Category: News
Defensor del Real Madrid Éder Militão sufre lesión en pierna durante su convocatoria con Brasil
Associated Press
MADRID (AP) — El defensor del Real Madrid, Éder Militão, sufrió una lesión en la pierna derecha mientras jugaba para Brasil, informó el club el miércoles.
Madrid dijo que las pruebas médicas mostraron que Militão se había lesionado un músculo abductor durante el amistoso de Brasil contra Túnez el martes.
Militão tuvo que ser reemplazado en la segunda mitad del empate 1-1.
El club afirmó que se proporcionarán más actualizaciones sobre la recuperación de Militão.
Madrid, que juega contra Elche en la liga española el domingo, tiene una ventaja de tres puntos sobre Barcelona después de 12 jornadas.
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Deportes en español AP: https://apnews.com/hub/deportes
Venezuela Sentences Doctor To 30 Years For WhatsApp Message
Venezuela Sentences Doctor To 30 Years For WhatsApp Message
The Venezuelan socialist regime has just sentenced a 65-year-old doctor, Marggie Orozco, to 30 years in prison for criticizing the regime of socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro in a WhatsApp voice note in 2024.
Orozco was reportedly found guilty of “treason to the fatherland, incitement to hatred, and conspiracy” in complaining about the regime’s distribution of the often hard-to-find domestic gas cylinders in her community.
She has already suffered two heart attacks in the last two years, including one while in prison.
Some on the left, including members of the Chicago Teachers’ Union, have praised Venezuela despite being a brutal authoritarian regime.
This conviction was notably under the regime’s “anti-hate speech” law for those spreading “hateful content.”
As many in the West denounce this conviction, it is important to note that Western countries use the same ill-defined laws to punish citizens in their own countries for “inciting hatred” or spreading dangerous disinformation.
In the United Kingdom, a person was convicted for having “toxic ideologies.” A woman in the UK was arrested for silently praying near an abortion clinic.
Canada has used the same rationales as Russia for punishing its citizens for political views.
The difference appears not to be the limits on free speech but who is yielding these powers.
It is like arguing that your country may have the same authoritarian laws, but it is a benign authoritarianism.
If the Orozco case disgusts you, you should also be disgusted by Western countries and the European Union wielding the same powers.
Tyler Durden
Wed, 11/19/2025 – 15:25
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/venezuela-sentences-doctor-30-years-whatsapp-message
New president appointed for North Chicago D187 authority: ‘(She) is focused on results’
Dora King was a substitute Waukegan teacher in 2012 after retiring from a long career at AT&T when the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) took control of North Chicago School District 187, created the Independent Authority acting as a school board and made her its president.
“We acted to support public education,” King said. “We were working with the community. It was a very difficult time. We needed to get people involved, and buy into the importance of public education.”
Sylvia Johnson Jones, a North Chicago native and the executive director of the Career and Job Placement Center of the College of Lake County until her retirement last year, was appointed to the Independent Authority in 2015. She knew what she wanted the district to achieve.
“We wanted to find ways to increase good outcomes for the students,” she said. “We wanted to find ways to remove barriers so they could go on to higher education, enlist in the military or join the workforce.”
King retired as president and a member of the Independent Authority on Nov. 11 in North Chicago, and the ISBE appointed Jones as her successor the same day, creating a seamless transition as District 187 moves toward a fully elected school board in 2027.
“It was just time,” King said. “It’s a good time with the transition in place.”
Superintendent John Price, who was hired by the board led by King in 2017, said in an email that King brought a sense of family to the District 187 community with, “unprecedented growth for a school district under state control.” She gave it a sense of family, he said.
“Mrs. King’s belief in our students, compassion for the community and leadership have transformed the school district,” Price said. “King has made the school district feel like a family, a family with a uniting purpose to serve our children.”
When the ISBE took control in 2012, it installed a Financial Oversight Panel along with the Independent Authority. The district was in difficult financial straits, and overall student achievement was subpar.
King said she began working with then-Chief Education Officer Ben Martindale — also appointed by ISBE — as some improvement began. Martindale worked closely with the ISBE to receive grant funds to help balance the budget.
After Martindale announced his retirement in 2016, King said she, Jones and the rest of the Independent Authority were actively involved in hiring a new superintendent. They gave the job to Price.
When Price started in 2017, the graduation rate at North Chicago Community High School was 52%. The Class of 2025 graduated 86%, and 96% of last year’s freshmen class are on track to graduate in 2028, according to the ISBE school report card.
