Cops to announce charges in Hadiya Pendleton slaying

Two men have  been charged in the shooting death of 15-year-old Hadiya Pendleton, prosecutors said.

Charged were Michael Ward, 18, and Kenneth Williams, 20, both of Chicago. The two face charges of first-degree murder, attempted murder, and aggravated battery with a firearm in the attack that also left two other teens wounded.

Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy and other top police officials were expected to speak about the charges at the news conference at Area Central police headquarters this evening. Earlier today, McCarthy said charges were expected this evening.

"We will bring this all to closure, probably sometime this evening we're anticipating hopefully that we'll have charges," McCarthy said at a news conference with Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez to announce a push for stiffer jail terms for people convicted of gun crimes.

McCarthy declined to provide more specifics, saying the investigation is ongoing.

"We're still doing lineups. We're still crossing some t's and dotting some i's that we need to do before we can get charges approved for these individuals," he said.

Chicago police picked up the two men, 18 and 20, over the weekend, hours after first lady Michelle Obama attended the funeral for the teenager whose death has become a symbol of escalating violence in Chicago.

The men were pulled over near 67th Street and South Chicago Avenue late Saturday night or early Sunday morning after detectives canvassed the area of the park where she was fatally shot Jan. 29 and tracked down witnesses, the sources said.

Hadiya was shot in Vivian Gordon Harsh Park, about a mile north of President Barack Obama's Kenwood neighborhood home on the South Side. Her slaying took place a little more than a week after the honor student performed with the King College Prep band in Washington during inauguration festivities. Two other teens were wounded.

The shooting in the 4400 block of South Oakenwald Avenue happened after classes were dismissed for the day during finals week at King. Hadiya, a sophomore at King, was at the park with a group of teens, primarily other students from the school, when a male gunman climbed over a fence, ran to the group and started firing, police have said. The shooter escaped in what has been described as a white Nissan vehicle, possibly driven by a getaway driver.

One of the sources said at least one of the men brought into custody was riding in a Nissan Sentra, one of the two vehicles police pulled over when bringing the pair into custody. The source didn't know that Nissan's color.

After police News Affairs initially--and mistakenly--said that her companions included gang members, Police have said the teens in Hadiya's group who had gathered in the park were not involved in gangs. But police have been looking into whether the gunman may have mistaken them for rival gang members.

While police and neighbors have generally described Harsh Park and its immediate surroundings as safe, there has been an internal gang conflict brewing in the area between factions of the Gangster Disciples, police said. The two men being questioned Sunday are alleged members of the Gangster Disciples, sources said.

One of the two men has a previous weapons conviction, according to court records.

In addition to Hadiya's homicide, there have been at least three other shootings within blocks of Harsh Park so far this year, according to police records.

No charges have been filed against the men, who are being held at Area Central police headquarters on the South Side.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel personally called Hadiya's parents, Cleopatra Cowley-Pendleton and Nathaniel Pendleton, to inform them of the development, according to a source. Nathaniel Pendleton told the Tribune on Sunday night that he didn't want to say too much about the men being questioned because charges have not been filed.
“Right now, we're just happy that Chicago police have some leads and things are moving,” he said.

Shatira Wilks, a cousin of Hadiya's and a family spokesperson, said the development is a “good response” and better news than the family had Saturday.

Arrests and charges “will bring a small level of closure to the family, although (the shooter) still will be allowed to eat, drink, mingle,” Wilks said. “The thing about that is, Hadiya is no longer (able) to do so.”

On how Hadiya's family is doing, Wilks said, “Everyone keeps asking that. I don't know if you'll ever get an answer that we're feeling good or we're feeling fine.”

Hadiya's godmother, LaKeisha Stewart, said questioning the men is a good start, but she's more eager to find out when or if charges are filed.

“Until this person is off the streets for good, that an example is made to … other people like him -- that's when I'll breathe a sigh of relief,” Stewart said. “For me, when the person is in court and a judge says they are responsible for her murder … to me, that's when this will make a difference.”

Hadiya's death occurred during the deadliest January for Chicago since 2002. It also came on the heels of a homicide total last year that was the highest since 2008, and the second highest since 2003.

The playground where Hadiya was shot was the setting for an amateur rap video posted to YouTube. The video, which also highlights the intersection at South Oakenwald and East 44th Place, uses the moniker of a local gang in an opening credit and features a rapper shown leaving the Cook County Jail, then threatening to shoot down his foes.

The video ends at a house party with a smiling teenage girl flashing gang signs at the camera.

The first lady's attendance at Hadiya's funeral placed Chicago even further into the spotlight of a national debate over gun violence that has polarized Congress and led the president to take his gun-control initiatives on the road to garner more public support.

Neither the first lady nor elected officials gave remarks during the funeral. Only the friends and relatives who knew Hadiya best were allowed to speak.

In the days following Hadiya's death, clergy and community leaders raised $40,000 in reward money for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the teen's killer or killers. McCarthy has said that detectives have received numerous tips to follow up on for the homicide investigation.

Tribune reporter Carlos Sadovi contributed to this story.

tlighty@tribune.com

jgorner@tribune.com

Jdelgado@tribune.com

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Grammy Awards: Live updates

 Live updates from the pre-telecast.

6:10 p.m. (Central Time): Final update from the pre-show: The 70^th award this afternoon went to the Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach for producer of the year. “Wow,” said Auerbach, who moments ago was on stage when the Black Keys’ “El Camino” took the rock album Grammy. In addition to “El Camino,” Auerbach’s production credits included the Grammy-winning Dr. John album “Locked Down.”

“Thank you so much for Nonesuch for supporting these kind of projects that I love doing,” said Auerbach. If there is any major Grammy story line emerging, it’s that album of the year is shaping up to be a showdown between rock act the Black Keys and adventurous R&B artist Frank Ocean. Among the categories the latter is up for are best new artist and urban contemporary album, awards that will be given out on the show.

Gotye didn’t have to move far, as he then won the Grammy for pop duo/group performance for his “Somebody That I Used to Know” featuring Kimbra. Aside from keeping LMFAO off the Grammy stage, who were up for “Sexy and I Know It,” the win is especially noteworthy because it bests Fun.’s “We Are Young” featuring Janelle Monae. Fun. is up for album of the year and “We Are Young” is also up for record of the year. The latter, right now, would appear to be a race primarily between the Black Keys and Gotye, unless Frank Ocean sweeps on the telecast.

5:54 p.m.: Album-of-the-year watch:  “Lonely Boy” from the Black Keys won the Grammy for rock song, besting songs from fellow album of the year nominees Jack White and Mumford & Sons. Seconds later, the band won rock album for “El Camino.” “My brother, my mom and dad are in the audience,” Keys member Dan Auerbach said. “I wouldn’t be here without them. Thank you everyone in Music City for welcoming us. Nashville, Tenn., is a beautiful place.”

5:52 p.m.: Grammy rule No. 762: Do not bet against a Beatle. Paul McCartney’s “Kisses on the Bottom” won traditional pop vocal album. Then it was time for some Grammy whiplash, as Halestorm’s “Love Bites (So Do I)” took the Grammy for hard rock/metal performance. “Most parents want their kids to be doctors and lawyers. Our parents encouraged us to join the circus,” said Josh Smith.

