Good afternoon, Chicago.
After his arrest for retail theft in Lansing in May 2022, Elijah Bell assumed his next stop, and in some ways preferred place, was jail.
But he was offered a chance to try a special program offered in Cook County courts meant to divert those charged with low-level, nonviolent offenses from prison. The new option was unfamiliar, and “I didn’t even want to take the opportunity to give it a chance,” he said.
“It was never an option before, it was always jail,” Bell, 55, said of his previous arrests. “Jail was easy for me.”
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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East Side community mourns 19-year-old Sierra Evans and wonders if ShotSpotter could have saved her
Sierra Evans, 19, was found by a neighbor several hours after she was fatally shot in an alleyway Friday. Her family and friends held a candlelight vigil there Wednesday evening. Read more here.
More top news stories:
- Building checked for structural damage overnight after sedan strikes a pillar on Michigan Avenue
- Woman dies in fall from building in heart of Magnificent Mile
Developer pulls plug on luxury apartments in Carpentersville despite incentives from village
The 130-unit complex was to be built on the former Huntley Square retail and office site, which was razed in 2021. Read more here.
More top business stories:
- Lincoln Park 3-bedroom home with double-sided fireplace: $1.2M
- Abercrombie & Fitch to take over former Ulta Beauty in downtown Naperville
Chicagoan Ayo Dosunmu and other Bulls reflect on Derrick Rose as team reportedly sets a date to honor youngest-ever MVP
It’s hard for Ayo Dosunmu to pick one memory of Derrick Rose that defined his childhood memories growing up in Chicago. Read more here.
More top sports stories:
- Chicago Bulls sign Josh Primo — who was suspended by the NBA in 2022 — to an exhibit-10 contract
- Who will be the next manager? And will Garrett Crochet be traded? Offseason questions for the Chicago White Sox.
The sweaty masks, the weird graphics: For generations of kids, Ben Cooper costumes meant Halloween
Before Spirit Halloween, before rubber serial killer masks, before parents sweated for weeks to ensure their children’s Halloween costumes were screen accurate, there was Ben Cooper. Read more here.
More top Eat. Watch. Do. stories:
- Former Shepard teacher returns to Drama Group stage with ‘Murder on the Orient Express’
- Elgin Short Film Festival to be held Saturday at Hemmens
Israel extends evacuation warnings in Lebanon, signaling a wider offensive
The Israeli military warned people to evacuate a city and other communities in southern Lebanon that are north of a U.N.-declared buffer zone, signaling that it may widen a ground operation launched earlier this week against the Hezbollah militant group. Read more here.
More top stories from around the world:
