MINNEAPOLIS — Chicago Bulls guard Tre Jones returned to his home state for Thursday’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves with a heavy heart.

The Twin Cities area has been the epicenter of recent conflict around Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity, which began in early December and escalated after the killing of Renee Good on Jan. 7. Vice President JD Vance arrived in Minneapolis on Thursday morning with the stated goal of persuading Minnesotans to “stop fighting” against ICE agents, whose actions have included forced entry into homes without a warrant.

For Jones, who grew up in the Twin Cities suburb of Apple Valley, the news stories hit too close to home to ignore. Friends and family back home have relayed reports of ICE activity and raids in their neighborhoods. In December, students walked out of Jones’ alma mater, Apple Valley High School, to protest the initial wave of local ICE activity.

“It’s been tough to watch and follow,” Jones told the Tribune. “It’s extremely sad to see the way that people are being treated here.”

Jones was especially struck by reports of ICE detaining and interrogating children on their way to and from school. Four children in the Columbia Heights Public School district were detained by ICE before and after school Tuesday.

One of them was 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos, whom ICE reportedly detained and then used as “bait” to entice family members to open the door to their home. Ramos and another child — a 10-year-old who was walking to school with her mother — have been transferred to a detention center in Texas.

“It’s just sad to think about kids that might have been going to school with their families dealing with these types of things,” Jones said. “It’s people that weren’t causing any harm to the communities. They’re only bringing good. They’re showing up to school just like the rest of us, having fun and doing things all kids want to do, and they’re facing this.

“It’s sad. We never wanted to see this happen.”

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said in a statement Monday that ICE officers were removing the “worst of the worst” with these raids. U.S. Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino said Thursday that protestors have “violently assaulted” ICE officers, and President Donald Trump has threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act to send troops into Minnesota.

ICE’s actions have been defended repeatedly by Bovino, Vance, Trump and DHS as necessary due to crime and danger caused by immigrants in the Twin Cities. It’s a familiar scenario to Chicagoans, who saw their city branded as a “hellhole” and “haven for criminals” during similar ICE campaigns over the last four months.

Jones doesn’t believe this depiction of his hometown. He sees a different truth that doesn’t reflect federal officials’ rhetoric focused on violence.

“People here know that it’s an amazing city built by amazing people,” Jones said. “It’s a great community here. People look out and stick up for one another. That’s what we see and feel.

“After some of the horrific things that happened here in the past five or six years, the community continues to come together and stick up for one another. That’s just how this city is.”

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/22/chicago-bulls-tre-jones-ice-minnesota/ 

French Navy Intercepts Russia-Linked Oil Tanker In Mediterranean: ‘We’ll Let Nothing Pass’

Tyler Durden
Thu, 01/22/2026 – 14:00

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/french-navy-intercepts-russia-linked-oil-tanker-mediterranean-well-let-nothing-pass 

Following requests from residents to address the federal immigration crackdown happening in Chicago and its suburbs in recent months, St. Charles Mayor Clint Hull and the City Council responded with a proclamation at its meeting on Tuesday.

The proclamation comes months into President Donald Trump’s administration’s immigration crackdown in Chicago, dubbed Operation Midway Blitz. Thousands were detained across Chicago and its suburbs — most of whom had no known criminal record — and fear and uncertainty have permeated work, school, Halloween celebrations and more.

And, as the region weathered the crackdown, a number of local municipalities — like nearby Batavia and Aurora — have responded to residents’ concerns with measures intended to bar federal immigration enforcement actions from happening on city property.

Residents in St. Charles, too, have been coming to council meetings in recent months asking for some kind of local response or ordinance. But, until Tuesday, St. Charles had not formally addressed these concerns.

At Tuesday’s meeting, St. Charles Police Chief Dan Likens addressed some of the limitations on what local law enforcement can do when it comes to federal immigration enforcement.

He said that the state’s Trust Act  — which generally prohibits state and local law enforcement from getting involved in deportation efforts with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement or other federal policing agencies dealing with immigration matters — provides “clear guidance” on how local law enforcement is to act in interactions with federal agencies when it comes to immigration enforcement.

Likens noted that the law is meant to “ensure that the local police departments remain focused on their core responsibilities.”

Local police do not engage in civil immigration enforcement and do not detain individuals over immigration matters unless required by a valid judicial warrant or court order, he emphasized.

And the Trust Act “does not prohibit cooperation with federal law enforcement in serious criminal matters, when such cooperation is required by law and supported by proper judicial authority,” Likens said. But the responsibility for civil immigration enforcement is not local law enforcement’s, he said.

