Violet Miller

Family of Chicago cop killed in botched chase sues Chicago Police Department and partner who shot her

The mother of Chicago police Officer Krystal Rivera filed a wrongful death lawsuit Wednesday in which she says her daughter’s partner Officer Carlos Baker was struggling to accept her decision to end their romantic relationship when he fatally shot her during a foot chase on June 5.

PHOTOS: Feds deploy tear gas in Elgin as hourslong standoff ends in man's arrest

chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/...

In Elgin, ICE agents have been in a standoff with the community as they’re trying to arrest a man. Here’s an altercation between the feds and residents ending with arrest and pepper spray. Video from Sophia Peterson

According to survey data from the DOJ itself, incarcerated trans Americans experience sexual violence at more than 12x the rate of other incarcerated people.

The plans outlined in the memo effectively greenlight discrimination against LGBTQIA+ people who are already disproportionately at risk.

Trump administration plans to end prison rape protections for trans and intersex people A Department of Justice memo says certain standards under the Prison Rape Elimination Act do not align with Trump’s executive order

BREAKING: Trump administration plans to end prison rape protections for trans & intersex people, memo says. A DOJ memo says certain standards under the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) do not align with Trump’s Jan. 20 anti-trans executive order, @byadamrhodes.bsky.social reports.

Apply now for Windy City Times’ 2nd annual community journalism cohort Windy City Times is accepting applications for the second year of its paid community journalism course for anyone interested in storytelling for marginalized communities. Our Stories, Our Power is a 6-week course on telling stories that are for us, by us. Applications are open now with a deadline of 5 p.m. Friday, Jan. 2. This program is open to anyone interested in telling local news stories serving their communities.

Apply now for Windy City Times’ 2nd annual community journalism cohort

Windy City Times is accepting applications for the second year of its paid community journalism course for anyone interested in storytelling for marginalized communities. Our Stories, Our Power is a 6-week course on telling…

reminder that as activity picks up in places like Twin Cities, Louisiana, Alabama etc, my @propublica.org colleagues & I are still investigating immigration enforcement

I'm particularly interested in use-of-force & am still tracking the detention of citizens

Reach out ⬇️ if you have info to share

Staff photo on Belmont train platform from around 1985 founding of WCT. Black and white pic of 18 people.

Remembering those lost on the founding staff of Windy City Times, some who did not even make it to this early photo. World AIDS Day is to remember those we lost, the fights we had, and the fight we still have. Tonight at 7 p.m. at Women & Children First, I’m on panel w/ Rebecca Makkai and Viki Noe

Feels really significant that the Trump admin is making a concerted effort to force colleges to undo policies that made campus safe and accessible for trans people, because for so many trans people college is the first place they ever get to be themselves.

Bodycam video shows feds’ aggressive tactics in vivid detail: ‘Deploy f---ing gas’ The videos, released weeks after U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis’ historic order limiting agents' use of force, offer a firsthand look at flashpoint incidents from suburban Broadview, and Chicago's Lit...

From @chicago.suntimes.com on the now-public body-cam footage that was relied upon by Judge Sara Ellis.

H/t to @sophiesherry.bsky.social, Kade Heather, @vimiller.bsky.social @angelamassino.bsky.social and Kaitlin Washburn for taking on a holiday evidence drop: chicago.suntimes.com/public-safet...

you might think they'd run out of ways to use "baked" in puns about turkeys and DUIs but by golly do they just keep going

today is the day that every pun-crazy police department social media manager *thrives*

What happened when The Sausage King of Chicago bought a South Side housing complex?

The landlord received millions in federal rent subsidies while tenants complained about years of poor maintenance and deplorable conditions.

Ex-Guantánamo detainee testifies a former Chicago detective tortured him for months

A Guantánamo detainee testified Monday that Chicago detective Richard Zuley tortured him, supporting a murder suspect's bid for a new trial based on coerced confession allegations.

What happened when The Sausage King of Chicago bought a South Side housing complex?

Two California real estate investors own Indian Trails Apartments, a 180-unit subsidized complex on Chicago's South Side that has deteriorated significantly since their 2017 purchase, leaving residents without heat or maintenance.

Sister JoAnn Persch, longtime immigrant activist, dies at 91

Sister JoAnn Persch served with the Sisters of Mercy for 73 years. On Nov. 1, Sister JoAnn was among the delegation denied entry to the Broadview ICE facility when they attempted to bring Communion to those detained inside.

from @charlotteobserver.com: www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/c...

Burke is allowing cops to directly file gun felony charges while the police department is run by a superintendent who, as a young officer, was implicated with three other cops in threatening to plant drugs on a man if he didn't bring them a gun.

southsideweekly.com/chicago-poli...

It’s coincided with an uptick in calls to IL’s suicide hotline specifically geared toward LGBTQ+ youth, 988, which remains standing after the federal government shut down the nationwide version in June.

It has received >150k calls this year and is expected to pass 180k (12k more than last year).

In Illinois, 29 trans teens have died by suicide this year, per Trans Up Front, a trans youth advocacy group. Last year we lost four; six in 2023.

“This administration is targeting our children, they’re trying to take the next generation… [But] we’re gonna be here forever. We’ve always been here.”

Trans Group Warns ICE is Holding Trans People Under Previous Names — Assigned The group, who says they have been in contact with five trans people in ICE detention, is advising members of the community to share their former names with trusted friends.

As the Trump administration continues its attacks on immigrants in the US, there are increasing signs that ICE is holding trans detainees under their dead names to make them harder to locate.

This story brought to you by @evanurquhart.bsky.social

Federal appeals court puts release of hundreds of ICE detainees on hold The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals scheduled arguments for Dec. 2, setting the stage for the first such hearing tied to "Operation Midway Blitz."

