Chicago

can anyone tell me what sandwich is in the lower left panel? i’m dying to find out.

I raised a fuss at my polling place because I suspected the ballot I was given did not match my residence address. I have since confirmed that the ballot I was given was incorrect, giving me the wrong races for Illinois State Senate and State House Rep. At the time, the election workers insisted that was the only ballot they had and it was correct for my voting precinct, and I did cast that ballot yesterday. But I'd like to get this addressed before the general election in November.

Yesterday was such a nice day, and I just had to take a walk along the lake! That's all. That's the post.

cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/44995054

If you live in Chicago, please attend the march 5 meeting. We need to outnumber the anti-bike lane folks

The Department of Transportation is proposing bringing a network of bike lanes to Portage Park

https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/sites/complete-streets-chicago/home/featured-projects-and-innovations/projects0/PortageParkNeighborhoodBikeNetwork.html

They are holding a community meeting to discuss the bike lane network at 6 p.m. March 5 at the Portage Park Senior Center, 4001 N. Long Avenue.

Attendees are encouraged to register here

Posting things online isn't enough. Pro-car people actually show up. We need supporters of bike lanes to also show up.

Hey everyone!

Early voting for a lot of local elections is coming up soon. Primaries for these candidates is important because this is the first way constitutes can voice their support for candidates and get them through the next phase.

Sometimes, these races get overshadowed by bigger races, but each race is important especially in the times we are living in now.

This is a list of our endorsed candidates currently.

All of these candidates are people-funded and people-run, meaning they do not take money from corporate or special interest money. You'll be able to see endorsements, events, volunteer opportunities, and their issues that matter most of them.

• Mahnoor Ahmad - Running for DuPage County Board in District 2

• Ben McAdams - Running for IL State Senate in District 24

• Joey Ruzevich - Running for IL Congress from District 6

• Junaid Ahmed - Running for IL Congress from District 8

I encourage you to check out their websites and research the races if they are in your area.

• Check your registration (IL's Online Voter Registration)

• Check where you can vote (either by mail or in-person) at the Illinois Online Voter Website

• Research candidates on your ballot (even if they're not listed here!) so you're ready for voting! (I write my picks down before going to the polls!)

• If you are able to volunteer for these candidates (or any other candidates on your ballot!) and believe in what they do, I encourage you to check out their events and volunteer opportunities, too!

• If you're able to go to their forums to ask questions, I encourage it. Speaking to candidates live is a wonderful way to see if they're the right pick for you!

Thanks for taking the time to read this! It's appreciated! :D

Love this city, the whole place is a gallery. Took this photo today and had to share it. Found details about the work.

Artist: Rahmaan Statik Title: Dynasty of Light Medium: Spray paint and brick concrete wall Size 30x80ft Location: 4011 w Madison and Pulaski Chicago IL 60624 Assistant artist: @upriznikpemi Notes: Project managed by Garfield Park Rite to Wellness Collaborative (GPRWC), DMoC, City Sports, and Chicago Public Art Group. Special thanks to GNEE .

cross-posted from: https://hexbear.net/post/7023515

cross-posted from: https://news.abolish.capital/post/13280

Content warning: intimate partner abuse, police violence

A new federal lawsuit details a years’ long pattern in which leaders in the Chicago Police Department ignored complaints that an officer had “repeatedly physically, mentally, and sexually abused” a fellow detective.

Attorneys for the victim, identified only as Jane Doe for her safety, allege Chicago police detective Marco Torres viciously abused her and threatened her life. They also claim high-ranking officials, including then-chief of the Bureau of Internal Affairs (BIA) Yolanda Talley, not only failed to protect Doe, but also retaliated against her for reporting the abuse. Police Superintendent Larry Snelling and Chief of Detectives Antoinette Ursitti are also named defendants.

According to the complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on Thursday, Torres relentlessly tried to find Doe’s new home address despite an order of protection against him.