5:46 p.m.:  Little Big Town’s “Pontoon,” a goofy little ditty about partying in a boat, won the Grammy for country duo/group performance. “This is such a long time coming for us. We’re so thrilled,” said the band’s Phillip Sweet. Moments later, Carrie Underwood’s “Blown Away” took the Grammy for country song. Songwriters Josh Kear and Chris Tompkins were on hand to accept the prize. 

5:42 p.m.: The late Ravi Shankar won the world music Grammy for his “Traveller.” The prize wasaccepted by his daughter Anoushka, who was also nominated. “It’s two months tomorrow since he passed away. I’m just really proud that he was making records right to the end. … If he were here, he would thank my mom,” she said.

5:12 p.m. (Central Time): Dr. John’s “Locked Down” won for blues album. He’ll be performing tonight with the Black Keys. “Locked Down,” full of wildly psychedelic keyboards, was produced by the Keys’ Dan Auerbach, who said, “I want to thank Nonesuch for their support, for footing the bill.”

5:12 p.m.: “I was not expecting this,” shouted Bonnie Raitt when accepting the award for American album. “I have enough! Thank you, though.” She was competing against some heavy hitters, namely album-of-the-year nominees Mumford & Sons and best new artist contenders the Lumineers. This would seem to spell trouble for the Mumford & Sons being able to pull off an album-of-the-year upset over Frank Ocean.  

Raitt, meanwhile, took the moment to recognize her fellow “Americana” artists, and took a little issue with the genre title. “They try to put us in a box,” she said. “We will not be put in a box. This is just good music.”

5:11 p.m.: The Grammys goes to the movies …. and plays video games.

“Yay,” said Taylor Swift as she accepted the Grammy for “Safe & Sound,” which won for song written for visual media. “Safe & Sound” was featured in “The Hunger Games” but was not nominated for an Oscar.

“This is unbelievable,” Swift said. “I just want to thank my collaborators for working with me — the Civil Wars and T Bone Burnett. You guys were awesome. We just won a Grammy.” John Paul White of the Civil Wars, who may be broken up at the moment, joked of working with Swift, “We’ve been carrying her for a while and it’s getting a little tiring.”

Meanwhile, Composers Trent Reznor and Attitcus Ross won the Grammy for score/soundtrack album for their work on “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.” That award bested the first ever video game soundtrack to be nominated, “Journey.”

 The awards were presented by electronic star Kaskade, who gave a shout-out to all his EDM friends. “It really wasn’t that long ago that nobody knew who we were,” he said.

4:57 p.m. (Central Time): When it comes to live music, the Grammy pre-tel doesn’t mess around. Young folk singer John Fullbright is a prime example. His “Gawd Above” was gravelly, harmonica-laden folksy blues rocker. “When it all goes wrong, I’m the man to trust,” sang Fullbright through gritted teeth, making it very clear that he is not the man to trust, as he put himself in the role of a malevolent overseer. 

4:50 p.m.: And the transition into the major pop categories has begun. Major winners will soon come fast and furious, and as most stars are currently out on the red carpet, there will be few, if any, acceptance speeches.

First, though, we have some jazz. Chick Corea took the improvised jazz solo prize for his “Hot House.” “We all have the same intention, which is to bring pleasure and beauty around the world,” Corea said of his musicians during his acceptance speech.

Moments later, Esperanza Spalding received her second Grammy of the night for “Radio Music Society.” Spalding is already a Grammy favorite, having won the best new artist prize. “Thank you paying attention and being present and for all your beautiful art,” Spalding said from the podium.

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FBI: Elderly man robs Niles bank

Suspect in the robbery of a Niles bank. (FBI / February 9, 2013)

Staff report

6:19 p.m. CST, February 9, 2013

A man the FBI said appeared to be in his 70s and walking with a cane robbed a bank this morning in north suburban Niles.

A man who is estimated to be in his 70s robbed the Harris Bank branch at 7077 W. Dempster St. at 9:45 a.m., according to FBI spokesman Joan Hyde.

The robber was wearing a brown coat and walked with a cane during the incident, she said.

He did not show a weapon and no one was hurt, according to Hyde.

Niles police were not available immediately. 

chicagobreaking@tribune.com

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Friends, family say goodbye to slain teen

CAPTIONS

Hadiya Pendleton wake
Cleopatra Cowley-Pendleton, center, arrives at the visitation for her 15-year-old daughter Hadiya Pendleton at Calahan Funeral Home located at 7030 S. Halsted St. in Chicago (Terrence Antonio James, Chicago Tribune /February 8, 2013)

By Bridget Doyle




Tribune reporter

5:58 p.m. CST, February 8, 2013

Friends and family gathered at Calahan Funeral Home on the South Side this afternoon for the wake of Hadiya Pendleton, the 15-year-old girl whose slaying last week became a national symbol of the gun violence in Chicago.

Hadiya’s body lay in an open casket, dressed in a purple dress embellished with sparkles. The inside of the casket was lined in a soft purple.

Visitors signed in a registry and wrote personal messages to Hadiya on a dedication board. Family gathered in the back of the room, some talking with visitors, others sitting in chairs.

Dozens of bouquets of flowers lined the room and a large photo of Hadiya was hung on display. A small TV played a picture slideshow of Hadiya smiling with family and friends.

John Burdette, a Hyde Park resident, said although he didn't know the Pendleton family, he wanted to pay his condolences.

“It helped put me at ease,” said Burdette, 64. "This poor young lady. Things are nuts out there and it's terrible. I don't leave my house after 4 p.m.”

Media trucks and police cars lined Halsted Street outside the funeral home, as Hadiya's death has garnered much attention on both a local and national scale.

The wake is scheduled from 2 to 9 p.m. Friday with the funeral to follow Saturday morning. First lady Michelle Obama is scheduled to attend.bdoyle@tribune.com

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Attorney: Poisoned lottery winner changed finances to benefit wife

Weeks before he died mysteriously from cyanide poisoning after winning a $1 million lottery jackpot, a North Side businessman inked a deal with his business partner to ensure that his share of several dry cleaning stores went to his wife in the event of his death.

The unusual agreement is sure to fuel the fight among heirs of Urooj Khan over his estate, once estimated at about $2 million.

The agreement means that Khan’s widow, Shabana Ansari, owns half of the dry cleaning business and its real estate, instead of those assets being divided among heirs in probate court, according to Ansari’s lawyer, Al-Haroon Husain.

Those business assets are worth more than $1 million, leaving only about $680,000 – including the $425,000 in lottery winnings -- to be split among Khan’s heirs, Husain contends.

“It’s a bit unusual,” Husain said of the agreement following a hearing Thursday in the Daley Center courthouse. “I just think he wanted to make sure his wife had a business and had attachment to the commercial property if something happened to him.”

Khan and his partner, Shakir Mohammed, a childhood friend from their native India, signed the agreement early last May, according to court documents. Khan, 46, won the lottery prize later in May and died suddenly in mid-July before he collected the check.

Husain said he didn’t believe Khan “thought he’d be passing away so soon thereafter.”

In addition to the business agreement, Khan had signed a real estate contract with his wife that entitles her to sole ownership of their Rogers Park home, which is valued at almost half a million dollars, Husain said.