Just over three years ago, the ISBE voted to allow District 187 to return to an elected school board. Three members were elected in April, with four appointed members still the majority. Voters will pick four additional board members in 2027. The Independent Authority will then cease to exist.
For King and Jones, their mission over the last few years was to make the transition to an elected board a success. Since the trio of elected members came aboard in the spring, Jones and King have worked closely with them.
“The transition is very important,” Jones said. “Nurturing, coaching and planning is critical to the succession. We’ve been very team-focused. They need opportunities for professional development. We’re trying to build them into leaders. You have to have compassion.”
Price said both King and Jones mentored the three elected board members. Before it was time to circulate nominating petitions for the 2025 election, King started workshops to teach candidates about the job they will be doing. Price said the transition is on the right track.
“These public events laid the groundwork for our elected board members, and provided them with the opportunities needed,” Price said. “Jones has worked individually with the elected board members since the swearing-in to provide mentorship and support.”
Price said ISBE picked a seasoned educator in Jones to become the next president. A North Chicago native who graduated from North Chicago Community High School, she has a lifetime of attachment to the community.
“Jones is an accomplished educator and leader,” Price said. “She remains committed to the community that she was raised in. Jones is focused on results and has proven her ability to lead organizations towards outstanding achievement.”
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/19/north-chicago-district-187-president/
India retrasa su compromiso climático, generando dudas sobre su liderazgo en la COP30
Por ANTON L. DELGADO y SIBI ARASU
BELÉM, Brasil (AP) — Es poco probable que India presente su compromiso climático antes del final de la cumbre climática anual de las Naciones Unidas, lo que genera preguntas sobre cómo la nación más poblada del mundo puede influir en otros para enfrentar el cambio climático.
Según los expertos, la demora podría ser una señal del descontento de India con la falta de avances hacia la financiación de prioridades climáticas globales. Sin embargo, esto también puede perjudicar su capacidad para liderar en las conversaciones climáticas en Brasil.
El país está considerado un actor clave en los esfuerzos globales para combatir la contaminación y abordar el calentamiento global, especialmente dado que el gobierno del presidente de Estados Unidos, Donald Trump, ha evitado las negociaciones climáticas. Pero India sorprendió a los observadores al ser uno de los pocos países grandes que aún no ha enviado a la ONU su plan climático formal, conocido como Contribución Determinada a Nivel Nacional, o NDC, por sus siglas en inglés.
Esta semana en la conferencia, Bhupender Yadav, ministro de medio ambiente de India, destacó cómo el país alcanzó sus objetivos climáticos previos antes de lo previsto. También instó a las naciones ricas a pagar más para ayudar a los países en desarrollo a transitar hacia la energía verde y responder a los impactos del cambio climático.
“El cambio climático ya no es una manifestación lejana, sino que es real e inminente”, afirmó el lunes al hablar en la conferencia. “El crecimiento y desarrollo insostenibles han puesto a la Madre Tierra bajo un profundo estrés”.
Las fuentes de energía no fósiles representan más de la mitad de la capacidad eléctrica de India, que alcanzó cinco años antes de lo previsto algunos de sus objetivos climáticos para la década que termina en 2030. Al margen de las conversaciones, Yadav dijo que India presentará sus objetivos climáticos actualizados para 2035 en diciembre, informó la agencia de noticias Press Trust of India.
El retraso en los objetivos plantea preguntas sobre el liderazgo climático de India
La nación del sur de Asia ha encabezado la formación de múltiples organizaciones internacionales centradas en el clima, como la Coalición para Infraestructura Resiliente ante Desastres y la Alianza Solar Internacional. India también alberga un sector de energía limpia en rápido crecimiento. En la última década, su capacidad solar ha aumentado de solo 5,7 gigavatios en 2015 a más de 125 gigavatios en septiembre de 2025.
Sin embargo, Germanwatch, un grupo de expertos ambientales sin fines de lucro, dijo que, el año pasado, la acción climática de India se quedó atrás con respecto a otros países, en parte debido a su continua dependencia del carbón. El organismo publicó el martes su índice anual de desempeño en cambio climático, bajando a India del puesto número 10 el año pasado al número 23 este año.
La falta de un objetivo climático oficial de India ha sido un gran tema de discusión en la COP30, según Aarti Khosla, fundadora de la consultora climática Climate Trends, con sede en Nueva Delhi.
Aunque India superó sus objetivos climáticos previamente establecidos, Khosla dijo que no publicar sus nuevos objetivos climáticos podría tener un impacto negativo en la postura internacional del país en la conferencia, en especial, mientras busca ser sede de las conversaciones climáticas de 2028.
Abhiir Bhalla, asesor juvenil del Consejo de Ecología Humana de la Commonwealth, dijo que el retraso de la NDC es decepcionante, pero también elogió los avances que India ha logrado con su expansión de energía renovable.
Una voz fuerte sobre la financiación climática global
India también ha criticado abiertamente un acuerdo alcanzado en las conversaciones climáticas anteriores para que los países aporten 300.000 millones de dólares para necesidades climáticas, diciendo que la suma es demasiado baja.
El lunes, Yadav pidió a los países ricos que “proporcionen financiamiento climático nuevo, adicional y concesional en una escala de billones, no de miles de millones”.
Harjeet Singh, director fundador de la Fundación Climática Satat Sampada, dijo que la declaración de Yadav es una señal de que los ambiciosos planes climáticos globales no serán efectivos a menos que haya obligaciones legales para que los países los cumplan. Al mismo tiempo, la voz de India es más crucial que nunca, ya que Estados Unidos, el mayor emisor histórico del mundo, se retira de sus compromisos climáticos, dijo.
“Las grandes economías como India enfrentan más presión para llenar el vacío”, dijo Singh, quien ha asistido a múltiples conversaciones climáticas anuales.
India busca detalles concretos sobre los compromisos financieros globales para combatir el cambio climático, afirmó otro experto en energía que asiste a la cumbre.
“Algo más concreto en términos de aportación de financiamiento público y también financiamiento de adaptación es una gran preocupación por el lado de India”, dijo Vaibhav Chaturvedi, investigador de alto nivel del Consejo de Energía, Medio Ambiente y Agua con sede en Nueva Delhi, un grupo de analistas sin fines de lucro.
La firme postura de India sobre la financiación climática global ha sido recibida con beneplácito por otros países, dijo Iskander Erzini Vernoit, director del grupo de analistas marroquí Iniciativa Imal para el Clima y el Desarrollo. Afirmó que el compromiso de los países ricos con la financiación climática “ha sido débil en el mejor de los casos, y ciertamente, no acorde con la urgencia de mantener el calentamiento global en niveles seguros”.
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El periodista de The Associated Press Joshua A. Bickel contribuyó a este despacho desde Belém, Brasil.
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La cobertura climática y ambiental de The Associated Press recibe apoyo financiero de múltiples fundaciones privadas. La AP es la única responsable de todo el contenido. Encuentra los estándares de la AP para trabajar con organizaciones filantrópicas, una lista de las fundaciones y las áreas de cobertura que financian en AP.org.
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Esta historia fue producida como parte de la Asociación de Medios sobre Cambio Climático 2025, una beca de periodismo organizada por la Red de Periodismo de la Tierra de Internews y el Centro Stanley para la Paz y la Seguridad.
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Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.
CB Kyler Gordon returns to practice, leaving Chicago Bears with decisions to make with C.J. Gardner-Johnson
Twice against the New York Giants last week, Chicago Bears cornerback C.J. Gardner-Johnson blitzed from the slot and saw nobody there to block him.
He had one thought in his head.
“I don’t got to do nothing else but chase the quarterback,” Gardner-Johnson later said.
Both times he capitalized with sacks against Giants quarterbacks Jaxson Dart and Russell Wilson. In just a matter of weeks, Gardner-Johnson has become an productive piece for this Bears defense. Signed on Oct. 29 to fill in for the injured Kyler Gordon, Gardner-Johnson suited up for the Bears as their nickel cornerback four days later.
Gordon went on injured reserve in late October with calf and groin injuries. He previously missed the first four games of the season with a hamstring injury.
In three games since then, Gardner-Johnson recorded three sacks, one forced fumble, 19 combined tackles, four tackles for a loss and four QB hits. His impact was quickly apparent.
On Wednesday, the Bears opened Gordon’s practice window, giving them 21 days to activate him to the 53-man roster. With Gardner-Johnson playing at a high level, the Bears will have some decisions to make once Gordon is ready for game action. Only one of them can play the nickel.
Bears coach Ben Johnson indicated that the team might want both players on the field, but he was vague about who would be playing the nickel.