In one text exchange with a fellow officer submitted as evidence, he allegedly writes from a burner phone that he needs her address because he has a “guy from gangs” who “can get rid of her” for “a grand:”

Screengrab of a text message allegedly from Marco Torres to another CPD officer. Source: Court filing

The complaint also states that CPD officials were aware of the text message, which the recipient sent to investigators at BIA, but they never warned Doe of the threat or launched an investigation.

Attorneys say the Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA) also failed to properly investigate the incidents of abuse—and their client received “what amounted to a form letter” from Deputy Corporation Counsel of the Employment Litigation Division for the City’s Department of Law when they tried to escalate their complaints.

Just last month, attorneys say, Doe also found a GPS tracking device on her car which she believes Torres used to stalk her.

Torres is currently under court mandated electronic monitoring after he was convicted of assault in December 2024 over his previous threats to kill Doe.

As a result of that conviction, he was placed in court supervision, ordered to wear a GPS ankle monitor for one year, and Doe was granted a one year order of protection. The GPS monitor provides real-time alerts to survivors of domestic violence when their abuser is detected within a set proximity.

Around Thanksgiving, just days before Torres’ court mandated electronic monitoring was set to expire, Doe received numerous alerts while driving on the expressway. Concerned about how Torres could know where she was, she had her vehicle inspected and found a tracking device behind the wheel well.

The lawsuit expands upon allegations originally detailed in a whistleblower complaint filed by the same Jane Doe in the Cook County Circuit Court in 2023, and follows an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) determination that there was “reasonable cause” that the department discriminated and retaliated against Doe based on gender.

“The City chose to put her life in danger”

Chicago police detective Marco Torres, March 14 2024.

The complaint describes a pattern of ambivalence, retaliation, and misogyny within the City and police department’s leadership.

Doe formally reported Torres’ abuse to BIA in November 2022. After sitting for an “hours-long” interview with BIA and members of the Civilian Office of Police Accountability, providing documentation, witness information, and describing specific evidence on Torres’ phone, the officials “refused” to investigate further, closing the case in December 2022. Doe was then reassigned to another unit.

Allegedly, Torres warned Doe that if she reported him, he was involved in another “sexual relationship” with a BIA officer who “would lie for him and who could get Doe fired.”  He also detailed how he planned to kill her with her own gun to make it look like a suicide, and repeatedly threatened to kill himself as well. One of those threats, included in the filing, was sent from his Chicago Police Department email address:

Screenshot of an email from Marco Torres. Source: Court filing

In February 2023, concerned about Doe’s safety, her attorneys say they sent additional details and documentation about Torres’ alleged abuse to the Chief of Constitutional Policing and Reform, Angel Novalez. They received no response.

Doe’s attorneys tried Talley again in March 2023, asking her to re-open the closed BIA investigation. After no response, they emailed her again, asking her to confirm receipt and to confirm that she would re-open the investigation.

According to the complaint, Talley responded with one word: “Received.” The investigation was not re-opened.

At least two other CPD officers reportedly submitted written reports about Torres, one of which described violence and stalking against a different female officer years earlier. During this time, again, Talley allegedly did not investigate or recommend any disciplinary action against Torres.

While CPD was ignoring the problem, attorneys say, Torres continued to harass and stalk his fellow detective. After filing an EEOC complaint in April 2023, and subsequently filing “more than a dozen” police reports about Torres’ actions, Doe petitioned the courts for a civil Order of Protection in September 2023, which was granted.

At that time, CPD stripped Torres of his police powers—not over alleged abuse or criminal conduct, but because he was prohibited by Illinois law from possessing a firearm due to the Order of Protection against him. Torres took a leave of absence, but otherwise faced no discipline.

Doe alleges that after reporting multiple violations of the Order of Protection to CPD, they still took no action to investigate or discipline Torres. The first breakthrough finally came after two events: Doe’s attorneys requested that personnel from the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office participate in any subsequent interviews with BIA, and after that, Torres showed up at Doe’s workplace at 1:00 a.m., at the end of her shift, which another detective reported to BIA.

