Chicago Sun-Times back issues from May 2008:
Caption Only
May 01, 2008 ... NO TEXT Stop the Killing: A Sun-Times Campaign Color Photo: Rich Hein, Sun-Times / LIFE UNDER FIRE: In Little Village -- where three people were found shot to death in an apartment yesterday -- ...
3 murdered in Little Village
May 01, 2008; ... Three people "living out of suitcases" were found shot to death Wednesday morning in a Little Village apartment in what police suspect was a drug-related slaying. Two men and a woman were discovered bound and gagged on the first floor of a two-flat in the 2800 block of South Kildare ...
Pics of jewelry from S. Side home released
May 01, 2008; ... Chicago Police have released photos of items taken from a home where five people were found shot to death last week, including one of a white gold medallion with the name "DON P" adorned in white diamonds. Don-P was the nickname of Donovan Richardson, one of the victims of the April 23 ...
3 murdered in Little Village
May 01, 2008; ... At the corner of 30th and Kildare in the Little Village neighborhood, not even God can get a break. On the exterior walls of the tiny Liberty Center church, printed messages of hope share space with scribbled gang put-downs and challenges. Some residents of this neighborhood -- ...
Slain cougar likely from South Dakota
May 01, 2008; ... The 124-pound cougar that ended up in Roscoe Village last month may have started its life nearly 1,000 miles away in South Dakota. And the big cat -- the first cougar found in Cook County since at least 1855 -- definitely passed through southern Wisconsin as it wandered toward ...
Fight fallout: Wentz sued
May 01, 2008; ... A Chicago man who fans say was heckling Fall Out Boy during a private show last summer is suing bassist and Wilmette native Pete Wentz, claiming the rocker and his security detail beat him after the show. Andy Kallas, 31, claims he suffered serious injuries after an attack at Schuba's ...
Will fans own Wrigley seats?
May 01, 2008; ... Former Gov. Jim Thompson's secret plan to have the state acquire and renovate Wrigley Field with "no taxes of any kind" may rely on a stadium financing scheme pioneered by former Democratic fund-raiser Lou Weisbach: equity seat rights. It's been touted as a revolutionary, fan-friendly ...
Indecision
May 01, 2008; ... TIPSVILLE . . . Dateline: The Final Flip? -- Sneed is told former Dem presidential contender John Edwards changed his mind recently about endorsing Hillary Clinton. - The flipside: But the latest backlash over Barack Obama's ex-pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, may lead Edwards ...
Hispanics drive state population growth
May 01, 2008; ... Nearly 90 percent of Illinois' population growth since 2000 has come from Hispanics, according to U.S. Census population estimates. The numbers show that Illinois' Hispanic population grew by 390,000 between 2000 and 2007, while the population of the entire state grew by ...
City is sanctuary, but not O'Hare
May 01, 2008; ... Chicago is a sanctuary for undocumented immigrants thanks to a city ordinance passed in 2006. But if those immigrants happen to be wandering through O'Hare Airport, they're out of luck. Fernando Lara Flores found that out the hard way -- two days before his wedding. As the ...
Obama column outrage began at 4:59 a.m.
May 01, 2008; ... No, I don't think it makes somebody a racist to favor a candidate other than Barack Obama for president, and yes, there are many more valid ways to reach that viewpoint than those that I suggested on Wednesday. But as folks used to say, "If the shoe fits, wear it." The first call ...
School bus driver slammed brakes to punish kids: cops
May 01, 2008; ... A school bus driver for Consolidated School District 158 was charged with reckless conduct and child endangerment after injuring several students Wednesday morning on a ride to Leggee Elementary School in Huntley. Eighteen of 54 students on the bus, ages 5 to 10, were treated and ...
Drew offers reward
May 01, 2008; ... Six months after Stacy Peterson vanished, Drew Peterson has put up a $25,000 reward for information that leads to the safe return of his missing fourth wife. The former Bolingbrook police officer -- labeled a suspect in her disappearance -- said Wednesday he wants to find his 23-year-old ...