Based on those changes, Husain filed amended papers Thursday in court, drastically lowering the value of Khan’s estate to the $680,000 figure, down from about $2 million a few weeks ago.

Khan's family has been fighting in probate court over his estate since his unexpected death at 46. His brother, Imtiaz, raised concerns that since Khan left no will, his 17-year-old daughter from a previous marriage would not get "her fair share" of the inheritance. Khan and Ansari did not have children together.

As the Tribune first revealed last month, the Cook County medical examiner's office initially ruled that Khan died from hardening of the arteries after no signs of trauma were found on his body and a preliminary blood test did not raise any questions.

But the investigation was reopened about a week later after a relative raised concerns that Khan may have been poisoned.
 
Chicago police became involved in September after further testing found cyanide in Khan's blood. By late November, more comprehensive testing showed lethal levels of the toxic chemical, leading the medical examiner's office to declare his death a homicide.
 
Last month authorities exhumed Khan's body in order to perform an autopsy and gather additional evidence for the homicide investigation. No results have been made public yet.
 
While a motive for Khan’s homicide has not been determined, police have not ruled out that he was killed because of his lottery win, a law enforcement source has told the Tribune.

Ansari has been questioned by Chicago police detectives in her husband’s death, but she has denied any wrongdoing.

jmeisner@tribune.com
jgorner@tribune.com

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Woman convicted again in sledgehammer attack on couple

A woman was convicted for a second time today of beating her ex-husband and his new wife with a sledgehammer with the help of her teenaged lover – a case a prosecutor likened to the plot of a “Lifetime movie.”

After about three hours of deliberation, a Lake County jury found Sandra Rogers guilty of attempted murder, home invasion and solicitation of murder.
  
“Bleeding, bashed, bludgeoned is how this defendant left Rick Rogers and Angela Gloria the morning of May 19, 2003,” Lake County Assistant State’s Attorney Danielle Pascucci said during her closing argument this afternoon. “The defendant’s fury for her ex-husband festered over time. She hated him -- wanted him dead.”

Defendant Sandra Rogers had pleaded guilty to attempted murder in 2004 to the near-fatal beating in the couple’s Lincolnshire home. But last year – seven years into her prison sentence -- a Lake County judge allowed Rogers, now 56, to take back her guilty plea and go to trial after she claimed she admitted to the crime because she was misled about evidence against her.

Sandra Rogers showed no emotion as the verdict was read but began to tear up moments later.

Her ex-husband Rick Rogers, flanked by his wife and daughter Robin, mouthed the words “thank you” to jurors upon hearing their verdict. He and his daughter applauded softly as the jury filed out of the courtroom.

Sandra Rogers, who had already served 7 years of her 30-year sentence, stemming from her earlier guilty plea, now faces the prospect of an even longer prison term when she’s due to be sentenced next month.

Then, she could face up to 60 years in prison, though she will presumably be given credit for time served.

Her co-defendant, Jonathan McMeekin, who was 17 at the time of the attack, also pleaded guilty to attempted murder and has served about half of a 20-year sentence. McMeekin was the boyfriend of Sandra and Rick Rogers’ 14-year-old daughter, Robin, but admitted from the witness stand that he was at the same time sleeping with Sandra Rogers.

He testified against Sandra Rogers this week.

Though McMeekin testified that Sandra Rogers was his accomplice and wielded the sledgehammer, the defense has claimed it was Robin Rogers who was McMeekin’s actual accomplice. During her closing argument, defense attorney Gillian Gosch pointed to what she called a lack of physical evidence pointing to her client.

Most importantly, she said, police determined that the attacker entered through the basement window that led to the bedroom of Robin’s older sister, Amber. Amber testified that the window had been locked and the blinds were shut when she went to bed.

“The only explanation is that someone in that house opened the window,” Gosch said.

Gosch also said that there was no explanation for the fact that Robin, who said she called 911 from her father’s room while holding her stepmother’s bloodied hand, did not have any blood on her when police arrived.

“This was a room of carnage,” Gosch said. “Angela’s hand was caked in blood.”

Gosch then read from a piece that Robin wrote about her father before the attack, which the prosecution had sought to chalk up as normal teenaged angst.

“Why don’t you die and rot in hell,” Robin’s writing stated. “You never know, Satan may be able to learn a few things from you. I’ll take you down mother (expletive).”

“This is not normal 14-year-old behavior,” Gosch said.

Robin Rogers also testified and denied involvement in the attack.

As for her client, Gosch acknowledged that Sandra Rogers hated her ex-husband and did say on multiple occasions that she wished he was dead. She also admitted that Rogers was not a great parent.

“This isn’t about all of that,” she said. “This is about what happened on May 19, 2003. To convict Sandy, you have to believe Jonathan McMeekin. There is not a shred of physical evidence that Sandra Rogers was ever there.”

In rebuttal, Assistant State’s Attorney George Pappas held up the piece of writing by Robin, calling it the weapon of a 14-year-old. He then held up the sledgehammer, calling it the weapon of “a woman filled with rage, consumed by jealousy and overwhelmed by desperation.”

Pappas explained the window entry by saying that the defendant entered the window and then opened the blinds after she came in. He said that McMeekin, who was 6 feet tall and 225 pounds, would not have fit through the window.

He explained the lack of blood on Robin by reminding jurors that she testified that she was careful not to step in any of her father and stepmother’s blood.

As for the 911 call that Robin placed and that the jurors heard, Pappas said: “Unless Robin’s going to be awarded some kind of Academy Award, that is a scared, terrified 14-year-old girl.”

As to the lack of physical evidence, Pappas urged jurors not to “reward Rogers for planning effectively - for wearing gloves, for getting rid of her clothes, for wearing a mask.”

Sandra Rogers faces up to 60 years in prison if found guilty of attempted murder.

triblocaltips@tribune.com

Twitter: @TribLocal

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25-cent gym shoe tax could fund aid for dropouts

SPRINGFIELD—

— Buying a new pair of running shoes in Illinois could cost a quarter more if a measure to tax gym shoes gets traction at the Capitol.

The idea behind the 25-cent shoe tax is to pump more money into programs that help high-school dropouts from low-income homes get jobs in the construction trades or get back on track to attend college.

"There are young people everywhere that are looking for a positive outlet that they might not find otherwise," said Rep. Will Davis, a Homewood Democrat who's sponsoring the shoe tax.

Business groups and shoe store owners aren't keen on the idea, suggesting the new tax will hurt the competitiveness of Illinois sneaker sellers.

"They're already crossing the borders for many things," said Kim Clarke Maisch, Illinois' director of the National Federation of Independent Business. "They're crossing the borders for gambling, for example. We don't need any other reasons for them to travel elsewhere."

The shoe tax proposal is the latest example of attempts in Springfield to raise money for specifically targeted programs. There's not much appetite for big tax hikes after Democrats passed what was billed as a temporary 67 percent increase in the income tax rate two years ago. Money remains tight, so lawmakers are looking to create small pots of cash for programs they support.

Last year, state Sen. Toi Hutchinson, an Olympia Fields Democrat now running for Congress, sponsored a pair of such tax hikes. Strip clubs now pay a tax with proceeds going to fund rape crisis centers. And drivers pay $2 more on license plate fees, with the money going to improve state parks.

Davis said he's picked up on the "creative ways" used last year. He didn't have a specific correlation between shoes and the youth programs, however.

