* ICYMI: Ruling on whether to appoint a special prosecutor to probe Midway Blitz agents expected in coming weeks. Sun-Times…

- Cook County Circuit Judge Erica Reddick’s ruling could be a crucial turning point in efforts to hold agents responsible for their conduct during the deportation campaign. If she were to appoint a special prosecutor, the law requires her to contact public agencies to see if someone is available at no cost before appointing a private attorney.
- But if she were to side with O’Neill Burke, it would seem to vindicate the top prosecutor, who has been under pressure for much of this year to hold the Midway Blitz agents accountable. Coalition attorneys say she has “abdicated her responsibility” by refusing to lead any such investigation.
- Judge Reddick told attorneys that she hopes to rule during a hearing May 11.

* Related stories…

• CNI: Mid-May ruling set for special prosecutor demand to investigate alleged ‘Operation Midway Blitz’ abuses
• Fox Chicago: Push for prosecutor to investigate federal agents in Operation Midway Blitz

***************** Advertisement *****************

Sponsored by The Association of Safety-Net Community Hospitals

No Cuts. No Closures. Fund Safety-Net Hospitals.

For decades, Illinois has underfunded safety-net hospitals, the lifelines for Black and Brown communities. Now, the “Safety-Net Moonshot” and the Medicaid-defunding legislation it has spawned, threatens deeper cuts to these critical health providers. Any reduction inspired by the “Moonshot” would be a killshot to the care our most vulnerable residents rely on.

Weakening safety-net hospitals won’t improve care. It will slash essential services, eliminate jobs, and push entire communities into healthcare deserts and economic instability.

The state cannot balance its budget on the backs of Black and Brown community hospitals. These institutions are not line items to cut, they are the foundation of care for families who have nowhere else to turn. Disinvestment will deepen inequities and worsen outcomes.

When safety-net hospitals are funded, communities are healthier, workforces are stronger, and economies are more resilient.

Illinois must fully fund safety-net hospitals. For the communities they serve, it is life or death.

*************************************************

* At 9 am, Governor Pritzker will participate in a tele-townhall with AARP Illinois where he will deliver remarks and discuss his BUILD housing initiative. Click here to listen.

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Tribune | Chicago Bears stadium legislation passed the Illinois House, but may face concerns in the Senate: In the face of criticism, state Rep. Kam Buckner, a Chicago Democrat who helped lead House negotiations over the bill, countered that many lawmakers were satisfied with the changes that were made to the legislation. But he allowed that it may need tweaks. “I got some marching orders from my caucus to put together an amendment that looked more like what was important to us,” Buckner said before the legislation was passed. “… I think our job right now is to try to move this forward, and if there are more conversations that need to be had, of course, we’ll have those.”

* Illinois Answers Project | Prison or treatment? Thousands participate in mental health courts. Half graduate — and millions are left out: In recent months, the Illinois Answers Project and MindSite News reached out to every court in Illinois for data, collected public records from grant-funded courts and interviewed officials and participants to give a complete picture of the state’s mental health courts. What emerges is a promising model with limited funds supporting small oases in an otherwise barren desert. Woodworth successfully completed her program and says it transformed her life. But that’s rare. Most applicants are rejected because of prior offenses, refusal to undergo an evaluation or other disqualifying factors. Of those who are accepted, just half graduate. Some are unable to participate or voluntarily withdraw. A small number have died. Others, like Sean Buchanan, were cut from programs for refusing medication or committing new crimes.

* WBEZ | Illinois state agencies at odds over endangered species protections: Last summer, the state’s top wildlife regulators faced resistance from the Illinois Department of Transportation when trying to protect the darter. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources recommended that IDOT crews mapping out construction at a site in Union County should first survey the area and find out if the shiner was present. If so, IDNR would ask them to apply for a permit to minimize impacts to the paper clip-sized fish before proceeding. IDOT declined. The department’s reason, among others, was simple: “Fish swim away.”

*** Statewide ***

* Quantum Zeitgeist | IQMP Funds Five Quantum Algorithm Projects With New Awards: Another award supports Professor Patrick Draper at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, working with IBM and EPRI, to explore how quantum algorithms can address the growing complexity of modern power grids. The team intends to assess whether and how existing quantum algorithms can deliver practical advantage on real-world energy grid problems, a critical step toward integrating renewables and ensuring grid reliability. These initiatives are not solely academic exercises; each represents a collaboration across academia, quantum companies, and industry end users, according to program materials. Brad Henderson, CEO of P33, said, “Grand Challenges brings together the full quantum ecosystem to accelerate the development of real-world applications.”

* Shaw Local | State parks upgrading campsite reservation system to better serve the public: Reservations for campsites and shelters at Illinois state parks and historic sites will transition to an updated platform beginning May 1. The new system offers park users a more user-friendly system for making reservations and securing permits, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources said. Users will continue to use exploremoreil.com – the customer service platform of the IDNR – to make campsite and shelter reservations, but will notice an improved interface, the department said in a news release.