Clout HMO pops up in Rezko case
May 01, 2008; ... It had big-time connections and a bevy of Bears as pitchmen. Walter Payton, Dan Hampton, Dave Duerson -- all helped Chicago HMO quickly become the dominant HMO here in the 1980s. The company made multimillion-dollar deals with the state of Illinois to offer health care for ...
Ben Stein deserves to be 'Expelled'
May 01, 2008; ... I've been hearing from a number of folks claiming "Liberal Bias!" because we didn't review the documentary "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed" on the TV show. "Expelled," starring former Nixon speechwriter, all-around funnyman and "Bueller . . . Bueller . . . Bueller?" actor Ben Stein, ...
Broken boards, sore hand still no ticket to Oprah
May 01, 2008 ... An Alabama man who has been breaking 2-by-4s with his hand outside Harpo Studios to get Oprah Winfrey's attention had only a sore hand to show for it Wednesday evening. Ron Werstler, 46, wants to raise awareness for cystic fibrosis research and cash ...
Sick of his grin, her pantsuits, McCain's wife
May 01, 2008; ... I am sick of politics. Practically everyone I bump into tells me they are sick of politics, too. I'm weary of the distortions, half-truths and outright lies that candidates feel compelled to tell in order to get our votes. I am sick of trying to figure out who is lying ...
'Snowing in hell': Deal bans some gifts to pols
May 01, 2008; ... Three years in the making, Illinois legislators finally struck a deal Wednesday on a proposed statewide ethics bill to combat "play-to-play" politics. "There is a good chance it may be snowing in hell right now because a lot of people didn't expect this to happen," said Rep. John ...
Public defender: Stroger gave me unqualified workers
May 01, 2008; ... Cook County Board President Todd Stroger has forced unqualified people into jobs on the public defender's payroll. Those charges were made Wednesday by Public Defender Ed Burnette, who is fighting to keep a job he was appointed to five years ago by Stroger's father, John ...
Mom, 5 others arrested in melee with cops
May 01, 2008 ... A mother of five faces felony charges after allegedly getting into a fight with an officer when police converged on her South Side home. But the woman's lawyer says the officers "beat and brutalized" her, and the Independent Police Review Authority is reviewing the incident. Sonya ...
2nd bike rider killed in Logan Sq.
May 01, 2008 ... A 24-year-old woman was fatally struck by a car while riding her bike in the Logan Square neighborhood on the Northwest Side on Wednesday afternoon -- the neighborhood's second bike fatality in as many weeks. It ...
CTA to cut 100 office jobs, offer free rides to military
May 01, 2008; ... The CTA will cut as many as 100 administrative jobs in the next six months to save money, Ron Huberman, the agency's president, said Wednesday. "In this tight budget time, with rising fuel costs, there's no way we can avoid it," Huberman said in an interview. He said the cuts ...
CTA may build wall at Chinatown stop
May 01, 2008; ... The CTA is considering erecting a barrier wall in front of the Red Line's Cermak-Chinatown station to prevent the type of accident that took two lives last week. "We're looking at that as a part of rebuilding that particular station," CTA President Ron Huberman said ...
Fire inspector payments for weekend tests alleged
May 01, 2008; ... At least six inspectors from Chicago's Fire Prevention Bureau have been placed on administrative leave with pay -- and six more may join them on the hot seat -- after allegedly accepting $100 payments in exchange for making weekend pump inspections at high-rise buildings. Fire pumps ...
Man killed in W. Side factory
May 01, 2008; ... A 28-year-old Chicago man was shot to death Wednesday at the West Side factory where he worked, authorities said. Santos Rivera, a married father of three children, was shot just before 2 p.m. at O & G Spring & Wire Form Specialty Company, 4500 W. Division. Police were ...
Candidates woo Hoosiers
May 01, 2008; ... Kitchen-table issues such as gas prices, video games, college tuition and helping kids with homework dominated the agenda Wednesday as Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton traveled Indiana trying to come out ahead in next week's close Democratic presidential primary. After sitting at a ...