"Athletic shoes are widespread," Davis said. "If you're trying to find an idea that will capture as many resources as possible, this works. Everyone uses them, and just about everybody buys athletic shoes at some point in their lives."

The shoe tax would provide money throughout Illinois for YouthBuild and potentially other similar programs that faced cutbacks in recent years of tight state budgets, Davis said.

There are 16 YouthBuild programs in Illinois. Most students in the programs did not graduate from high school or struggle with reading and writing. Attempts are made to help them get the equivalent of a high school diploma. They often build low-income housing as a way to learn blue-collar skills.

Such programs provide an "alternative to destructive ways of life" and give young people a chance to see there is "something more out there for them," Davis said.

In south suburban Harvey, the YouthBuild program has done work for Habitat for Humanity and emergency response training for handling hazardous waste. The main goal is to help people pursue more prosperous careers through college or apprenticeships, said Kreshina Ingram, the program's manager.

"We're not just looking for them to move up to part-time or temporary positions — or go into fast-food jobs," Ingram said. "We want them to get careers."

Tatyanna Smith said she dropped out of high school in 2010 and was headed down a misguided path of life on the streets. A cousin recommended the program so Smith could study to get the equivalent of a high school degree. Her priorities, Smith said, changed from there.

Since joining last September, Smith said she sees her life more clearly and has "become more mature." Now she wants a career in the construction trades and expects to start working on a house-building project.

As Davis seeks more money for such programs at the Capitol, he might have to tweak his bill as it goes through the legislative process. As written, the bill defines athletic shoes as used "primarily for sports or other forms of physical activity and includes, without limitation, shoes designed for running, walking, basketball, football, tennis or soccer."

That definition may be problematic because it is so broad, said Mandy Rafool, a tax policy expert with the Denver-based National Conference of State Legislatures.

To get the shoe tax through, Davis also will have to overcome opposition from business groups representing shoe store owners.

Dave Zimmer, who is about to open his third Fleet Feet store in Chicago, isn't averse to helping charitable groups. He partners with charities including the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, Access Living, the American Cancer Society and PAWS Chicago, according to the company's website.

But Zimmer said an increase in shoe costs could prompt customers to buy them online at a time when bricks-and-mortar stores are losing business to the Internet.

"I understand what they're trying to accomplish and the good they want to create," Zimmer said. "But I just don't get the correlation between athletic shoes and the programs this tax would fund."

raguerrero2@tribune.com

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Alabama hostage standoff ends with gunman dead, boy safe

MIDLAND CITY, Ala. -- A man who killed a school bus driver and then held a 5-year-old boy hostage in an underground bunker in rural Alabama for nearly a week was killed on Monday and the child was plucked to safety without injury, law enforcement officials said.

FBI agents entered the bunker to rescue the child after fearing that he was in “imminent danger,” said Steve Richardson, special agent in charge in Mobile.

Negotiations with the suspect, identified as 65-year-old Jimmy Lee Dykes, had deteriorated during the previous 24 hours, Richardson said during a televised news conference.

“Mr. Dykes was observed holding a gun,” the FBI agent said.

The rescue of the boy came on the seventh day of a standoff that drew national media coverage and gripped a rural corner of southeast Alabama with dread.

The drama began when Dykes, a retired trucker and veteran of the war in Vietnam, seized the kindergarten student last Tuesday after boarding a school bus and killing its driver with four shots from a 9 mm handgun, local sheriff's department officials said.

Dykes fled with the child, identified only as Ethan, to a homemade bunker on the man's property down a dirt road.

The child was being treated on Monday at a local hospital, but was physically unharmed, Richardson said. The boy is due to celebrate his birthday on Wednesday and, by all accounts, was taken by Dykes at random.

It was not immediately clear how Dykes died.

A local law enforcement source said a stun or flash grenade was detonated as part of the operation to free the boy, but further details were not immediately released.

The hostage-taking came amid heightened concerns about gun violence and school safety across the United States after the December shooting deaths of 20 children and six adults at a Connecticut elementary school.

Law enforcement officials had offered few insights about Dykes and their negotiations with him ahead of the rescue just after 3 p.m. local time.

Earlier on Monday, Dale County Sheriff Wally Olson said the gunman had a “very complex” story to tell.

“Based on our discussion with Mr. Dykes, he feels like he has a story that's important to him, although it's very complex. And we try to make a safe environment for all for that,” Olson said, without elaborating.

The sheriff's office previously had thanked Dykes for allowing them to deliver medication, coloring books and toys to the boy, who is said to suffer from Asperger's Syndrome and attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder.

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Super Bowl: Ravens lead 21-3 in 2nd

The Baltimore Ravens jumped out to a fast start Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl XLVII at the Superdome in New Orleans.

Joe Flacco lofted a pass to Jacoby Jones, and the wide receiver did the rest as the Ravens took a commanding 21-3 lead over 49ers right before halftime of Super Bowl XLVIII. Jones made a diving catch, then got up and danced around 49ers defenders to score the Ravens' third touchdown.

The 56-yard touchdown hookup was the longest play of the game so far. It was Flacco's third TD pass of the game and gave him a record-tying 11th of the postseason.

The score made up for the Ravens' inability to convert earlier on a fake field goal.

Safety Ed Reed, who injured his knee early in the game, intercepted 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick with just under seven minutes remaining before half. It was Reed's record-tying nine career postseason interception.

The Ravens took a 7-0 lead in when Flacco hit Anquan Boldin with a 13-yard touchdown in the first quarter.

It was Boldin's fourth touchdown of this year's postseason. He beat both linebacker NaVorro Bowman and safety Donte Whitner.

The 49ers went three-and-out on their first possession and were killed by an illegal formation penalty on the game's first play. It wiped out a 20-yard hook between Kaepernick and tight end Vernon Davis.

The 49ers responded to the Ravens' early touchdown with a score of their own on their second drive, but had to settle for David Akers' 36-yard field goal to make it 7-3. The big play during the drive was Kaepernick's 24-yard pass to Davis. Frank Gore threw the key block to give Kaepernick time to throw. Davis apparently was injured on the play and got medical attention.

Before the field goal, Kaepernick missed Michael Crabtree in the end zone, then got sacked by Paul Kruger on third down.

Ravens safety Ed Reed (left knee) exited the field and went to locker room after the same play during which the 49ers' Davis got banged up. Davis hurt his elbow and is probably to return.

After outside linebacker Courtney Upshawn forced a fumble and ended a 49ers' drive, the Ravens and Flacco responded with yet another touchdown to take a 14-3 lead.

Flacco ended the 10-play, 75-yard drive by firing a ball to tight end Dennis Pitta for a 1-yard score.

It was Flacco's 10th touchdown of the postseason, with no interceptions.

Inactives were announced 90 minutes before kickoff.

The Ravens' inactives: CB Asa Jackson, S Omar Brown, CB Chris Johnson, LB Adrian Hamilton, G/T Ramon Harewood, WR Deonte Thompson, DT Bryan Hall.

For the 49ers, QB Scott Tolzien, S Trenton Robinson, RB Jewel Hampton, LB Cam Johnson, DT Tony Jerod-Eddie, G Joe Looney and nose tackle Ian Williams.