“C.J. is definitely a playmaker,” Johnson said. “He’s a guy we’re going to want on the field. When we feel good about Kyler being ready, we’ll make sure we have a good plan in place in terms of how we set that up.”
That says a lot about the impression Gardner-Johnson has made in just three games. Bears defensive backs coach Al Harris agreed and said Gardner-Johnson has been “a joy to work with.”
Bears nickel back C.J. Gardner-Johnson (35) high-fives safety Jaquan Brisker after sacking Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart on Nov. 9, 2025, at Soldier Field. (Eileen T. Meslar/Chicago Tribune)
“We as a staff, we’ve got to come up with ways to get your best 11 guys on the field,” Harris said. “However that shakes out, that’s what we’ve got to do.”
Like Gordon, Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson — who has missed most of the season after having core muscle surgery — returned to practice Friday and could be ready for game action within the next two weeks. The Bears play host to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday at Soldier Field.
With a tough schedule down the stretch, the Bears secondary is getting healthy at the right time.
“We’ll be very smart about (when they return),” Ben Johnson said. “But at the same time, I know that they want to be out there and they’re pushing hard to be game ready, whether that’s this week or not. But we’re doing all of our due diligence to make sure we’re being smart.”
Both Gardner-Johnson, 27, and Gordon, 25, are versatile defensive backs who can play multiple positions. Gordon played some outside corner during his rookie season in 2022. Gardner-Johnson has played safety in the past, but he primarily has played the nickel since coming to Chicago.
Since signing with the Bears, Gardner-Johnson has been arriving to Halas Hall at 6 a.m. every day in order to get some extra film work in with nickels coach Cannon Matthews.
“If anything I’m the one that’s still trying to wake up,” Matthews joked about those early-morning meetings. “(He’s) just a prideful person in his craft. He wants to be the best and you hear a lot of guys say that, but you can truly feel that from him.”
Gardner-Johnson previously played in defensive coordinator Dennis Allen’s system in New Orleans. Allen was the defensive coordinator when the Saints drafted Gardner-Johnson with a fourth-round pick in 2019.
Chicago Bears Q&A: How is this season different from Matt Nagy’s ‘fluky’ NFC North title in 2018?
Harris, who played cornerback in the league for 14 seasons, said that once you’ve played in a defensive system before, it’s kind of like riding a bike. Gardner-Johnson is proving that to be true.
“Ben put a lot of trust in me to go out and get things done in a short amount of time, and that’s what I’m doing,” Gardner-Johnson said.
Gardner-Johnson is on his fourth team in a calendar year. He won the Super Bowl last year with the Philadelphia Eagles but was traded to the Houston Texans in the offseason. He lasted only three games into the regular season before the Texans cut him in a surprising move. The Baltimore Ravens then briefly signed Gardner-Johnson to their practice squad for about a week before the releasing him.
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He spent the next two weeks waiting for his next opportunity before the Bears called. A defensive back with a reputation for provoking his opponents on the field — doing so twice against the Bears in 2020 — Ben Johnson’s staff has been adamant that Gardner-Johnson is fitting the attitude of this Bears team, which sits atop the NFC North at 7-3.
“He’s adapted to the culture,” Harris said. “At times you’ll get guys that (arrive) later on that haven’t been exposed to the preaching that we do as far as getting the ball, and it may take them a little time to get used to that. I think he picked that up right away.”
At the same time, when the Bears hired Allen to run the defense, he raved about Gordon, indicating he wanted to use him as more than just a nickel corner.
“Does he go outside and compete at outside corner? Does he compete some at safety?” Allen said over the offseason. “I’ve told him that he needs to be learning both of those spots. We’ll figure out where that second position is where he can go and compete.”
Gordon has been healthy for only two games and primarily has played the nickel in those two games. Whatever the Bears decide to do, having too many starting-caliber defensive backs is a good problem to have.
For now, Ben Johnson’s plans remain a mystery.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/19/chicago-bears-kyler-gordon-cj-gardner-johnson/
‘Massive Shift’ In US-Korea Relations After Trump Gets Seoul To Stop Targeting Tech
‘Massive Shift’ In US-Korea Relations After Trump Gets Seoul To Stop Targeting Tech
Last month we noted that South Korea has been effectively running a racket to extract money from Big Tech through the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) – which, taking a note from the EU, has repeatedly targeted US firms with massive fines over various business practices. For years, the targeted industries have argued that Korean “network usage fees,” mandatory billing rules, app-store regulations, digital-platform laws, and privacy rulings were crafted to disadvantage foreign competitors while protecting national champions.