*** Statehouse News ***

* Capitol News Illinois | Pritzker’s affordable housing plan gets Senate hearing as municipalities remain opposed: Sen. Omar Aquino, D-Chicago, inquired about protections against market pressures that may arise from the construction of additional units in neighborhoods. Aquino said he and his wife recently sold their home and moved into a multigenerational home due to affordability concerns. Similarly, Sen. Donald DeWitte, R-St. Charles, raised concerns about changing land values that could negatively affect current homeowners. Ortega indicated that the land value component will be addressed by the $250 million capital investment but stated that market protections had not been included in the introduced legislation.

* Rocky Mountain Collegian | Illinois Governor JB Pritzker speaks at Democratic fundraising event held at CSU: “What I’m most disappointed about (in) the building of the Democratic Party and where we are, is we should have been doing a 50-state strategy from day one,” Pritzker said. “Instead, what we did was focus on battleground states. … In the off years, we need to be creating scaffolding and infrastructure, because when the on years — when the presidential years come — that’s how you win. If you’re not doing anything until months before the general election in 2028 or ’24 or ’20, there’s no way to win states.”

* Capitol News Illinois | Illinois launches online resources for households on federal food assistance: Ahead of an estimated 150,000 Illinois households losing access to federal food assistance on May 1, Illinois launched two websites aimed at providing work, training and volunteer hours to those households. Job Ready IL collects training programs and employment opportunities, while Serve Illinois shares volunteer opportunities. Doanld Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act”, also known as H.R. 1, made changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program that increased the able-bodied adults without dependents population and ended a long-term work requirement waiver that Illinois had, putting some recipients at risk of losing their benefits.

* Tribune | Illinois sets new rules barring state workers from prediction market bets and AI use without oversight: The Illinois Gaming Board has sent cease-and-desist letters to prediction market platforms, including Kalshi and Polymarket, since the beginning of last year, arguing the businesses were engaged in illegal gambling. Earlier this month, the federal government filed a lawsuit against Illinois, asserting that the federal Commodity Futures Trading Commission, not the state gaming board, has regulatory authority over those platforms. “Illinois has been sort of on the forefront of striking back against these prediction markets,” said Karl Lockhart, an assistant professor of law at DePaul University who writes about financial and securities markets regulation.

* ABC Chicago | Illinois Accountability Commission to reveal results of investigation into operation ‘Midway Blitz’: There will be two public hearings this week that are expected to reveal results of ongoing investigations surrounding actions of federal agents during Operation Midway Blitz. The commission is expected to show footage and listen to witness testimony from incidents that took place during the operation. The commission is tasked with documenting the impact of Operation Midway Blitz and then making recommendations for accountability and reform.

*** Chicago ***

* Tribune | More Chicagoans view Mayor Brandon Johnson unfavorably than favorably ahead of 2027 mayoral race, Suffolk-Tribune poll says: The Suffolk University/Chicago Tribune poll of 500 adult residents, conducted April 11-15, found 44% viewed the mayor unfavorably, while just 34% viewed him favorably. The remainder were undecided or said they had never heard of him. The poll, conducted by David Paleologos, director of Suffolk University’s Political Research Center, carries an overall margin of error of 4.4 percentage points.

* Sun-Times | New details emerge in Swedish Hospital shooting of Chicago police officer John Bartholomew: Bartholomew, 38, was shot alongside another officer at Endeavor Health Swedish Hospital, 5140 N. California Ave., by a robbery suspect who had been arrested earlier that morning, police have said. No update was provided Sunday on the second officer, who has not been named. He was “fighting for his life” in critical condition, police Superintendent Larry Snelling said Saturday at a news conference outside Illinois Masonic Medical Center, where both officers were taken after the shooting.

* Tribune | CTA breaks ground on Red Line Extension. The project ‘corrects’ history, acting CTA head says: For months, with early site preparation work underway on the Far South Side, the transit agency was unable to access federal reimbursements to pay for that work. A federal judge last month ordered the feds to temporarily unfreeze those dollars, a win officials celebrated on Friday. “Today we are providing Chicago with an opportunity to demonstrate what it means to fight back against the Trump administration,” said Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson.

* Sun-Times |: Residential projects across Chicago are being postponed because construction companies are struggling to find reliable labor, prompting some contractors with projects west of Interstate 355 to operate with leaner crews and driving up day rates and overtime pay to attract workers.

* NYT | The Chief of Chicago’s Science Museum Is Doing Some Experiments: Chevy Humphrey, the chief executive, is trying to answer that question in a broad and urgent way. In May, the museum will open a new permanent exhibit exploring “how energy shapes our daily lives,” just as the war in Iran is prompting big questions about our relationship with oil, gas and other sources of power. That is a traditional initiative for a science museum. Just a few paces away, another exhibit is set to open on something less expected: Anne Frank. Dr. Humphrey sees it as an opportunity for the museum’s youngest patrons to grapple with larger, frightening forces around them, as Frank did in her “Dear Kitty” journal during the Holocaust.