-- 49ers kicker David Akers, who has been struggling since late in the regular season, hit the crossbar on a 60-yard field-goal attempt pregame kicking toward the Baltimore Ravens' endzone. Akers made a pair of 55-yarders and came up short on an earlier 60-yard attempt.

He missed another 60-yard try kicking toward the San Francisco 49ers' endzone.

-- Kaepernick is the fourth quarterback to start a Super Bowl in the same season in which he made his first career start.

The two previous quarterbacks in that position, Tom Brady and Kurt Warner, also won.

--Ravens players made $86,000 apiece in playoff earnings through the AFC championship game. The 49ers had made $64,000 -- San Francisco had a first-round bye, and played two games instead of three for the Ravens. The Super Bowl winner player share was $88,000, with $44,000 per player to the losing team.

-- The 49ers are 5-0 in the Super Bowl before Sunday. The Ravens, also undefeated, were 1-0.

The Ravens lead the all-time series with the 49ers 3-1 and have won the last three meetings

-- 49ers safety Donte Whitner and wide receiver Ted Ginn were also teammates at Cleveland's Glenville high School. Only once before have high school teammates won the Super Bowl; running back Dominic Rhodes and long-snapper Justin Snow did it as Colts teammates who won Super Bowl XLI. They were teammates at Cooper High School in Abilene, Texas.

Tribune News Services contributed

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More Northwestern football coming to Wrigley

After years of flirting, the Cubs and Northwestern will take their relationship to the next level Tuesday when they announce a broad partnership during a news conference at Wrigley Field.

A university source told the Tribune that while Wrigley will not be host to a football game in 2013, other NU teams (baseball, softball, soccer and lacrosse) might play some there this year.

And it's just a matter of time before NU football returns to Wrigley, given that the 2010 Northwestern-Illinois game was profitable for the Cubs and gave the Wildcats a huge marketing boost with ESPN's "College GameDay" in town.

NU athletic director Jim Phillips said after the 2010 game that there was "absolutely potential to do another. This was a wonderful event, it captured a national audience and from the responses I've received, there truly was a bowl-like atmosphere."

But the date and opponent of the next football game have yet to be determined and will depend on the pace of ballpark renovations. The cramped conditions of the 2010 game forced both teams' offenses to play to the same end zone.

Given that scheduling an October game could threaten a playoff schedule, the 2014 games to watch are against Iowa on Nov. 8 and Illinois on Nov. 29.

In 2015, Northwestern is host to Michigan on Nov. 14 and Michigan State on Nov. 21.

The NU source said that partnering with a famous brand and historic venue will help the school advance its theme as "Chicago's Big Ten Team."

And both sides believe the extensive partnership between a school and major sports franchise will be the first of its kind.

Cubs Chairman Tom Ricketts is tight with Phillips and is a major supporter of NU sports.

In an October interview with the Tribune, Ricketts forecasted more football games at Wrigley, called the 2010 Illinois-NU game "one of the greatest days in Wrigley Field history" and said: "When I saw the Northwestern band on the field at halftime, I almost cried."

Phillips also has said he would look into scheduling games at Soldier Field, but Notre Dame and Illinois already have done that. (The Illini play Washington there Sept. 14.)

The NU source said the school favors Wrigley Field, calling it "unique."

tgreenstein@tribune.com

Twitter @TeddyGreenstein

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Authorities close 'sex trafficking house of horrors'

Cook County prosecutors announced charges today in connection with a sex trafficking ring in suburban Schiller Park that preyed on poor or homeless women who were forced into prostitution through drug addiction and violence.

At a press conference, State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez referred to the operation as a “sex trafficking house of horrors” and said the half dozen women were supplied heroin and crack cocaine on “a silver platter” to keep them addicted to the narcotics and beholden to the ring's leader.

Authorities identified Keith Williams, 52, as the alleged ring leader and said Roman Kurek, 49, and Sylvia Topolewski, 37,  were all charged  with involuntary servitude and sex trafficking. The three reside at the same Schiller Park residence. Bonds were set at $650,000 for Williams and $350,000 for each of the others.

Schiller Park Police Officer Brian Norris told reporters that the department received a tip last May about drug activity and prostitution at Williams’ residence, leading to a nearly eight-month investigation involving undercover work.

Alvarez said Williams, who goes by the street name of “Shampoo,” recruited the vulnerable women to live with him and controlled them with threats, intimidation and brutality. Williams pocketed all the profits from the prostitution for himself and his associates.

Williams punished the women for so-called “bad behavior” by severely beating them, withholding food from them and demeaning them in other ways, prosecutors said.

Williams would sometimes handcuff the women for days and lock them in a room where they would be deprived of food and narcotics, leading them to become sick from drug withdrawals, prosecutors said.

Alvarez said the six women involved in Williams’ sex trafficking operation were being offered help through social service agencies. More women may have been involved in the operation, though, and are encouraged to come forward to receive support, she said.

bdoyle@tribune.com

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First food truck gets Chicago license

More than six months after the Chicago City Council legalized cooking onboard food trucks, the city on Thursday issued its first license for it to Dan Salls, owner of The Salsa Truck.

An ecstatic Salls said that he passed his health and fire inspection on Wednesday and finished his paperwork on Thursday afternoon. By Tuesday, he hopes to be searing meat, grilling quesadillas and warming tortillas on board his truck to serve with his salsas to hungry Chicagoans.

Salls, a former financial adviser who quit his job to go into the salsa business, said he will likely serve his first hot meal at the 600 W. Chicago Ave. food-truck stand Tuesday. He has publicly invited Mayor Rahm Emanuel to be his first customer.

“I think it would be a great press opportunity for him to finally get the monkey off of everyone’s back,” Salls said of the long contentious process that has finally led to the first cooking license called an MFP (for mobile food preparer).

For more than two years, food-truck activists had been lobbying the city to allow onboard cooking, as opposed to restricting food offerings to those that had been pre-cooked and packaged. Proposals were stalled for more than a year at the committee level until Emanuel presented his own version of a modified ordinance last summer, which passed in late July.

“This is just the beginning, but we’re excited to see our first MFP hit the streets,” said Rosemary Krimbel, who leads the Chicago Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection. “We want potential food truck owners to know that we are here to help, including newly offered truck consultations with the fire and health departments to ease the licensing process. We want to see more food trucks serving Chicago.”

Although Salls says he is thrilled to be the first licensed onboard cooking operator, he acknowledges that his truck is not the “classic West Coast type food truck.” By that he means, he did not need to outfit his truck to conform to what some feel is the city’s overly strict code on gas lines and exhaust hoods.

He will simply use an electric grill to heat his tacos, quesadillas and carnitas onboard, making rules on gas lines and hoods irrelevant to his inspection.

Next month, Salls hopes to open a bricks and mortar restaurant called The Garage which can also serve as a commissary for servicing other cooking trucks.

meng@tribune.com
Twitter: @monicaeng

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$11K reward offered in slaying of girl 'destined for great things'

With outrage over his daughter's death spreading from City Hall to the White House, Nathaniel Pendleton made a public plea Wednesday for someone to step forward and bring the 15-year-old's killer to justice.

"They took the light of my life," Pendleton said at a news conference, where a $11,000 reward was announced for information about Tuesday's slaying of Hadiya Pendleton. "This guy, whoever he was, the gunman, man, you took the light of my life. Just look at yourself and just know that you took a bright person, an innocent person, a non-violent person."