The longstanding U.S. – Korea alliance has operated within a familiar structure: Washington provided unconditional military protection, while Seoul pursued autonomous industrial and regulatory policies – occasionally at the expense of U.S. firms. The KFTC in particular developed a reputation among American technology, pharmaceutical, and automotive companies as an aggressive, often unpredictable enforcer whose investigations and fines disproportionately targeted foreign market leaders. In sectors ranging from app stores to semiconductors, U.S. firms routinely complained of a regulatory process that lacked transparency, due-process standards, and basic recognition of attorney-client privilege.
In 2021, they fined Google $177 over alleged anti-competitive practices in Android licensing. In 2023, Apple faced a $22 million fine for keeping developers in the Apple payment ecosystem. In 2024, the KFTC launched probes into Amazon and Google over alleged preferential treatment in online advertising and search results, which they said could disadvantage Korean firms.
They’ve also targeted Qualcomm, Meta, Tesla and other US firms, leaving many wondering whether Korea’s antitrust apparatus was deploying economic nationalism under the guise of competition enforcement. Investigations were often launched under political pressure, imposed fines were regularly among the highest in the world, and procedural protections were thin compared to OECD norms.
Not Anymore…
During President Donald Trump’s October visit to the Republic of Korea, things were quickly straightened out. In a Nov. 13 press release, the White House writes:
“The United States and the ROK commit to ensure that U.S. companies are not discriminated against and do not face unnecessary barriers in laws and policies concerning digital services, including network usage fees and online platform regulations.”
So – Korea will need to keep their attack dog on a leash. To that end:
“The ROK commits to provide additional procedural fairness provisions in competition proceedings, including the recognition of attorney-client privilege.”
This further neuters the KFTC, an institution that historically did not offer the evidentiary protections common in U.S. or EU jurisdictions. American companies have long complained that Korean antitrust proceedings allowed investigators access to internal legal communications – a structural disadvantage that no domestic firm in the United States or Europe would be forced to accept.
As a member of the Trade Subcommittee, ensuring U.S. companies are treated fairly when operating abroad is crucial. That’s why I introduced bipartisan legislation addressing the Republic of Korea’s harmful digital trade barriers earlier this year.
I’m grateful to President…
— Rep. Carol Miller (@RepCarolMiller) November 18, 2025
Beyond the KFTC, Seoul’s commitments under the new Korea Strategic Trade and Investment framework seem like a great deal for America:
$150 billion in U.S.-approved investments in shipbuilding
$200 billion more under a coming MOU
A $36 billion Boeing aircraft purchase
$25 billion in U.S. defense acquisitions
$33 billion in support for U.S. Forces Korea
While the US is no longer separating defense and economics – it’s explicitly linking security cooperation to regulatory reciprocity, and makes clear that a strong alliance requires a fair economic relationship.
Carrot and Stick
Politico reports that if Korea walks away from the agreement, they could launch a ‘301 probe’
According to three people close to the discussions who were granted anonymity to disclose private conversations, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and other administration officials have repeatedly warned they could launch a 301 probe if Seoul walks away from that particular part of the agreement.
Greer most recently issued that warning during discussions leading up to last month’s summit between Trump and South Korean President Lee Jae-myung, as South Korean negotiators hedged on proposals the U.S. believes would expose tech behemoths like Google, Apple and Meta to heavy fines. He also said something similar at a September meeting with South Korean Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo, the people said.
The pressure campaign is part of the administration’s wider effort to push back on foreign regulations aimed at reining in the power of large digital platforms — a model pioneered by the European Union and its Digital Markets Act. Last week, the Trump administration unveiled trade agreements with Argentina, Guatemala, El Salvador and Ecuador that include requirements that those countries reject digital services taxes.
That said, “Administration officials and U.S. tech industry allies are expressing confidence that Lee’s government won’t renege on that agreement.”
“After all the hard work that went into last week’s trade deal, it’s unimaginable that Korean officials would let the KFTC move forward with legislation or regulatory actions that would blow everything up and inevitably lead back to higher tariffs and escalating tensions,” one corporate lobbyist close to the White House told the outlet.
A White House official told Politico that the possibility of a Section 301 “came up” during the talks, but that the US was not considering a “heavy-handed approach” at this time.
