Capitol News Illinois SPRINGFIELD — A bill that would reform the Prisoner Review Board passed the Illinois Senate on Thursday, aiming to protect victims and increase transparency about prisoner releases following years of controversy surrounding the board’s decisions. Championed by Senate President Don Harmon, D-Oak Park, Senate Bill 19 would give victims the ability to…

Capitol News Illinois SPRINGFIELD — The Illinois House shot down legislation Thursday that would have allowed some people incarcerated for crimes they committed when they were under 21 to become eligible for release. In a rare rebuke of a Democrat-sponsored bill, a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers voted against House Bill 3332, causing the bill to…

Capitol News Illinois SPRINGFIELD — Law enforcement officers would no longer be allowed to search a vehicle or detain a driver who is over age 21 based solely on the smell of burnt cannabis in the vehicle under a bill that passed Thursday in the Illinois Senate. Senate Bill 42, sponsored by Sen. Rachel Ventura,…

Capitol News Illinois CHICAGO — By the time FBI agents came knocking at Omar Maani’s door on a January morning in 2018, the red-light camera entrepreneur had spent at least the last decade and a half getting ahead in business by bribing public officials. Maani, who quickly agreed to become a cooperating witness, told a…

Capitol News Illinois SPRINGFIELD — The Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office came under intense scrutiny after an unarmed Black woman was shot and killed by a deputy in her Springfield home in July 2024. The deputy charged with her murder, Sean Grayson, had a troubled employment record at other Central Illinois police agencies. Despite a former…

Capitol News Illinois SPRINGFIELD – Illinois K-12 schools may soon be required to pick new mascots to replace those that reference Native American names and imagery. That would include logos, team names and mascots which 90 schools throughout the state use, such as the Mt. Zion Braves or the Cahokia Comanches, according to legislators. House…

Capitol News Illinois By Jackson Brandhorst, Bridgette Fox, Molly Parker, Julia Rendleman & Lylee Gibbs   The federal government has revoked the visas of some international students studying at universities across Illinois, but college administrators are sharing few details, including how many students have been impacted. A spokesperson for the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign this…

Capitol News Illinois CHICAGO — On a warm Tuesday evening in late June 2019, state Sen. Emil Jones III walked out onto the patio at a suburban steakhouse and into an hourslong dinner that would set the table for alleged bribes — and subsequent federal corruption charges. Jones, D-Chicago, dressed in a polo shirt that…

Capitol News Illinois SPRINGFIELD — Road tests to renew driver’s licenses could be a thing of the past for many seniors in Illinois under a bill unanimously approved Wednesday by the Illinois House. The House voted 114-0 to approve House Bill 1226, which would raise the age that seniors must take a driving exam to…