An Assistant State’s Attorney began investigating the case. They interviewed a witness who had personally witnessed Torres’ physical abuse and death threats in September 2022. Finally, in March 2024, Torres was arrested and charged with assault and domestic battery. At that time, he was also ordered to wear an electronic monitor.

According to the complaint, however, the electronic monitoring did not dissuade Torres from continuing to terrorize his victim. As Cook County Sheriff’s deputies were at Torres’ home fitting him with his new ankle monitor, Torres “repeatedly and aggressively” asked deputies to tell him Doe’s home address, referring to Doe as a “bitch.”

Sheriff’s deputies found his behavior so concerning they notified their supervisor, who then contacted Doe to warn her. She filed a police report about the incident.

On May 20, 2024, less than two months later, Torres allegedly texted a fellow officer from a burner phone asking for Doe’s address, saying he needed it for his gang contact to “get rid of her” for “a grand.” The recipient provided BIA with a copy of the text and warned Doe that Torres had made a threat, but did not send her the text. Despite attorneys’ repeated requests for a copy of the text to assess the threat, CPD ignored their requests, never investigated, and never notified Doe of the direct threat against her life.

“When the City became aware of the text message seeking Doe’s address for the purpose of having her killed, it did nothing—not one thing—to alert her to this grave threat,” attorneys write in the filing. “By choosing not to inform Doe that a hit man may have been hired to kill her, the City made a deliberate choice to intentionally place Doe in harm’s way.”

Only after the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office investigated Torres’ earlier harassing text messages and calls to potential witnesses were they able to correlate cell tower pings for Torres’ burner phone with the same location as Torres’ ankle monitor.

In March 2025, Torres was arrested and indicted on yet another charge:  felony harassment of a witness.

In that case, prosecutors allege Torres told a witness to his abusive behavior that he could get his commander, Arleseuia Watson, to fire her if he wanted. Watson was a Lieutenant in the Confidential Section of BIA in November 2022.

She previously worked with both Torres and Doe before she joined BIA, and failed to recuse herself from the Torres investigation, Doe’s attorneys say was involved in summarily shutting down the initial investigation into Torres and not long after, was promoted to Commander of Area 1 Detective Division, where Torres was assigned.

Torres’ electronic monitoring has been extended until a February 2, 2026 hearing to determine whether violated the terms of his probation.

A pattern of inaction and retaliation

Chicago police officer Krystal Rivera was shot and killed by her partner Carlos Baker in June 2025. Source: Chicago Police Department

The pattern of protecting officers—in particular, male officers—is so common, it has a name: The Code of Silence. Doe’s complaint cites several similar cases where CPD failed to take action against domestic abusers on the force and others where police brass retaliated against whistleblowers.

One of the most recent examples of the department’s alleged failure to act swiftly against an officer with a history of excessive force and domestic violence is not cited in the complaint—because the allegations were just made public the same day Doe’s federal lawsuit was filed.

The family of Krystal Rivera, who was fatally shot by her partner, Carlos Baker, filed a lawsuit this week alleging Rivera had recently broken off a romantic relationship with Baker and that she believed he posed a threat to her. Attorneys point to Baker’s previous history of misconduct and domestic violence allegations, which the department failed to address even when he was a probationary officer and could have been summarily dismissed.

Another relatively recent case includes a domestic violence investigation where the Office of the Inspector General recommended the police department fire Officer Tri Tran. Investigators concluded there was ample evidence he threatened to kill his girlfriend and her entire family.

Instead, police brass chose to give Tran a two-month suspension.

Tran has since served his suspension, and he is now working as a Community Policing Officer in the 1st District.

Since 2018, the department has moved to terminate only nine officers with sustained domestic violence allegations, according to public records. In total, 66 officers had domestic violence allegations sustained in the same time period.

Of seven other officers COPA has recommended for termination, four resigned before the department took action, and three are still awaiting action from the Superintendent.

Often, these investigations take years to complete.