“The Koreans understood that tariffs are … a stick we carry,” the official added.
Meanwhile, after years of Washington blocking Seoul’s ambitions for nuclear-powered attack subs, Trump gave them the green light.
According to Trump’s first National Security Advisor, Ambassador Robert O’Brien, “The US-ROK trade agreement signals a massive shift in how Korean officials are now expected to treat US firms. It officially recognizes the need to address a history of aggressive, discriminatory policies against American tech companies—including raids & unfounded criminal prosecutions. This deal should effectively kill any new legislation in Korea targeting online platforms, consistent with explicit warnings from President @realDonaldTrump.”
The US-ROK trade agreement signals a massive shift in how Korean officials are now expected to treat US firms. It officially recognizes the need to address a history of aggressive, discriminatory policies against American tech companies—including raids & unfounded criminal…
— Robert C. O’Brien (@robertcobrien) November 17, 2025
There are still issues to be hammered out with the sub deal; where they’ll be made and how to secure fuel for them considering Washington’s longstanding stance on not allowing Seoul to enrich uranium or reprocess spent nuclear fuel (their 26 nuclear reactors are all powered by imported fuel). Seoul, however, wants to enrich uranium themselves to build its own fuel supply chain and bolster its energy security.
Whatever happens with that, it’s clear that Seoul is aligning its industrial future more tightly with the United States than at any point in modern history.
Korea has been officially put on notice. Treat American companies poorly, threaten our workers, raid our firms’ offices, and President Trump will push back.
It’s insane we’ve tolerated this kind of behavior from an ally, but even greater that the new trade deal KlLLS any… pic.twitter.com/7LnZCAthj0
— Gunther Eagleman™ (@GuntherEagleman) November 16, 2025
Tyler Durden
Wed, 11/19/2025 – 15:05
Afternoon Briefing: Northwestern Medicine receives $25 million donation
Good afternoon, Chicago.
Northwestern Medicine has received a $25 million donation from Kent and Liz Dauten and their family foundation to create a new behavioral health institute.
The Northwestern Medicine Dauten Behavioral Health Institute will aim to better coordinate care and improve screening of patients, and will focus on novel diagnostic and treatment approaches across the Northwestern system. It will also include programs for patients with complex diagnoses and disorders. Its first major initiative will be a Bipolar Disorder Center of Excellence, which will focus on providing high quality care and accelerating research into treating patients with the disorder.
“Our family’s philanthropy has prioritized the field of brain science and mental health where there is an explosion in demand for care and an urgent need to find better treatments,” Kent Dauten said.
Here’s what else is happening today. And remember, for the latest breaking news in Chicago, visit chicagotribune.com/latest-headlines and sign up to get our alerts on all your devices.
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Gary council approves changes to down payment assistance program
At its Monday night meeting, the Gary Common Council approved changes that would expand the availability of the city’s down payment assistance progam to more residents.
The council unanimously approved the changes. Councilwoman Mary Brown, D-3rd, and Councilman Myles Tolliver, D-at large, were both absent from the vote Monday evening.
The Gary council typically meets at 6 p.m. on Tuesdays, but the meeting was rescheduled to 5 p.m. Monday “due to a scheduling conflict.”
The city’s down payment assistance program was created from the use of American Rescue Plan Act funds in December 2024, according to Post-Tribune archives. The plan was previously limited to first responders, who would receive up to $30,000, and city employees, including those at the Gary Sanitary District and Gary/Chicago International Airport, who would receive up to $18,000.
The expanded program will also provide funds up to $30,000 to teachers and health care workers who plan to buy a home and live within Gary city limits. City employees will also receive up to $30,000 through the expanded program, according to ordinance documents.
City Attorney Marco Molina said Monday that the program is available to first-time homebuyers.
“Any members of the general public can receive up to 6% of the purchase price of a home, not to exceed $10,000,” Molina said.
According to ordinance documents, the assistance can be applied to the construction of a new home, an existing home or “an owner-occupied home that will be renovated under the FHA 203 K loan program, as well as conventional mortgage loans.”
Those who participate in the down payment assistance program have to use the property as their primary residence for five years. Program members can use funds for various costs, including down payment assistance, pre-paid expenses, closing costs, discount points and mortgage rate buy-downs.
In December, the Gary Common Council approved more than 15 ordinances that appropriated more than $10 million ARPA funds throughout the city, according to Post-Tribune archives. ARPA funds had to be obligated by the end of 2024 and used by the end of 2026.
