fines for federal election law violations tied to failed 2022 Congress bid: Dowell’s congressional campaign failed to report in-kind political contributions, didn’t properly disclose campaign spending and illegally received and spent money from her previously abandoned Illinois secretary of state campaign committee, the bipartisan FEC’s four commissioners unanimously ruled. Dowell (3rd) agreed to pay a $7,000 fine and acknowledged that her congressional committee violated several portions of the Federal Election Campaign Act, FEC documents show. She also agreed to “cease and desist from violating” the law in the future.

* Sun-Times | Cabrini-Green investor departures force CHA to regroup on Near North development site: El Paso, Texas-based Hunt controlled the partnership and withdrew from the deal last August, the agency said in a February filing in federal court. “The developer could not get sufficient funds,” said Ald. Walter Burnett Jr., whose 27th ward includes the former Cabrini region. “I just hope we can start getting this thing going soon.”

* Block Club Chicago | Demolition Underway To Make Room For Red Line Extension, Officials Say: The $5.7 billion, 5.6-mile Red Line Extension project would move the south end of the Red Line from 95th Street to 130th Street. The CTA plans to build stations at 103rd and 111th streets near Eggleston Avenue, at Michigan Avenue near 116th Street and at 130th Street near the Altgeld Gardens public housing project. Officials with the CTA and contractor Walsh-VINCI Transit Community Partners updated neighbors on the project Thursday during a Meet the Contractor session at St. John Missionary Baptist Church, 211 E. 115th St. in Roseland.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* WBEZ | Congressional committee investigating Northwestern withdraws demand for records: A Congressional committee that was investigating Northwestern University’s legal clinics for their alleged “progressive-left political advocacy” is backing down from an information demand that included lists of funders, budgets and personnel files. Last month the Committee on Education and the Workforce sent a letter to Northwestern saying it was investigating the law school’s use of its “taxpayer-supported institutional resources” and giving the school until 11 a.m. Thursday to comply with its information requests. Two clinic leaders sued to prevent Northwestern from turning over the records.

* Tribune | New Oak Park library director eyes ‘healing work’ amid DEI dustup: A little more than a year after their controversial firing of their previous executive director the Oak Park Library Board has found a replacement. […] One issue he will have to face is whether to reestablish a director of diversity, equity and inclusion position. Dixon’s cuts in that area generated fierce opposition from some library staff and some in the community. Three of the four newly elected library board members made DEI a cornerstone of their campaign.

* Crain’s | TreeHouse laying off 129 workers at South Beloit facility: TreeHouse Foods is laying off 129 workers at its South Beloit facility as part of a company-wide effort to cut costs. The Oak Brook-based company filed a WARN notice on March 28 disclosing the staff reduction at the northwest Illinois warehouse. The company also announced yesterday it will lay off off 150 workers in a reorganization of its corporate functions, according to a news release. TreeHouse did not clarify if the South Beloit layoffs are included in the larger cuts.

* Daily Southtown | Harvey church, resident file federal lawsuit accusing city of overcharging for water use: A Harvey church, its pastor and a resident filed a federal class action lawsuit accusing the city of fraudulently overcharging property owners for water by sending out inflated bills without reading meters. The suit, filed March 27, claims the city of Harvey and top officials — including Mayor Christopher Clark, Public Works Superintendent Richard Seput and City Administrator Corean Davis — knowingly billed residents and businesses for estimated water use, often far above actual consumption.

* Crain’s | Empty former Aon campus sold at 96% discount: A Texas real estate firm has picked up a vacant 31-acre former Aon office property in north suburban Lincolnshire for a staggering 96% less than it traded for in 2012. In one of the most extreme examples of value decimation across the vacancy-plagued suburban office market, a venture of Fort Worth, Texas-based Woodcrest Capital earlier this month paid about $6.2 million for the 818,686-square-foot complex at 4 Overlook Point, according to Lake County property records. The property in the heart of the 330-acre Lincolnshire Corporate Center campus was the longtime home of insurance giant Aon, whose lease for the entire complex expired at the end of last year.

* Sun-Times | Highwood murals help bring healing after Highland Park parade shooting: Walking Highwood streets earlier this month, Reich blinked back tears as she admired the walls. The festival had such a profound impact on her that she and her fiance, Chris “KOZ” Kozloff, are looking to move back. Kozloff is co-owner of Silvertuna Studios production company. “I know how much everyone has gone through there,” Reich says. “Our artists painted their hearts out for us, and their work shows how public art heals by bringing us together.”

*** Downstate ***

* BND | Closed Illinois nursing home was cited for deaths, sewage backup, mice: A local nursing home has closed after losing public funding because of substandard care and the conditions inside its building. Before the closure this month, regulators cited Well Care Home of Maryville for a preventable resident death and other injuries, a sewage backup, rodent infestation and more issues uncovered during inspections between November 2024 and March 2025.

* WTVO | Former deputy chief launches campaign for Winnebago County Sheriff: Former Winnebago County Deputy Chief Dom Barcellona has announced that he is running to be the next Winnebago County Sheriff on Thursday. Barcelona has over 27 years of law enforcement experience with the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office. He retired as deputy chief in 2023. The former deputy said he hopes to be more transparent with the public, among other changes.

* PJ Star | ICC board ‘very concerned’ about closure of on-campus housing, lack of communication: Several members of the Illinois Central College Board of Trustees on Thursday expressed frustration with a perceived lack of communication about the upcoming closure of the school’s on-campus housing complex. The board discussed the closure of WoodView Commons during a special meeting. Trustees said the lines of communication were lacking between itself, school administrators and ICC’s Educational Foundation. The Educational Foundation Student Residence LLC manages the property.

* WICA | Restaurants in Champaign-Urbana say ‘friendly fraud’ isn’t so friendly: One Champaign bakery was so frustrated about being scammed by customers ordering online that they went to social media to vent. It turned out they weren’t the only ones having the issue. WCIA spoke with staff from the Sun Singer and Suzu’s Bakery. They said customers would order online and then dispute the charge as fraud with the card company. The money was taken away from the restaurants plus a fee on top, hanging these businesses out to dry.

*** National ***

* AP | US measles cases surpass 700 with outbreaks in six states. Here’s what to know: Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. claimed in a televised Cabinet meeting Thursday that measles cases were plateauing nationally, but the virus continues to spread mostly in people who are unvaccinated and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention redeployed a team this week to the epicenter of West Texas’ monthslong outbreak. The U.S. has more than double the number of measles cases it saw in all of 2024, and Texas is reporting the majority of them with 541.

* NPR | How DOGE may have improperly used Social Security data to push voter fraud narratives: One of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency lieutenants working in the Social Security Administration has been pushing dubious claims about noncitizens voting, apparently using access to data that court records suggest DOGE isn’t supposed to have. The staffer, Antonio Gracias, made the claims as part of larger misleading statements about the SSA’s enumeration-beyond-entry, or EBE program, which streamlines the process for granting Social Security cards to certain categories of eligible immigrants.

* Foreign Affairs | Trade Wars Are Easy to Lose: But this logic is wrong: it is China that has escalation dominance in this trade war. The United States gets vital goods from China that cannot be replaced any time soon or made at home at anything less than prohibitive cost. Reducing such dependence on China may be a reason for action, but fighting the current war before doing so is a recipe for almost certain defeat, at enormous cost. Or to put it in Bessent’s terms: Washington, not Beijing, is betting all in on a losing hand.