He swears: 'I am not a politician'
May 01, 2008; ... Standing in front of a sign proclaiming "I am not a politician," Republican Marty Ozinga III officially kicked off his campaign Wednesday for the south suburban and Downstate 11th Congressional District. "I am proud to be conservative," Ozinga said. "I believe we need less government in ...
Eight is enough
May 01, 2008; ... News Item: "Struggling with mounting debt and rising prices, Americans are selling prized possessions online and at flea markets at alarming rates . . ." Are you better off now than you were eight years ago? Come to think of it, with the way things are going, are you better off ...
Three pros Stroger needs on new county health board
May 01, 2008 ... On Friday, Cook County Board President Todd Stroger faces a major test of his commitment to good government. That's the deadline for Stroger to pick nine men and women to sit on a board that will run the county's massive public health care system. The new board is intended to rescue the ...
Get off fence on immigration
May 01, 2008 ... Tens of thousands of people are expected to march in Chicago today, May Day, also known as International Worker's Day. They are demanding immigrant rights and legalization for the 12 million undocumented immigrants in the United States. It's not just a Mexican issue but one that will ...
Don't blame Obama
May 01, 2008; ... I wish everyone understood this situation as columnist Mark Brown does. Barack Obama can't be held responsible for everything out of Jeremiah Wright's mouth. They had to try to attach something negative to Obama because they couldn't find anything on him. If we look at Obama for the man ...
Reverend tells it like it is
May 01, 2008; ... I fully understand Rev. Jeremiah Wright's anger at the situation in the United States. The rich and powerful in the U.S. do not understand that everyone is equal before God ....
It's all media's fault
May 01, 2008; ... It saddens me that the media seem to be asleep or otherwise consciously continuing to do harm to the presidential campaign. On Tuesday, Steve Huntley wrote: "To watch what the Rev. Jeremiah Wright is doing to Obama's presidential hopes is not a pretty sight" seems at best naively immature, and ...
I choose hope over fear
May 01, 2008; ... Many people dismiss Obama's message of change and hope as either naive or foolish or even a lie. Sure, I'll be disappointed if Obama does not live up to be everything I hope he is, but I will not regret believing in his message. I am voting for Obama because I still have hope and I still ...
Wright did Obama a favor
May 01, 2008; ... What is Rev. Jeremiah Wright thinking? Looks to me like he was doing Barack Obama a favor. First, the reverend goes on a nationwide speaking tour doing his thing. Then Obama follows the reverend's tour up with a strong ...
Talk Back
May 01, 2008 ... DON'T TRY TO RAISE MY TAXES TO BUY WRIGLEY FIELD Big Jim Thompson is at it again. Have you forgotten time after time -- no tax raises or new taxes from me!! We elected him governor more than once on those same claims he's using now for buying Wrigley Field. No tax dollars -- that's ...
Media's spin is distorting Rev. Wright's words
May 01, 2008; ... The media cannot have it both ways! On the one hand, you say that Rev. Jeremiah Wright is seeking media attention. However, if the press would just leave him alone and ignore him, where would the attention be? The problem here is not what Wright says, it is the media "spin" on what he ...
Wright problem remains a threat
May 01, 2008; ... 'That is just terrible, absolutely dreadful,'' a prominent supporter of Barack Obama said Monday morning after listening to the Rev. Jeremiah Wright's screed at the National Press Club. He proposed that Obama at long last must denounce his pastor, unequivocally and immediately. It took 28 hours ...
Biofuel production drives food crisis, raises threat of starvation and unrest
May 01, 2008; ... After all the talk about the energy crisis and financial crisis, we have finally become aware of an even more dire drama: the food crisis. Billions of people, particularly in Africa, Asia and Central and South America, are victims of a gradual and unsustainable rise in the prices of all ...
Bye-bye, Brooke: 'Idol' down to final 4
May 01, 2008; ... Paula Abdul isn't the only one having a deja vu moment this week on "American Idol." Abdul was mistaken when she thought she had already seen two performances by Jason Castro on Tuesday's Neil Diamond-themed show, but Wednesday's results show felt like we'd seen it ...