When it became law in March 2021, ARPA provided about $350 billion in additional funding to state and local governments, according to the Government Finance Officers Association.
Eligible uses of funds include revenue replacement, COVID-19 expenditures, premium pay for essential workers, and investments in water, sewer and broadband infrastructure. ARPA funds can’t be used to directly or indirectly offset tax reductions and can’t be deposited into a pension fund.
Ragen Hatcher, former director of community development, told the council that the funds would help create the down payment assistance program. Former Council President Tai Adkins said she believed the program would help bring more families into Gary, according to Post-Tribune archives.
“One of the main opportunities that I believe that we probably had not capitalized on with the ARPA funding was to ensure that we were having some type of impact to generate funding back to the revenue source,” Adkins previously said.
Tinley Park trustees agree to increase property tax levy by 3.8%, first increase since 2018
The Tinley Board Village Board agreed Tuesday to raise the village’s property tax levy by 3.8%, citing rising costs overall along with rising post-employment benefit expenses.
The decision still needs to be reviewed by the Finance Committee and officially voted on by the Village Board, but trustees reached consensus Tuesday night, said interim Finance Director Hannah Lipman.
If passed, this would be the first tax levy increase by the village since 2018. The Board has until Dec. 16 to make its decision and adopt a new levy, according to a village memo.
The tax levy increase would equate to a $43 increase in taxes for each household in Tinley Park, Lipman said. Trustee Colleen Sullivan called this increase reasonable.
Trustee Ken Shaw said it’s obvious the village will eventually have to increase its tax levy and said now is the time.
While the village budget is balanced this year, Shaw said future costs are a point of concern and expenditure reductions alone won’t cut it going forward.
“Our principles about trying to maintain efficient small government and holding the line on taxes, we’ve done very good the last few years,” Shaw said. “But there’s just certain things we have no control over. As much as we’d like to, we don’t.”
Shaw said the village needs more revenue for overall rising costs, based on a recent budget analysis, and he said he does not intend to hold off on addressing this.
Shaw also said post employment benefits are one of the fastest rising costs for the village. The village spent just over $1 million on the benefits this fiscal year, compared to spending about $614,000 in fiscal 2023, according to budget documents.
These health insurance benefit costs are voluntary and are for certain retired, formerly full-time, personnel in the village’s health and accident insurance program, as defined in 2026 village budget documents.
The tax levy would support the police pension fund and library funds in addition to overall costs.
The Tinley Park Public Library would receive 0.9% of the levy increase. Mayor Michael Glotz said because the library operates separate from the village, he does not know details about their spending or their capital improvement projects.
Under state law, the Tinley Park Public Library is considered part of the village for both budget and levy purposes, although it has its own administrative governing board.
The levy increase also calculates a request from the Tinley Park Police Pension Fund Board to levy the fund’s required $5.74 million, which represents a 4.9% increase over last year.
Over the past three years, the required pension contribution has grown by $1.6 million, or 35%, according to the levy memo. Village officials said because the village has kept its overall levy flat the past two years, it absorbed these rising pension costs, but that reduced funds available for other village operations the full $1.6 million, unless this year’s levy increase is addressed.
Trustees Michael Mueller and Sullivan both cited the levy’s support for the police pension fund when agreeing on the increase.
Glotz blamed the possible tax increase on rising costs, along with Illinois state legislators. He cited unfunded state mandates, such as requirements to purchase police body cameras.
“That’s at a cost that we have to keep eating,” Glotz said.
He also said Tinley Park receives significantly less state funding compared to nearby municipalities such as Matteson, Orland Hills and Frankfort.
Tinley Park officials have, at times, frozen the property tax levy to avoid adding financial burdens on households, a point of pride for local officials. A levy increase in 2018 was the first since 2011, and officials stated at the time the increase might not result in higher individual bills due to a larger total property value base.
Tinley Park also increased a sales tax and an amusement tax in June that largely fell on concertgoers. The home-rule sales tax, now at 0.75%, will increase to 1% and the amusement tax, now at 5%, will increase to 6%. These hikes are scheduled to take effect on Jan. 1
Also taking effect Jan. 1 is a 1% grocery tax approved by village officials in May.
awright@chicagotribune.com
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/19/tinley-trustees-property-tax-increase/
Man hit with federal terrorism charge in arson attack on CTA Blue Line
Late Monday night, federal authorities said a man in all black approached a young woman on a Blue Line train, took out an iced tea bottle and poured clear liquid onto the woman’s head. Then he set it on fire.