Likens emphasized that the state law is meant to establish trust with the community. He said he’s met with local residents about this issue, and said that anyone who needs help can rely on the police.

“Effective policing depends on trust between the police and our community,” Likens said. “When individuals fear that contacting local police could lead to immigration consequences, crimes go unreported, victims do not seek help, witnesses are less willing to come forward and cooperate. And that makes our community less safe for everybody.”

At Tuesday’s meeting, Kane County State’s Attorney Jamie Mosser described some of the difficulties with local measures that restrict what federal agents can and cannot do. She explained that the idea behind the Trust Act was to clarify the different roles of state and federal agents when it comes to immigration matters. State law cannot dictate federal agents’ behavior, and federal agents cannot control what state agents do, she said.

Pointing to the recent state law banning civil immigration enforcement near courthouses and issuing other guidance in response to the recent immigration crackdown, Mosser explained that the state law is only a civil remedy, not a criminal one. That means local law enforcement cannot enforce the law, rather, the person being affected has the right to sue in state court.

“It does not allow local law enforcement to intervene,” Mosser said. “It does not allow them to stop it from happening, and it certainly does not allow an arrest mechanism of a federal agent.”

Kane County passed a measure of its own back in November, stating that federal agents can’t use county property for staging. Mosser, on Tuesday, pointed out that violations of that measure are to be reported to the Kane County Board, and that the county passes this information on to the state.

“We’re limited in what we can do in response to all of this,” Mosser said.

She also noted that she is working on amending the Trust Act in order to give local law enforcement more authority to protect individuals in these types of situations, with the hopes that lawmakers will move forward with it.

As for St. Charles, Mayor Clint Hull cited the “many differences of opinions” that have come out of residents asking the city to respond to the immigration crackdown.

“We have people who believe that the city needs to pass an ordinance prohibiting our federal government from using any of our properties,” Hull said. “Others believe that the St. Charles police need to be more proactive in working side-by-side in assisting our federal government with immigration enforcement. And still others have commented that we need to focus our attention on the local issues facing St. Charles … and leave this issue to the federal government.”

On Jan. 3, a local activist group held a rally in St. Charles in support of immigrants.

Hull noted that, following the city’s Jan. 5 council meeting, council members said that, because of the importance of the issue to the community, the city “need(ed) to respond.”

But an ordinance prohibiting agents from using city-owned property is “unenforceable,” according to Hull, and would “set expectations that (the) St. Charles Police Department could not meet” and give residents “a false sense of security.”

And, defending the city’s lack of response to resident comments thus far, Hull noted that public comment at city meetings is “not a debate,” and that the intention is for the city to listen to the comments that are made.

So, on Tuesday, Hull presented a proclamation, rather than an ordinance, on behalf of himself and the council — with “words that all of (them) could agree upon.”

The proclamation’s text “reaffirms (the city’s) commitment to ensuring respect, dignity and safety for all residents” and reiterated the city’s compliance with the state Trust Act and all state and federal laws related to immigration, noting that the city does not engage in civil immigration enforcement. It also describes how the police department “is committed to community-oriented policing, cultivating trust and guaranteeing that all residents feel secure in the dedication and integrity of law enforcement.”

Hull said the city knows that there are residents fearful of immigration agents — who are unwilling to go shop for food for fear of being detained, for example, or who are afraid to attend school out of concern that their parents will be detained while they are away.

“Of course we care,” Hull said. “And it’s heartbreaking to watch and read what is occurring. It’s heartbreaking to listen and hear about St. Charles families that are living in fear.”

In addition to the proclamation, Hull said that the city is offering resources for the community on its website. He also encouraged individuals to meet with the city, and said the police will continue to prioritize building relationships with St. Charles students and their families.

“When someone is hurting in St. Charles, we’re all hurting,” he said.

mmorrow@chicagotribune.com

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/22/st-charles-immigration-enforcement-proclamation/ 

Naperville School District 203 is requesting a waiver from the Illinois State Board of Education to increase driver’s education fees to help offset the costs it incurs to run the program.

The D203 School Board this week approved the waiver request that would allow the district to charge up to $500 for driver’s education for the 2027 to 2031 school years. School districts are allowed to charge $250 under state rules, and anything beyond that amount must be submitted to the state school board for approval.

District 203 applied for its first waiver in 2017, asking to charge up to $400 for driver’s education, which was approved through 2021 and renewed through 2026, according to district documents.

The driver’s education program, however, loses money.

In 2024-25, it cost the district $537,549 to run the program for 682 students but only received $279,500 in revenue through student fees and state funds, district documents said.