Shaking his head and collecting himself, he continued, "This kid didn't like violence at all, didn't even like to fight, avoided a fight, moved away from anything that was not positive. She was a majorette, just came back from the inauguration. She was destined for great things and you stripped that from her."

Hadiya, who last week performed at President Barack Obama's inaugural festivities, was killed when a gunman opened fire on a group of students at Harsh Park, just blocks from King College Prep and about a mile from Obama's home in Kenwood on the South Side.

Presidential spokeman Jay Carney, asked about Hadiya's death Wednesday, said it was a “terrible tragedy” any time a young person is struck down “with so much of their life ahead of them.”

“The president and first lady's thoughts and prayers are with the family of Hadiya Pendleton,” he said. “All of our thoughts and prayers are with her family.”

Carney, asked about a petition urging President Barack Obama to attend Pendleton’s funeral, said he was not aware of the petition and had no scheduling announcements to make.

When asked if Obama had reached out to Pendleton’s family, Carney said he had no communications to share with reporters.

Carney also said that when Obama talks about gun violence in America he is not talking only about Newtown (Conn.) or Aurora (Colo.) or Oak Creek (Wis.) or Virginia Tech, but to shootings in Chicago and other parts of the country.

He added that while "we may not be able to prevent every act of gun violence. . .we need to take action to reduce gun violence” and “make sure that we’re doing everything we can in a responsible way to reduce this violence, to protect our children, including Hadiya Pendleton and others.”

Hadiya's death also came up at a news conference by Mayor Rahm Emanuel as a particularly violent January in Chicago draws to a close.

Emanuel called Hadiya "what is best in our city" and urged anyone with information about the slaying to come forward.

"If anybody has any information, you are not a snitch, you're a citizen," the mayor said. "You're a good citizen in good standing if you help."

The mayor said he talked this morning with Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy, "going over what we need to do, what differences we have to do, what other tactics we have to adopt." He did not say what plans he and McCarthy discussed.

Later, McCarthy appeared with Hadiya's father at a news conference at Harsh Park to announce the reward.

"The fact is, at this point, we have very little to go on. The fact is that somebody knows something," he said, surrounded by family members and community leaders.

The Rev. Michael Pfleger, pastor of St. Sabina Church on the South Side, said the reward will be "a bounty out on the head of a killer before you kill somebody else.

"Your butt needs to be in jail," he said. "Somebody knows. . .right now, sitting in their home some young person knows, some young friend of theirs knows, some parent knows, some adult knows. Where are you?"

Pfleger compared Hadiya's slaying to the mass murder of school children in Newtown, Conn. "We should be just as outraged," he said.

Hadiya was hanging out with her volleyball team at Harsh Park after taking exams Tuesday afternoon. About a dozen teens had taken shelter under a canopy during a rainstorm when a boy or man jumped a fence in the park, ran toward them and opened fire around 2:20 p.m., police said.

Hadiya was wounded in the back and a 16-year-old boy -- also a student at King -- was shot in the leg, police said. The attacker got into an auto and fled, police said. No arrests have been reported.

Today, Hadiya's family was inside their South Side home exchanging stories about her quirks and sense of humor.

Ten-year-old Nathaniel Pendleton Jr. recalled the way his big sister would often greet him with a few gentle slaps on his cheeks whenever she came home from school.

"She said it was with love," he said.

Nathaniel etched "I miss you" and "I love you" on his arm Wednesday. "It's very painful to see your big sister get slaughtered," the soft-spoken Nathaniel said, tearing up as he went through photos of his big sister on his phone.

His father said he would miss Hadiya's bright smile the most. He said the family had been saving up for her upcoming trip to Paris and was excited to see her go abroad.

"I just knew she wanted to go and I knew it was a very good opportunity for her. . .to get cultured," Pendleton Sr. said.

The father said he didn't get a chance to speak to his daughter on the day she died. He was headed to Hadiya's godfather's house when he learned of the shooting.

Pendleton said he did not fear for his daughter's safety around the school.

"She had good energy, very good energy," he said. "And the thing is. . .You don't expect good energy to attract bad energy. Never in a million years I thought I would get this call."

Kimiko Pettis, Hadiya's 32-year-old aunt, laughed when she talked about her niece's goofy personality. "We really miss her," Pettis said. "She was a remarkable young lady and such a great asset to our family."

Hadiya was a busy but lighthearted teen, always trying to get a laugh from her family. Just Tuesday, she put on what she thought was a "fabulous outfit" and make-up before school.

"She popped out of the bathroom saying. 'I'm ready!' " Pettis said, throwing her arms in the air.

Pettis said her niece loved Coldplay and Maroon 5. "You could not find any urban music on her phone," Pettis said with a laugh. "And she had two left feet."

Last year, Hadiya traveled with her school band to perform at Marti Gras in New Orleans, Pettis said. Last week, she had performed at Obama’s inauguration festivities. This year's travel plans included Dublin and Paris with the band, her aunt said, a trip she was very much looking forward to.

Though only a sophomore, Hadiya had aspirations to become a pharmacist or a journalist, Pettis said. Because she couldn't decide, family encouraged her to do both with a possible double major. She had interest in attending Northwestern University, her aunt said.

Hadiya was such a whirlwind of activity, relatives would jokingly tell her to slow down.

"There were a lot of good opportunities that were coming her way. She was just taking them all,” said Lakeisha Stewart, 37, Hadiya’s godmother. "She was the kid who you had to say, ‘Slow down, you can’t do everything.' "

Just last week, at the inauguration, Hadiya sent her godparents a text and a photo of her and her teammates in Washington, D.C., Stewart said.  She had not gotten the chance to talk to Hadiya about the details of the trip since she returned from the East Coast.

Hadiya’s parents made sure she stayed involved in school, said her godfather, Damon Stewart, 36, an attorney and Chicago police officer. He said she was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“Her life was dominated by her activities and the things she was into,” he said.

“I’ve known this little girl her entire life," added Lakeisha Stewart. "I can’t think of a moment that this child did anything wrong. She always strived to do the right thing."

At King today, Bria Carter and two friends said the halls of the school were unusually quiet as students mourned Hadiya’s death.

"People are crying at school," said Carter, 17, a friend of Hadiya. "Those who knew her are so hurt.

"She was an amazing person -- always positive," Carter said. "She was one of those people everyone loved. She was the sweetest thing."

Brothers Addison and Zion Morgan said many of their classmates took to social media Tuesday night to express their emotions.

"Based off of the tweets, everyone is surprised and shocked by this," said senior Addison Morgan, 17.

Freshman Zion Morgan, 15, said he was in a U.S. History class with Hadiya.  "She was always smiling," Zion Morgan said. "She would always raise her hand in class."

School Principal Shontae Higginbottom said Hadiya was well-loved at the school, and students and staff are devastated.

"This is a great loss to us, she was a wonderful student. She was well-loved by her friends, well-adored by her teachers. We are going to miss her. Our hearts are so heavy, we have to stop the violence, we have to save our children," said Higginbottom.

At the park, neighbors along the well-maintained North Kenwood block could not remember any trouble there before.