Lawrence Reed allegedly stood at the front of the train car and watched as the 26-year-old woman, “engulfed in flames,” rolled on the floor of the train car trying to snuff out the blaze.
Prosecutors Wednesday afternoon charged Reed, of Chicago, with a single count of terrorism against a mass transportation system for the apparently unprovoked attack in an unusual 13-page complaint filed in U.S. District Court.
Days before the Blue Line attack, an unidentified person had tried to set Chicago’s city hall on fire. Police suspect that Reed, 50, was the aggressor in both cases, one of which has drawn the ire of Trump administration officials who frequently target blue cities’ public transit safety for political points. Cook County court records show that Reed has a history of mental illness that has been a factor in several earlier criminal cases, including a 2020 attempt at setting the Thompson Center on fire.
The 13-page complaint alleges that Reed filled a bottle with gasoline at a Garfield Park gas station about 30 minutes before the attack took place, getting on the Blue Line at the Kedzie Stop before he allegedly approached the woman in the train car.
Chicago police arrested Reed Tuesday morning as he was walking westward on Washington Boulevard, per the complaint. According to his arrest report, officers were looking for Reed in connection with the alleged Blue Line attack, but later linked him to the City Hall fire and alleged that he’d thrown bricks through the window of a group home in the East Side neighborhood Monday.
Per the complaint, Reed yelled “burn alive, (expletive)” while officers were taking him to the Harrison (11th) District police station for questioning.
In July 2021, Reed was convicted of aggravated arson after he poured gasoline along a window ledge of the Thompson Center, which at the time was home to much of the state of Illinois’ Chicago operations, and tried to set the fluid on fire. He was sentenced to two years of mental health probation, which court records show he completed in December 2023. Two years earlier, he’d been arrested and charged with criminal damage to government property for smashing out windows on a Blue Line train car, for which he was later sentenced to two years of probation.
Reed was arrested Tuesday while on pretrial release for an aggravated battery case stemming from charges that he allegedly hit a social worker in the face in a Berwyn hospital so hard the alleged victim lost consciousness. Judge Teresa Molina-Gonzalez denied prosecutors’ petition to have Reed held in jail pending trial, instead ordering him released on electronic monitoring with regular check-ins with a probation officer. Reed pleaded not guilty to the charge Oct. 21, records show, and was supposed to return to court Dec. 4.
The Trump administration has been using CTA crime as a political cudgel for several months, but President Donald Trump’s transportation secretary Sean Duffy used the Blue Line attack to renew his criticism of the transit system’s approach to public safety in a Tuesday social media post.
“This horrific attack is EXACTLY why we need communities to take safety seriously. Blue cities cannot allow another Iryna Zarutska to happen,” Duffy wrote, referring to a 23-year-old woman killed in an apparently random fatal stabbing attack on a commuter train in North Carolina.
In September, Duffy wrote a letter to the CTA asking it to lay out its plans to reduce crime and fare evasion on the system — or risk losing federal funding.
“I appreciate your prompt attention to this matter to avoid further consequences, up to and including redirecting or withholding funding,” wrote Duffy, who has sent similar letters to the leaders of mass transit agencies in the Democratic-led cities of New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C. and Boston.
In a news release about the letters to transit leaders in Chicago and Boston, the U.S. Department of Transportation pointed specifically to cashless bail policies in the two cities, which it claimed “allows deranged criminals to repeatedly terrorize public spaces.”
The CTA’s acting president, Nora Leerhsen, defended the agency’s safety practices in a response to Duffy dated Oct. 3.
“We recognize that it is absolutely critical that we remain laser-focused on providing a safe and secure ride for everyone on our system,” Leerhsen wrote. “We share your focus on this important issue.”
Leerhsen claimed crime on the Blue Line specifically had dropped 30% over last year.
She also outlined the transit agency’s various crime-fighting initiatives, including its use of an AI-gun detection technology called ZeroEyes and the opening of a new strategic support center this summer in collaboration with Chicago police.
The CTA referenced the strategic support center again in a statement following the Blue Line attack, saying it was working with Public Transportation Unit detectives embedded within the support center to aid their investigation.
Tribune’s Madeline Buckley contributed.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/19/federal-terrorism-charge-in-arson-attack-on-blue-line/