“Our last waiver set a maximum at $400, and so over time we brought that up to the maximum amount of $400,” Superintendent Dan Bridges said. “… It doesn’t come anywhere close to covering the cost of this course.”

Without the waiver, the district would have to divert funding from other academic programs to to pay for driver’s education, Chief Financial Officer Michael Frances said.

By increasing the fees, the district could receive up to $50,000 in additional revenue, which would help close the deficit, Frances said.

The school board will set next year’s driver’s education fees next month, Frances said, and could opt for incremental increases as long as it does not exceed $500.

The district is also allowed to waive fees for students who qualify.

Several area school districts have applied for waivers to charge anywhere from $300 to $600 for the course.

Indian Prairie School District 204 has asked for a waiver to charge $425, which expires in 2027, while Adlai E. Stevenson High School District 125 and St. Charles School District 303 have asked for $600, which will expire in 2030.

Some local private driver’s education programs range in cost from $525 to $595, according to district information.

D203’s driver’s education course is a one-semester class that includes at least 30 hours of classroom instruction, 12 hours of computer simulation, which equals about three hours behind the wheel, three hours of behind the wheel instruction and 12 hours of observation. The program is offered during the school year and in the summer.

The district uses its own staff to teach driver’s education, Bridges said.

The State Board of Education requires the district to provide an option for driver’s education, but the course is not required for graduation, he said.

Michelle Mullins is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun. 

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/22/naperville-203-drivers-ed-fees-increase/ 

Elgin wins $600,000 grant for Channing Park improvements

Elgin has been awarded a $600,000 Open Space Land Acquisition and Development grant from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources to help fund improvements to Channing Park.

The neighborhood park is located next to Channing Memorial Elementary School on Elgin’s east side. The grant will cover almost a quarter of the $2.5 million in upgrades being made, according to a news release.

Among them will be new a new shelter and playground equipment; an accessible game area and ADA-compliant pathways to access an existing soccer field, which will receive improved drainage; a refurbished a tennis court, including the addition of pickleball lines; conversion of a tennis court for futsal, a truncated version of soccer; and an additional access point to the park from Rugby Place.

“Improvements at Channing Park will strengthen the space and ensure it continues to be a safe, welcoming place for families to gather, play and stay active for years to come,’’ Jen Hermonson, Elgin Parks and Recreation director, said in the release.

Health department holding lead poisoning webinar

A free webinar, “What Families Need to Know About Lead Poisoning,” will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 19, by the Kane County Health Department.

The online session is designed to help families understand the risks of lead exposure and learn practical steps to protect children and expectant parents, according to a news release.

Webinar participants will learn how children are commonly exposed to lead; the health effects of lead poisoning; ways to reduce lead risk at home and in the community; when and how children should be tested; and resources available for prevention and support.

In 2025, there were 121 confirmed cases of lead poisoning in children in Kane County, the release said. Exposure to lead can cause lasting problems with a child’s growth, learning and behavior. During pregnancy, lead exposure can also pass to the baby and affect development before birth.

The webinar is free, but advance registration is required at us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/iqwcuGbKS7-Gmgc69uwmmA#/registration.

School District U-46 Superintendent Suzanne Johnson has been cited as a “Superintendent to Watch” by the National School Public Relations Association. (School District U-46)

U-46’s Johnson named to ‘Superintendents to Watch’ list

School District U-46 Superintendent Suzanne Johnson has been cited as a “Superintendent to Watch” by the National School Public Relations Association.

Each year, the association recognizes superintendents with fewer than five years’ experience in the job who demonstrate dynamic leadership and strong communication, according to a news release. Johnson was one of 30 superintendents nationwide to be selected for the honor.

This year’s superintendents will be formally recognized in July at the association’s seminar in New Orleans.

Johnson began her tenure at U-46 as a language arts educator and later became a high school principal and district administrator. She was named interim superintendent in February 2023 and assumed the job on a permanent basis in the 2023-24 school year.

Grants let ECC add EV training to fire science program

The Elgin Community College fire science program will include electric vehicle training using to grant money from the state’s RevUp Electric Vehicle Community College Initiative.

ECC was awarded an initial $90,000 RevUp EV grant followed by another $295,794 continuation grant, according to a news release. The funding supports the integration of EV technology into public safety training.

Instruction for firefighters will be held at the Center for Emergency Services campus in Burlington. It will focus on hazard identification, vehicle extrication and fire suppression tactics involving electric vehicles.