'CSI' star's pals had clue
May 01, 2008; ... The arrest of Gary Dourdan on drug charges in Palm Springs, Calif., came as no surprise to a number of the actor's ''CSI'' colleagues at the hit CBS forensic drama. ''We have been worried about Gary for some time,'' a key member of the show's production team told me. ''It's just a shame ...
Scurrilous: Chicago's No. 1 Couch Potato
May 01, 2008 ... MADE LOVE AND 'WARS' Carrie Fisher told a British TV interviewer that on the set of the original "Star Wars" movie, she and Harrison Ford got to be, umm, really close. "I went on the film saying, 'I'm going to have an affair,' like it was a kiwi, an exotic fruit -- because I'd ...
Downey steels the show as irrepressible 'Iron Man'
May 01, 2008; ... 'IRON MAN' Rating 4 out of 4 Tony Stark/Iron Man ..... Robert Downey Jr. Rhodes Terrence Howard Obadiah Stane Jeff Bridges Pepper Potts Gwyneth Paltrow Paramount Pictures presents a film directed by Jon Favreau. Written by Mark Fergus, Hawk Ostby, Art ...
Cover girl relives 'Ray' before Lemonheads
May 01, 2008; ... THE LEMONHEADS WITH BOUND STEMS AND DAVID SINGER When: 9 tonight and 10 p.m. Friday Where: The Abbey Pub, 3420 W. Grace Tickets: $20 Phone: (773) 478-4408 - - - What new can be said about the Lemonheads' classic modern-rock album "It's a ...
She's pregnant, but father leaves with no promises
May 01, 2008; ... Dear Ellie: My boyfriend of 18 months and I lost a baby last year, and now I'm pregnant again. I wanted to have an abortion because we broke up. He wasn't excited with my first pregnancy; but I forgot my pills and it happened again. I already have two kids and am struggling to keep a ...
Weekend Warrior
May 01, 2008 ... Slurp, sip, rasp and marvel this weekend with a slew of exciting stops. Whether you're into a sexy Vietnamese dining experience or a bit of down-home Delta blues, the city's got you covered. DIG IN Pho Xua Restaurant, 1020 W. Argyle Can pho be romantic? Perhaps the act of ...
What if women ran things in Chicago?
May 01, 2008; ... Nobody is giving women power -- but we're taking it anyway. By this time next year, there's a good chance we'll have a woman in the White House (who doesn't have "secretary" in her title). A woman has already been named chancellor of Germany, and Spain's government is ...
Trump terrific
May 01, 2008; ... THE TRUMP INTERNATIONAL Hotel & Tower Chicago on North Wabash is a fabulous jewel that has settled down for good in the heart of this great city, and the shine is just blinding. I attended the jam-packed ribbon-cutting ceremony in the Grand Ballroom on Monday. Media people and a classy ...
Sweet deal for FTD
May 01, 2008; ... FTD, the Downers Grove-based floral company, will be acquired by United Online Inc. for about $456 million in cash, notes and stock, the companies announced Wednesday. The takeover, which totals $800 million when FTD debt and expenses are included, values FTD at $15.08 a share, a 12 ...
Your Wallet
May 01, 2008; ... STAMPS TO RISE A PENNY MAY 12 With the cost of a first-class stamp set to rise a penny to 42 cents May 12, the clock is ticking on buying the "forever" stamps at the current 41-cent rate. The stamps, which do not have the postage price stamped on them, can be used even after the price ...
Business Brief
May 01, 2008 ... KRAFT PROFIT OFF 13% DESPITE HIGHER PRICES Northfield-based Kraft Foods Inc. said Wednesday its first-quarter profit dropped 13 percent to $608 million, or 40 cents a share, but the results were better than expected, and sales improved. The maker of Oscar Mayer hot dogs, Maxwell House ...
Rules on securing vacant buildings delayed
May 01, 2008; ... Mayor Daley's plan to require Chicago building owners to secure vacant buildings to prevent foreclosures from destroying neighborhoods hit a roadblock Wednesday. The City Council's Buildings Committee put off a vote after lenders complained about a "potentially onerous" crackdown that ...