The small park's bright blue and orange playground equipment is often used by toddlers down the street, a neighbor said, but otherwise remains quiet.

A neighbor, who declined to be named, lives next door to the park and said it's a "perfect neighborhood."

Teens and older children are not often visitors of the park, he said. The block is filled with "Harvard attorneys," "business owners" and other executives, the neighbor said. "No one knows about our block," he said. "It's a quiet place."

Hadiya's godmother agreed. “It amazed me when I found out what park it was," she said. "Nothing I have ever heard ever goes on over there.”

The shooting occurred about a mile from Obama's Kenwood home, but Emanuel said the circumstances do not carry symbolic significance.

"It's not the mile from a house. Wherever it happens in the city of Chicago is where I consider it," the mayor said while talking to reporters at a news conference about a West Humboldt Park company building new seats for CTA buses.

"While you may say it's a mile from the president's house, my view is, it's in the city of Chicago, regardless of where it happens," Emanuel added.

Ald. Will Burns, 4th, appearing with McCarthy, noted that the community and King Prep have steadily improved over the last 20 years.

"King High School went from being one of the worst high schools in the city of Chicago to being a selective enrollment high school," he said. "These young people were going to one of the best schools in the city of Chicago and they were spending their time in a park, which is what parks are there for, for young people to enjoy themselves and recreate and do something positive."

"This is not my community, these are not the people I know and love," he said referring to the killer. "No gang controls this ward."

Tribune reporters Carlos Sadovi and Christi Parsons contributed.

Chicagobreaking@tribune.com

Twitter: @ChicagoBreaking

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Teen girl killed, boy wounded in shooting near high school

A 15-year-old girl was fatally shot and 16-year-old boy wounded about three blocks from King College Prep on the South Side this afternoon, authorities said.

The shooting occurred around 2:20 p.m. in the 4500 block of South Oakenwald Avenue, police said. A 16 year-old boy was shot in the leg and a 15-year-old girl was wounded in the back, police said, citing preliminary information.

The Cook County medical examiner's office has been notified that the girl died.

The girl, who was not yet identified by authorities, was a sophomore at King high school, friends said. The boy also is a student at King, they said.

One of the teens was taken in serious to critical condition to Comer Children's Hospital, according to Chicago Fire Department spokesman Will Knight.

The other victim also was taken to Comer and police at first believed both victims' conditions had stabilized by a little after 3 p.m., said Chicago Police News Affairs Officer Veejay Zala.

At Comer this evening, a group of young people sat and stood inside the entrance to the hospital's emergency room, along with the principal of King high school.

Friends of the slain girl said King was dismissed early today because of exams, and students went to the park on Oakenwald--something they don't usually do.

Friends said the girl was a majorette and a volleyball player, a friendly and sweet presence at the school.

Neighbors reported hearing shots about 2:20 p.m. Neighbors said students from King hang out at Harsh Park, 4458-70 S. Oakenwald Ave., and that students were there this afternoon before the shooting took place.

Desiree Sanders said she heard six gunshots and called 911 after a neighbor told her that some teens had been shot.

Chicago Police crime data show no serious crimes happened in the 4400 or 4500 blocks of South Oakenwald Avenue Dec. 19 to Jan. 20.

“It’s a great neighborhood. Nothing like this has happened since I’ve been here,” on the block, said Roxanne Hubbard, who has lived in the neighborhood for 19 years.

As a matter of policy, Chicago Board of Education officials refuse to confirm whether any child is a student at Chicago Public Schools because a policy on student identification passed by the board several years ago has never been implemented.

Tribune reporter Liam Ford contributed

chicagobreaking@tribune.com

Twitter: @ChicagoBreaking

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Chicago aldermen target bedbugs, landlords of infested units

A trio of Chicago alderman is taking on the scourge of bedbugs in the city, suggesting fines for landlords who fail to eradicate the pests.

A proposed ordinance declaring bedbugs "a public nuisance" is set for a hearing Tuesday at a joint meeting of the City Council Health and Housing committees. The measure would make landlords responsible for hiring licensed professionals to get rid of any bedbug infestations. Those who fail to comply would face fines of up to $1,000 a day.

Condominium and co-op boards also would have to prepare pest management plans under the measure proposed by Ald. Ray Suarez, 31st; Harry Osterman, 48th; and Debra Silverstein, 50th.

Landlords, however, are expected to argue that condo and co-op boards also should be held equally responsible for hiring pest-control professionals, an industry representative said. Landlords also want guarantees that they will have enough authority to get into tenants' units to deal with the problem.

Ald. George Cardenas, 12th, said tweaks will have to be made. But even if a vote is delayed Tuesday, the ordinance will get enacted in some form, said Cardenas, the Health Committee chairman.

Osterman said aldermen and Mayor Rahm Emanuel's administration have been working on the issue for months because bedbugs are a growing problem in Chicago. That point was highlighted weeks ago when the Orkin pest control company announced it did more treatments for bedbug infestations in Chicago than in any other major city last year.

"The city has a significant problem that needs to be addressed at a comprehensive level," Osterman said.

The ordinance also would prohibit the renting of units with bedbug infestations. And it would require tenants to notify landlords of suspected infestations of the pests made infamous in a childhood bedtime rhyme.

Furniture, bedding and clothing with bedbugs would have to be enclosed in a plastic bag and labeled as infected before it is placed in a refuse container. And the Health Department would have to post online information about bedbugs and their eradication.

hdardick@tribune.com

Twitter @ReporterHal

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4 protesters arrested at U. of C.'s new medical center

Protesters who want a trauma center on the South Side of Chicago marched into the University of Chicago¿s new $700 million medical center Sunday afternoon unannounced. Several were assaulted by CPD officers and then arrested.

Protesters marched into the University of Chicago’s new $700-million hospital unannounced on Sunday, shouting and holding handmade signs demanding an adult trauma care center for the city’s South Side.

Ultimately, four people were arrested at the scene, including a 17-year-old student at King College Prep High School.

The protesters staged the sit-in to call attention to the fact that the South Side has no trauma care centers that can treat adults for injuries sustained in shootings, stabbings, car accidents and other traumatic incidents. The U of C’s medical center only admits trauma victims up to age 16.

The movement for an adult trauma care center started shortly after Damian Turner was killed by gunfire in 2010, the unintended victim of a stray bullet three-and-a-half blocks from the University of Chicago Medical Center. He was transported about 10 miles away to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, which has a trauma care center that treats adults.

Most recently, two groups -- Fearless Leading by the Youth and its parent group Southside Together Organizing for Power -- have asked that the age limit for trauma victims at the U of C medical center be raised to 21.

Trauma centers are a significant drain on hospitals’ finances. The U. of C. Medical Center closed its trauma center for adults in 1988. U. of C. Medical Center officials have said establishing trauma center would come at the expense of other vital hospital programs.

Matt Ginsberg-Jaeckle, one of the organizers, said Sunday afternoon’s event protest the most violent since the campaign began in 2010.

About 2 p.m., an estimated 50 protesters entered the hospital, one man announcing their intent to protest over a megaphone. Five protesters had planned to stay in the lobby and likely be arrested when most of the group would inevitably be kicked off the private property.

Before the majority of the group had a chance to leave on their own, however, University of Chicago police took out their batons and started shoving protesters toward the door, several people tripping and falling onto the floor in the middle of the crowd.