Firefighters will also learn how to safely operate around EV charging stations, which have been installed at the Burlington campus. The college has also purchased four electric vehicles for instructional use.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/22/elgin-channing-u46-johnson-lead-kane/ 

Theranos Founder Elizabeth Holmes Seeks Commutation Of Fraud Sentence

Tyler Durden
Thu, 01/22/2026 – 13:40

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/theranos-founder-elizabeth-holmes-seeks-commutation-fraud-sentence 

Plans for a new app for Park Ridge Public Library users and reimagined collaborative spaces are underway as of Jan. 1 as part of the library’s new four-year strategic plan – which officials say stems from community input.

“The last strategic plan was done during COVID-19 and I, personally, was really excited to hear from our community in 2025, the voice of our patrons,” said Theresa Renaldi, Park Ridge Public Library board president since August. “We had over 2,000 community members engaging with us, giving us feedback and that’s gold.”

The 2026-2030 strategic plan, approved by the library board Aug. 19, was the direct result of information gathered at focus groups with community partners – including local school districts, the Park District and small businesses – library staff, along with feedback from 2,000 library cardholders who responded to a, said library Director Joanna Bertucci.

Topping the list of to-dos was creating a more seamless online program registration experience that improves access to library materials and creating more meeting, study and collaborative spaces.

The four key drivers of the strategic plan, which will be phased in over four years, include: Optimizing spaces, investing in resources and staff, and aligning programming, services and outreach while increasing community awareness and support.

Earlier this year, Bertucci hired Colorado-based ReThinking Libraries consultant firm, which assisted in managing the focus groups and patron survey. Once library leaders identified the need for a new mobile app, the Connecticut-based tech company Communico was hired to create an app using the library’s branding and graphics that will ease the program registration process and provide a one-stop shop for searching for books, checking out e-content, linking to companion digital services and reserving meeting space.

“It’s the No. 1 ranked service or convenience item that we could add to our repertoire to make the library more accessible to people,” Bertucci said. “We wanted to hit the ground running.”

Development work is scheduled to begin Jan. 1, she said, and the goal is to release the app in time for tracking summer reading in early June. The library signed a three-year, $10,000 per year subscription with Communico for the service, she said.

“While we’re doing that, we’ll be looking at our collections,” Bertucci said. “Thirty-two percent of our circulation is coming from e-books, e-audio books, e-magazines. In 2022, we were at 16%, so in three years, it’s doubled.”

Library staff will be looking at the collections that are not circulating, such as CDs. Although DVDs still circulate, she said, that will be the last of the disc-based technology to go.

“We’ll be looking at these collections and asking what we can put in that place,” Bertucci said, adding community partners and survey respondents all asked for more study, meeting and collaborative spaces in the library.

As a result, space consultant David Vinjamuri, president of ThirdWay Space and an associate professor of marketing at New York University, will begin a space audit of the library in late January. Bertucci said in year two, a plan will be developed to reimagine the library space differently.

“There’s a reason the milk is in the back of the grocery store,” Bertucci said of the space planning. “He’ll apply consumer tactics to the library.”

There are no preliminary costs for any renovations at this time, she said, and the outlay for consultants has been $10,000.

“We’re not suggesting a referendum. The goal of the plan is to maximize what we have,” Bertucci said. “In five to 10 years, we could honestly say we did our due diligence to make spaces the community is asking for.”

Bertucci said library staff will also begin developing more programs for young adults between the ages of 20 and 30, while increasing community awareness and support. In addition, she said dollars were added to the budget to hire another part-time employee to staff the library’s Studio makerspace.

“Some of these activities are not a huge capital outlay,” she said. “We’re thinking about what we’re doing and how we can do it better.”

Renaldi and the board have been pleased with the steps taken to respond to the community’s feedback about the library, which as a 17-year resident, she has found to be very valued by the Park Ridge community.

“I felt like we came out of the process and we picked a great partner. It didn’t feel superfluous — this step is very linear and purposeful,” Renaldi said. “We feel good about our macro objectives which are clear deliverables we can deliver on as soon as the new year.”

Elizabeth Owens-Schiele is a freelancer.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/22/park-ridge-library-strategic-plan-includes-getting-new-app-reimagining-space-for-meetings-and-more/ 

Por JAMES ROBSON

MANCHESTER, Inglaterra (AP) — Casemiro dejará el Manchester United al final de la temporada, anunció el jueves el club de la Liga Premier.

El contrato del internacional brasileño expirará después de cuatro años en Old Trafford, durante los cuales ganó la Copa FA y la Copa de la Liga inglesa.

