Articles filed under Illinois

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Ill. to receive $12M in pharmaceutical settlement May 14, 2013 12:00 AM
Illinois is expected to receive more than $12 million in a settlement with a pharmaceutical company accused of selling diluted drugs. The state's Attorney General Lisa Madigan announced the settlement Monday. The state will receive the money as part of a $500 million federal and state settlement against India-based Ranbaxy.
USDA: Corn plantings pick up, but still behind May 14, 2013 12:00 AM
U.S. farmers are making the most of break in the seemingly unceasing spring rains to plant corn, though the pace still remains well behind schedule, the latest federal figures showed Monday. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, in its weekly update of the nation's crop progress, said 28 percent of U.S. cornfields have been planted, more than double the 12 percent of just a week earlier.
Lawmakers allow DuPage board to pare back government May 14, 2013 12:00 AM
Gov. Pat Quinn will soon get to decide whether DuPage County officials will be allowed to eliminate as many as 13 local governments in an effort to save money. The Illinois House sent Quinn legislation Tuesday allowing the cuts by a 108-6 vote.
Voluntary school merger bill goes to Quinn May 14, 2013 12:00 AM
Legislation that would help Illinois public school districts merge to save money is headed for Gov. Pat Quinn's desk. The measure comes out of Lt. Gov. Sheila Simon's Classrooms First Commission, which studied ways for schools to save money by reducing duplicative practices and combining educational offerings.
Des Plaines man killed by police fled traffic stopMay 14, 2013 12:00 AM
A high-speed car chase in Missouri that ended with a Des Plaines man shot to death by police began more than four hours earlier after the man first fled a traffic stop in southwestern Illinois, authorities say. Police said Missouri State troopers shot and killed Jose H. Garcia, 49, after he pointed a gun at them when he realized he was surrounded.
State officials: Lowering DUI limit worth a look May 14, 2013 12:00 AM
Secretary of State Jesse White said the idea of reducing Illinois’ drunk-driving threshold from a .08 to a .05 blood alcohol content deserves “further study,” a spokesman said Tuesday after a federal agency recommended the change.
Chicago senator touts his compromise bill on concealed carry May 14, 2013 12:00 AM
An Illinois senator seeking to keep some concealed carry limits in place after a federal judge found the state's ban unconstitutional said Tuesday that his compromise plan would allow large cities to customize their lists of places that are off limits to concealed weapons.
Audit: Less than half of Road Fund spent on roads May 14, 2013 12:00 AM
The audit released Tuesday states that in eight of the past 10 years more than half of the road funds went to pay salaries, construction bonds and other costs.
Changes coming to Illinois gambling plan May 14, 2013 12:00 AM
Lawmakers could try to add additional ethics measures and reconsider putting slot machines at the Chicago airports in an effort to get Gov. Pat Quinn to back a gambling plan, one of its key supporters said Tuesday. State Rep. Lou Lang, a Skokie Democrat, said he's looking to tinker with legislation ushered through the Illinois Senate this month by state Sen. Terry Link, a Waukegan Democrat.
Little boy joins elite police unit May 14, 2013 12:00 AM
A visit to a special police training exercise made Eli Levandowski-Gifford's day. Eli, a Benton first-grader who was diagnosed with stage four pancreatic neuroendocrine carcinoma tumors last year, was invited to stop by as Illinois State Police SWAT, methamphetamine team and Southern Illinois Drug Task Force conducted training in Benton on May 2.
Galesburg student earns perfect ACT score May 14, 2013 12:00 AM
A junior student at Galesburg High School has scored a perfect 36 on the ACT. Catharine Leahy says she took the test on her 17th birthday in February at Carl Sandburg College. The Register-Mail in Galesburg reports that according to ACT less than one-tenth of 1 percent of test-takers earn a perfect score. Leahy says science was the toughest part of the test for her.
DMG/Mori Seiki opens doors to students, others during Innovation Days May 13, 2013 12:00 AM
Nearly 3,000 business and manufacturing executives as well as students and educators filled the demonstration hall this week at Hoffman Estates-based DMG/Mori Seiki to learn about new technology, training and jobs in manufacturing. From Tuesday through Friday, the company demonstrated 41 robotic machines and devices for suppliers, new buyers, engineers and others for its third annual Innovation Days event, said President Mark H. Mohr.
Park projects in Illinois getting $15.3 million May 13, 2013 12:00 AM
Local parks around Illinois will be sharing $15.3 million in state money. Gov. Pat Quinn announced the funding for 45 projects on Saturday. It comes from the state's Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development program. The program aims to expand outdoor recreation and open space in communities across Illinois.
Lt. Gov supports medical marijuana May 13, 2013 12:00 AM
Lt. Gov. Sheila Simon said she is in favor of a bill allowing the medical use of marijuana, explaining Sunday that testimony from seriously ill veterans and other patients helped change her mind. "As a former prosecutor my first reaction was, `I'm not interested in changing our laws on medical marijuana,"' she told The Associated Press in an interview Sunday. But she said that after hearing from patients and reading up on the bill, she's convinced the regulations are strict enough.
Durbin: 5 Ill. airport towers get closure reprieve May 13, 2013 12:00 AM
U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin says control towers at five small airports in his home state of Illinois are among the 149 nationwide that the Federal Aviation Administration is keeping open for now.The towers are all operated for the FAA at low-traffic airports and were to close by mid-June as the result of government-wide automatic spending cuts imposed by Congress. They'll now remain open at least through September, the end of the federal budget year.
Life not the same for Hoffman mother as GiGi's Playhouse expands May 13, 2013 12:00 AM
Kukec's People featuresNancy Gianni, who started Hoffman Estates-based Gigi's Playhouse, a facility for children with Down Syndrome. Her daughter, now 10, was the inspiration for what now has turned into a national chain of playhouses that help both children and adults with Down's.
Black churches at center of gay marriage debate May 13, 2013 12:00 AM
Watchdog group says state must address pensions May 13, 2013 12:00 AM
Gov. Pat Quinn's proposed state budget is a baby step in the right direction, a watchdog group's analysis said Monday, but the governor may be overstating savings from a recent union contract negotiation and not putting enough toward roughly $9 billion unpaid bills. All told, The Civic Federation said, it mostly illustrates how Illinois lawmakers must come up with a solution for a worst-in-the-nation pension crisis.
Ginsburg says Roe gave abortion opponents targetMay 12, 2013 12:00 AM
One of the most liberal members of the U.S. Supreme Court, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg could be expected to give a rousing defense of Roe v. Wade in reflecting on the landmark vote 40 years after it established a nationwide right to abortion. Instead, Ginsburg told an audience Saturday at the University of Chicago Law School that while she supports a woman's right to choose, she feels the ruling by her predecessors on the court was too sweeping and gave abortion opponents a symbol to target. Ever since, she said, the momentum has been on the other side, with anger over Roe fueling a state-by-state campaign that has placed more restrictions on abortion.
Ginsburg: Roe v. Wade gave abortion opponents target May 11, 2013 12:00 AM
One of the most liberal members of the U.S. Supreme Court, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, could be expected to give a rousing defense of Roe v. Wade when reflecting on the landmark vote 40 years after it established a nationwide right to abortion. Instead, Ginsburg told an audience Saturday at the University of Chicago Law School that while she supports a woman's right to choose, she feels the ruling by her predecessors on the court was too sweeping and gave abortion opponents a symbol to target.