Federal appeals court puts release of hundreds of ICE detainees on hold

From @chicago.suntimes.com: chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/...

Big day for the government moving to dismiss Midway Blitz-related federal assault cases.

The DOJ Subpoenaed Patient Info From a Gender-Affirming Care Clinic. It Fought Back. A Washington judge quashed the Trump administration's attempt to subpoena patient information from the telehealth practice QueerDoc—but the fight may not be over.

NEW: Trump's DOJ sent a subpoena to a gender-affirming care clinic seeking information on patients, including minors, and its insurance billing practices. The clinic—which doesn't even take insurance—fought the demand in court and won.
Read @garnethenderson.com in @autonomynews.co

HHS Re-releases Document Claiming to Review Youth Gender Medicine — Assigned The original release did not include the names of the authors, who include conservative and anti-trans activists.

BREAKING: The HHS has re-released a May document purporting to review the evidence in youth gender medicine. The re-release includes authors from SEGM and the Manhattan Institute.

Read our story here:

www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-new...

ORDER On November 6, 2025, the district court ordered a preliminary injunction forbidding defendants from using certain crowd control techniques and imposing additional requirements on law enforcement activities. Dist. Ct. DE 250. Defendants seek a stay pending appeal, and plaintiffs oppose. A stay is appropriate if the movant demonstrates a likelihood of success on the merits and irreparable injury. Nken v. Holder, 556 U.S. 418, 434 (2009); Camelot Banquet Rooms, Inc. v. Small Bus. Admin, 14 F.4th 624, 628 (7th Cir. 2021) (per curiam). And “[i]n close cases ... [a court] will balance the equities and weigh the relative harms to the applicant and to the respondent.” Hollingsworth v. Perry, 558 U.S. 183, 190 (2010) (per curiam).

Defendants are likely to succeed on the merits. The preliminary injunction entered by the district court is overbroad. In no uncertain terms, the district court’s order enjoins an expansive range of defendants, including the President of the United States, the entire Departments of Homeland Security and Justice, and anyone acting in concert with them. The practical effect is to enjoin all law enforcement officers within the Executive Branch. Further, the order requires the enjoined parties to submit for judicial review all current and future internal guidance, policies, and directives regarding efforts to implement the order—a mandate impermissibly infringing on principles of separation of powers on this record. Finally, the district court’s order is too prescriptive. For example, it enumerates and proscribes the use of scores of riot control weapons and other devices in a way that resembles a federal regulation. We also have reservations about Article III standing. Open questions remain whether plaintiffs have shown that the past harm they allegedly faced is likely to imminently happen to them in the future. City of Los Angeles v. Lyons, 461 U.S. 95, 105– 06 (1983). A fear that such harm will recur is insufficient, on its own, to show standing for injunctive relief. Id. at 107 n.8. And we are aware of public reporting suggesting that the enhanced immigration enforcement initiative may have lessened or ceased, which could affect both the justiciability of this case and the propriety of injunctive relief. Additionally, defendants face irreparable harm. Trump v. CASA, Inc., 606 U.S. 831, 860–61 (2025). “Any time that the Government is enjoined by a court from effectuating statutes enacted by representatives of its people, it suffers a form of irreparable injury.” Noem v. Vasquez Perdomo, No. 25A169, 2025 WL 2585637, at *3 (U.S. Sept. 8, 2025) (citation modified); see also CASA, Inc., 606 U.S. at 861. And the balance of equities does not counsel against awarding defend…

#BREAKING The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has stayed Judge Sara Ellis' preliminary injunction, which restricted the feds' use of force in Chicago.

The appeals court says her order is "overbroad" but warns "do not overread today's order."

What does 15 look like? Teens and former child actors weigh in online after Megyn Kelly comments After commentator Megyn Kelly seemed to downplay the youth of Jeffrey Epstein's victims, former child actresses and current teenagers took to social media to express outrage.

After commentator Megyn Kelly seemed to downplay the youth of Jeffrey Epstein's victims, former child actresses and current teenagers took to social media to express outrage. n.pr/4o6Vfmi

Jake Wittich, managing editor of Windy City Times, named ‘Chicago Journalist of the Year’ - Windy City Times The Chicago Journalists Association recognized Windy City Times managing editor Jake Wittich with its Chicago Journalist of the Year award during its 86th anniversary ceremony on Nov. 14. The award re...

The recognition comes after a standout year for @jakewittich.bsky.social's career, which has included growing Windy City Times’ newsletter operation from the ground up, doubling down on in-depth LGBTQ+ reporting, and training others through Windy City Times’ inaugural community journalism cohort.

Pastors speak of brutality of arrests at hands of local cops at Broadview ICE facility Pastor Luke Harris-Ferree and the Rev. Michael Woolf were arrested Friday while trying to meet and pray with detainees. They call on Gov. JB Pritzker to answer for the excessive use of force by police...

Broadview's mayor said “out-of-towners” had “chosen their fists" but video shows calm before cops grab Rev Michael Woolf from the crowd.

“If they were willing to do that to clergy in broad daylight ... I can’t even imagine what they’re doing to our immigrant neighbors," said Rev Luke Harris-Ferree.

Chicago Set to Borrow $283.3M to Resolve Police Misconduct Lawsuits It will likely cost Chicago taxpayers approximately $52 million in interest to borrow that money and pay off during the next five years, according to estimates provided to the Chicago City Council by ...

Chicago must borrow $283.3 million to cover the soaring cost of lawsuits alleging Chicago police officers committed a wide range of misconduct — including wrongful convictions and improper pursuits — as part of the city’s 2026 budget, Mayor Brandon Johnson said.