If it bleeds
May 01, 2008; ... Chicago's CBS-owned TV and radio stations are teaming up to simulcast a 90-minute town hall meeting about violence in the city. Rob Johnson, news anchor at WBBM-Channel 2, and Felicia Middlebrooks, morning anchor at all-news WBBM-AM (780), will host "Speaking Truth: A Town Hall Meeting ...
Umbrella spot has it covered
May 01, 2008; ... It's been a tough few years for the venerable ad agency Fallon/Minneapolis. A steady turnover in chief creative officers and significant client defections left the agency near death until Saatchi & Saatchi's Kevin Roberts stepped in last year and finagled an arrangement that made Fallon a sort ...
Unofficial voice for liberal Catholics
May 01, 2008; ... RICHARD 'TIM' UNSWORTH 1929-2008 Richard "Tim" Unsworth, a former principal of Brother Rice High School who became the unofficial voice for liberal Chicago Catholics, died early Wednesday after a long illness. He was 78. Mr. Unsworth, who also wrote five books and was an ...
Quick Hits
May 01, 2008; ... IN-YOUR-FACE FASHION STATEMENTS SPORTS FANS GO STYLIN' It's official: Quick Hits is superficial. But only for purposes of this exercise, which is to judge which sport has the most fashionable fans. Not that Quick Hits is an expert on the subject of fashion (still waiting for ...
Instant Messages
May 01, 2008 ... Readers respond to John Jackson's column Tuesday rating the local broadcasting teams (the Cubs' TV duo of Len Kasper and Bob Brenly was ranked No. 1): I agree that Len Kasper and Bob Brenly are the most solid duo in Chicago sports broadcasting. But when something big happens, like a ...
In duel of pitching aces, Brottman simply perfect
May 01, 2008; ... Fremd sophomore Lena Brottman began to realize what she was doing after she hadn't allowed a runner on base through four innings Wednesday. It was then she began to feel nervous. She threw her first perfect game as Fremd (16-1, 9-1) defeated No. 6 Elk Grove (20-3, 9-2) 2-0 in a ...
Hawks fans should know 'Hogs
May 01, 2008; ... Nineteen players on the Rockford IceHogs spent time with the Blackhawks this season, and most of them will be back tonight -- to play against the Wolves. The top two teams in the American Hockey League's West Division will begin their best-of-seven division championship series at ...
BCS officials like format just the way it is
May 01, 2008; ... Bowl Championship Series officials rejected a plan Wednesday to turn the much-criticized system for deciding a national champ into a four-team playoff, starting in the 2010 season. The BCS format will remain the same until at least the 2014 season. During five hours of meetings ...
What thugs? Irish foes may wonder
May 01, 2008; ... Charlie Weis actually charted how much time he would spend with specific position groups during each of Notre Dame's spring practices. He revealed this strategy while explaining how he would divide his time after freeing himself from the day-to-day yoke of coaching the Irish offense. It ...
More than an outside shot
May 01, 2008; ... Rick Dutrow is nothing if not bold. His colt's full billing for the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby on Saturday now might be most appropriately Big Brown and Bold. The brash East Coast trainer left 'em reaching for the Kentuckiana oxygen at the post-position draw for the Run ...
Goal: Avoid bummer of '06 in summer of '08
May 01, 2008; ... The song remains the same at Arlington Park -- and the song is ''Wishin' and Hopin'.'' Track management continues to wish the state of Illinois would grant it the right to operate ultra-profitable slot machines. And it continues to hope it will have no reoccurrence of its nightmarish ...
Fowles a bit nervous in preseason debut
May 01, 2008; ... The first time Sky rookie Sylvia Fowles put on her uniform, she got weak in the knees and was shaking. Fowles' nervousness didn't let up Wednesday night at the UIC Pavilion as the host Sky beat the Seattle Storm 66-46 in the team's first preseason game. On her first play for the ...
Hawks, WGN in 3-year radio deal
May 01, 2008; ... The Blackhawks expect to have a better product on the ice next season, and they took a big step Wednesday toward spreading the word about it. Calling it ''a big step forward in the new direction of this franchise,'' Hawks president John McDonough announced that the team's games the next ...