* South Side Weekly | Heavy Crownz Is Planting The Seeds for a Future Englewood: “I always describe Englewood as the trenches, but not in the sense where it’s negative all the time. The trenches was [also] a safe space that soldiers found refuge in during war,” he said. “So for me, it was a safe space that also has some rough parts. But it was a loving, beautiful place for me.” The album balances these sorts of opposites. It’s a stage for collaborators and an introspective memoir, a breakup album and a party album, an ode to farming and a beacon of hope all rolled into one. But throughout, it embodies the “resilience, confidence, ingenuity and imagination” that Heavy credits Englewood with instilling in him.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Tribune | Months after late property tax bills, thousands are still waiting with no resolution in sight: Property tax bills arrived months late for hundreds of thousands of Cook County homeowners last year, causing headaches and confusion for property owners and the local governments they fund. Five months later, thousands are still waiting for bills and tens of thousands are waiting for refunds, the latest development in the technology upgrade debacle that has roiled the county’s tax system for more than four years with no clear end in sight.

* Daily Herald | ‘This project is delivering’: Suburban leaders credit flood-prevention efforts for keeping towns dry during recent deluges: Village Manager Jon Sfondilis credited $9 million worth of village-funded stormwater system improvements over the last decade — as well as some regional projects that benefit Wheeling — for averting disaster. One of the most recent efforts focused on the flood-prone South Dunhurst subdivision, where a nearly 3-acre detention pond was constructed and underground sewers leading to that basin were installed in the last couple years.

* Daily Herald | ‘He would choose to do it again’: Vigil held for Buffalo Grove High School security guard who died shielding students from crash: Friends, family and students gathered at Buffalo Grove High School Saturday to pay tribute to the life and sacrifice of high school security guard Orlando Rivas. Rivas, who died Friday, was fatally injured during dismissal Tuesday afternoon while trying to shield students he was helping cross the street during a crash. A vehicle trying to exit the parking lot onto Dundee Road struck a pole. That pole hit Rivas, who died after he was taken to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge.

*** Downstate ***

* WGLT | ISU says its external custodial contractors are not strikebreakers: ISU spokesperson Chris Coplan said the university was officially served with the lawsuit Friday. He said the lawsuit seeks to “restrict the university’s ability to utilize external companies performing custodial and grounds work on campus.” He said the university’s use of these companies is legal. “These external companies are not strikebreakers — they are well-established, local businesses that perform custodial and grounds work in and around our local community every day,” Coplan said. “We plan to vigorously defend our position in this meritless lawsuit.”

* WGLT | AFSCME presents nearly 7,000 petition signatures to ISU president, hoping to end strike: AFSCME was assisted by state Rep. Sharon Chung and state Sen. Dave Koehler, both Democrats representing parts of Bloomington-Normal. Chung and Koehler presented the signatures to ISU President Aondover Tarhule on Friday in a private meeting which lasted just over 15 minutes. While multiple union members were present on the fourth floor of Hovey Hall outside Tarhule’s office, he only agreed to meet with the present elected officials.

* WSIL | Poshard Foundation awarding $106,500 to support abused, neglected children: Foundation leaders announced $106,500 in grants will be distributed during a press conference scheduled for April 30 at 1 p.m. at John A. Logan College. A total of 28 agencies across Southern Illinois are set to receive funding. The grants are intended to support services for children who have experienced abuse, neglect, or abandonment, including counseling, medical care, and other support programs.

* IPM News | Champaign County Sheriff says ICE will NOT be in town: Rumors have been swirling that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents will be in town. Champaign County Sheriff Dustin Heuerman said the rumors are not true. “It is completely a rumor that ICE will be in town and not based on reliable information. I have verified this weekend with our federal partners that there are no scheduled ICE operations occurring in our area,” Heuerman said. “There are some non-ICE federal agents supposed to be in Central Illinois this week working with some local jurisdictions on criminal warrant apprehension.”

* WGLT | Statewide data shows McLean County detains defendants awaiting trial at higher rates: That’s work typically done by Frank Beck, who was also present for Thursday’s quarterly meeting. Beck said his team at ISU’s Stevenson Center will study recidivism in the county for the first time in a decade. Previous data collection showed McLean County’s reoffending rate at around 30%. “It’s time to update it, or to do it for the first time with respect to the specialty courts,” he said.

* Rockford Register Star | Rockford data center TIF details and more available at new website: A new website has been launched to provide information about a proposed Tax Increment Financing district and data center south of Rockford Airport. The website was created in collaboration with several local organizations that recently hosted a Data Center Information Night, according to a community announcement. It aims to be a reliable resource amid widespread information and misinformation.

* WGLT | Innovate Springfield director leaving for a new job: Following a national search, Ben Hage has been named director of The Petrick Idea Center at Illinois Wesleyan University, effective June 1. Currently Director of Innovate Springfield at the University of Illinois Springfield, Hage has more than a decade of experience spanning both startup development and entrepreneurship education.