“Llevaré al Manchester United conmigo durante toda mi vida”, afirmó Casemiro “Desde el primer día que salí a este hermoso estadio, sentí la pasión de Old Trafford y el amor que ahora comparto con nuestros seguidores por este club especial”.

El centrocampista de 33 años se unió al United desde el Real Madrid por 60 millones de dólares en 2022, después de ganar tres títulos de la liga española y cinco Ligas de Campeones.

Nunca logró repetir sus mejores actuaciones en la Liga Premier, pero anotó un gol en el triunfo de la final de la Copa de la Liga del United sobre el Newcastle en 2023.

Hasta ahora, ha disputado 146 partidos y ha marcado 21 goles para el United.

Casemiro no mencionó cuáles son sus planes más allá del final de la temporada, cuando se convertirá en agente libre.

“No es momento de decir adiós; hay muchos más recuerdos por crear durante los próximos cuatro meses”, expresó. “Todavía tenemos mucho por lo que luchar juntos; mi enfoque completo, como siempre, seguirá siendo darlo todo para ayudar a nuestro club a tener éxito”.

El United está en quinto lugar en la clasificación y tiene como objetivo la clasificación para la Liga de Campeones de la próxima temporada.

La salida de Casemiro se produce en un momento en que el equipo 20 veces campeón de la liga inglesa está en un período de cambios tras la reciente salida del entrenador en jefe Ruben Amorim.

Amorim fue el segundo entrenador o director técnico despedido durante el tiempo de Casemiro en Old Trafford.

El exjugador Michael Carrick ha sido nombrado entrenador en jefe hasta el final de la temporada.

___

Deportes AP: https://apnews.com/hub/deportes

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/22/man-united-confirma-que-el-brasileo-casemiro-dejar-el-club-al-final-de-la-temporada/ 

A robocall calling out Orland Park political figures including Trustee Cynthia Katsenes and former Mayor Keith Pekau was not sent by the American Federation of Labor political action committee despite its claims, according to the Chicago Federation of Labor.

The federation, which represents 300 unions and more than 13,000 union members in Orland Park, denounced the robocall in a news release last week.  Federation President Bob Reiter said no registration for the American Federation of Labor PAC exists in Illinois, and “the messages were not created or commissioned by the Chicago Federation of Labor, the Illinois AFL-CIO, national AFL-CIO or any related entities.”

“We are disgusted that scammers are attempting to co-opt labor’s credibility with the community to spread misinformation and advance their own dubious agenda,” Reiter said in the release. “Sadly, this type of deceptive behavior is not new in Orland Park politics. The Chicago Federation of Labor is exploring all legal options to put a stop to these fraudulent communications, and we advise recipients to ignore them.”

The message calls on Orland Park residents to demand Katsenes’ resignation for “breach of her fiduciary duties and trying to destroy Orland Park,” according to a recording of the robocall provided by the federation’s political director, Nick Desideri. It also denounces Pekau and Carol McGury, who ran unsuccessfully for village trustee on Pekau’s ticket in April. Pekau lost his bid for reelection to Mayor Jim Dodge.

The robocall mentions the village’s proposal for a nearly 230,000-square-foot Amazon retail development at 159th Street and LaGrange Road, which was approved by the board Jan. 19. Katsenes and Trustee William Healy voted against the development.

“Newsflash, Amazon is building a supercenter, not a warehouse,” the message says.

McGury in a social media post tied the robocall to “bullies” looking to push Dodge’s agenda, including the local political group Inform Orland Park. In response, Inform Orland Park called McGury’s allegations baseless and said, as a community information source, its members do not create robocalls or push “coordinated political attacks.”

Dodge said Thursday he hadn’t heard about the robocall but is aware of others “flying around” the village that often spread false or misleading information. He said neither he nor the organization was responsible for the robocall.

“Whoever is doing these robocalls, I wish they would stop, because it’s not helpful and it’s damaging the Orland Park community,” Dodge said.

Katsenes also said “slanderous and outlandish” robocalls are nothing new and hopes they will be stopped. She said another robocall used sexual overtones when referring to her, which is unacceptable.

“People have gotten so many that they’re just aggravated, at this point,” Katsenes said. “Why do that to rip the community apart?”

She said even though they “certainly don’t see eye to eye on certain issues,” she does not believe the mayor or any other trustees are responsible for the robocalls.

ostevens@chicagotribune.com

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/22/orland-park-robocall-attacks-katsenes-pekau/ 

Bank Of America, Citigroup May Launch Credit Cards With 10% Rate

Tyler Durden
Thu, 01/22/2026 – 13:20

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/bank-america-citigroup-may-may-launch-credit-cards-10-rate