In another instance, COPA recommended a six-to-twelve month suspension for Enrique Delgado Fernandez, an officer with an extensive history of violence. The agency’s investigation into an incident where he forced an ex-partner into his squad car and held her captive for hours while driving on the highway took nearly five years to complete. In the end, Superintendent Snelling issued Fernandez a suspension of six months, which he then appealed via arbitration. Fernandez is currently assigned to the 7th District in Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood.

The president of the Chicago police union FOP Lodge 7, John Catanzara, received only a 30-day suspension after stalking a woman, breaking into her home, and violating an order of protection.

In another case, officer Laura Kubiak was working in CPD’s Office of News Affairs in 2012 when she was assaulted and threatened by fellow officer Veejay Zala. One officer who witnessed the incident later said they thought Zala was going to pull his gun and shoot Kubiak.

During the altercation, Zala shouted, “You are nothing, you are a stupid bitch, you don’t know how to be the police, I am the police, I am the real police.”

Their boss would prove Zala right by later reassigning Kubiak to work the midnight shift in the South Chicago district. A jury awarded Kubiak nearly $2 million in 2019. The case eventually cost taxpayers over $5 million in legal fees and interest.

Doe’s lawsuit is seeking compensation for lost wages and benefits, compensatory damages for emotional distress, punitive damages, and an injunction to prevent discrimination, harassment, and retaliation against women and against whistleblowers.

Upon learning of the suit filed Thursday, attorney Michael Leonard, who is currently representing Torres, told Unraveled: “in my opinion, it appears to be a meritless case.”

A Chicago Police Department spokesperson confirmed that Torres is not currently on duty. He has not been separated (fired) from the department, but is listed as “inactive.”

From Unraveled via This RSS Feed.

Mother Mary wearing a respirator to protect herself from tear gas. Baby Jesus with zip-tied hands, wrapped in a thin blanket that looks like aluminum foil. Masked centurions with sunglasses and green vests labeled “ICE.”

This is how the Lake Street Church of Evanston chose to assemble its outdoor Nativity scene for the Christmas season. The church and its leaders have been vocal critics of the Trump administration’s Operation Midway Blitz, which roiled the Chicago region from September through November, and expressed a message with their holiday decorations.

“Enforcement terror does not discriminate by documentation status,” the church wrote on its Facebook page on Nov. 25.

cross-posted from: https://hexbear.net/post/6802527

cross-posted from: https://news.abolish.capital/post/8836

Federal prosecutors on Thursday moved to drop criminal charges against Marimar Martinez, a woman who was shot multiple times by a US Border Patrol agent last month in Chicago's Brighton Park neighborhood.

As reported by local news station WTTW, prosecutors filed a one-page motion asking the court to dismiss the indictment against both Martinez and Anthony Ian Santos Ruiz, who had been accused of assaulting a federal immigration officer by intentionally ramming their vehicle into the officer's car.

The US attorneys who filed the motion to dismiss offered no further explanation for their decision to drop the case.

In the indictment, prosecutors alleged that Martinez and Ruiz were part of a larger group of people in cars that was trailing immigration officers' vehicles as they conducted operations in Brighton Park.

Prosecutors said that the Border Patrol agent who shot Martinez had been acting in self-defense, and that he had only opened fire after Martinez's car collided with his vehicle.

However, recently uncovered text messages showed the Border Patrol agent apparently bragging about shooting Martinez, as he boasted that he "fired five rounds and she had seven holes" in a message sent to fellow agents.

An attorney representing Martinez claimed last month that he had seen body camera footage that directly undermined the US Department of Homeland Security's claims about how the shooting unfolded.

Gregory Pratt, an investigative reporter at the Chicago Tribune, said the dismissal of the case was yet more evidence that the Trump administration's aggressive immigration enforcement operations appear to be backfiring.

"This follows several dropped prosecutions against protesters," he wrote on Bluesky. "To say the immigration raids have been all around mess is an understatement."

From Common Dreams via This RSS Feed.

I've been curious about them for awhile, but I just learned they also serve as library cards and ventra cards, which renewed my interest.

How was it getting the card? Do you ever actually use it as ID?