Veronica Morris-Moore, 20, had planned on staying until she was arrested. She was pushed to the ground in the doorway, where she screamed: “Let me go! Let me go!”

Nastasia Tangherlini, 21, a University of Chicago student, also ended up on the ground. After a struggle with officers, both women were released.

Turner’s mother said she was shoved onto her face by a university police officer during the protests. Although not seriously injured, she was visibly upset, with tears streaming down her cheeks after she got onto her feet.

“I was just standing there,” Sheila Rush, Turner’s mom, said.

Besides the 17-year-old high school student, the other three arrested were Toussaint Losier, who’s active in University of Chicago student government; Jacob Klippenstein, the group’s cameraman; and Alex Goldenberg, a Fearless Leading by the Youth member.

Klippenstein said he had been filming the events when a university police officer hit his camera, knocking off his headphones in the process before he was handcuffed on the ground.

Chicago police officers showed up at the scene minutes after university police started pushing the protesters out the door.

A Chicago police officer on the scene said university police aren’t as experienced in dealing with protestors. No major injuries were reported from the confrontation.

University of Chicago police could not be reached Sunday for comment.

Marcia Rothenberg, 79, was at the protest with her husband. A few years ago, they both were in a car accident five blocks from the hospital, but had to be taken in separate ambulances to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, about 10 miles away, she said.

“It’s not just poor, black kids who are shot who need this,” said Rothenberg, who is white. “It’s people like us, too.”

Morris-Moore, who wasn’t arrested but had planned to be, said she doesn’t regret coming to protest, even though she was apprehended temporarily by officers.

“It was intense,” Morris-Moore said. “But that’s what we need people to see.”

ehirst@tribune.com

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Police: Boy, 16 and man, 32, gunned down on West Side street

Chicago police investigate a double homicide in the 4200 block of W. Congress Parkway. (Brian Cassella / January 26, 2013)

Staff report

6:54 p.m. CST, January 26, 2013

A 16-year-old boy and a 32-year-old man are the latest victims of gun violence after been shot dead on a West Side street this afternoon, police said.

Officers responded to a call of a person shot in the 4200 block of West Congress Parkway and found the two lying dead outside on the ground, according to the police.

Both victims lived in Chicago, police said. 

No one has been arrested.

Police had the crime scene near Genevieve Melody Elementary School taped off at least one block to the north, east and west, while neighbors milled about to get a better look.

On West Van Buren Street, a body could be scene lying in the roadway, near the curb and a bus stop.

A man who only identified himself as the teen victim's uncle said the boy, whose family lived nearby, had simply gone to run an errand.

"He was just going to the store," the man said. "They just killed him just like that."

Later, the man paced back and forth on the sidewalk, shaking his head in disbelief.

"He goes to school and everything," he said to a police officer.

This latest shooting represents the 4th and 5th homicides reported today, and the second double homicide.

chicagobreaking@tribune.com

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NATO protesters seek to overturn state's terrorism law

Three men face a court hearing Friday for plotting to use firebombs during last year's NATO Summit in Chicago. (Source: WGN - Chicago)

Attorneys for three protesters accused of plotting to use Molotov cocktails to blow up political targets during the NATO summit last year in Chicago asked today that the state’s terrorism law be declared unconstitutional.

Brent Betterly, 24, Jared Chase, 28, and Brian Church, 21, were each charged in 11-count indictments with conspiracy to commit terrorism, possession of explosives and attempted arson after a raid at the Bridgeport apartment where they were staying in the weeks leading up to the May 2012 summit.

In a seven-page court filing today, attorneys for the three asked Criminal Court Judge Thaddeus Wilson to declare the terrorism charges unconstitutional, arguing the statute defining a terrorist act is so vague it encompasses lawful conduct protected by the First Amendment such as labor protests or other acts of civil disobedience.

According to the filing, the terrorism statute – which had previously been used in only one Illinois prosecution since being enacted a decade ago after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks  – defines terrorism as “intent to intimidate or coerce a significant portion of a civilian population.”

“The vague nature of the terms ‘coerce,’ ‘intimidate,’ and ‘significant portion of the civilian population’ allows for the arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement of the law,” the filing said.

Michael Deutsch, a lawyer for the People’s Law Office who represents Church, said after today’s brief hearing that the statute also allows police and prosecutors to “arbitrarily pick and choose” whom to charge with terrorism offenses.

“On its face, (the law) could criminalize as terrorism First Amendment conduct, like protests, labor strikes, boycotts – they are all intended in some way to intimidate or coerce,” Deutsch said.

Prosecutors have alleged the defendants, dubbed the "NATO 3" by supporters, are members of an anarchist group known as Black Bloc and intended to firebomb targets such as police stations, Mayor Rahm Emanuel's home and President Barack Obama's downtown campaign headquarters. Police who infiltrated the group were able to record the men talking about the plots and making four gasoline-fueled Molotov cocktails that were recovered inside the apartment during the raid, according to prosecutors.

Church, of Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Chase, of Keene, N.H.; and Betterly, of Oakland, Fla., are being held in custody on $1.5 million bond each.

The judge gave prosecutors two weeks two file a response. It will likely be set for a hearing in March.

jmeisner@tribune.com

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Quinn signs sex-abuse education mandate

Teachers across Illinois will begin teaching their students on how they can protect themselves against sexual abuse and assaults. (WGN - Chicago)

After watching Gov. Pat Quinn sign into law a new mandate for child sex-abuse education in Illinois schools, the woman behind that measure will be hitting the road to push the cause nationwide.

On Thursday, Quinn signed "Erin's Law" at the Children's Advocacy Center of North and Northwest Cook County in Hoffman Estates. That's where, 14 years ago, a then-13-year-old Erin Merryn first spoke up about sexual abuse she had endured.

"You do not know how joyous this is for me, how hard I've worked for this," Merryn said of the law, which extends state-mandated sexual abuse and assault awareness and prevention efforts to elementary and middle schools. Previously, only high schools were required to teach it.

Although it's an unfunded mandate, Merryn, 27, said the law lets school districts decide how to implement it. Districts can choose either to use and pay for existing research-based curriculum, or train teachers on how to educate their students.

"Schools don't just need to hire someone to come in (from) outside the school," Merryn said. "You've got the staff right there that you already pay that are capable of teaching this, with the proper training."

Rep. Fred Crespo, D-Hoffman Estates, said "Erin's Law" is the first unfunded school mandate in two years. Crespo, vice-chair for the Elementary and Secondary Education Committee, said unfunded mandates are always a concern and an issue.

"We're very convinced we just need to make this happen," Crespo said. "We have other unfunded mandates. Somehow the school districts do manage a way to do those things."

With children as young as preschoolers, the education will be tailored for age appropriateness, Merryn said. For some, it could be as simple as teaching them to whom they could turn if they feel uncomfortable.

Lawmakers at the event praised Merryn for having the courage to quit her job as a youth and family counselor in 2010 to take on a national awareness campaign. Merryn became devoted to the cause after being sexually abused as a child between the ages 6 to 8, and again from age 11 to 13.

Merryn's campaign also focuses on support for child advocacy centers, ending stigma about sex abuse and reminding adults to be aware and to act.

At the bill signing, Quinn invited Merryn to a national governor's meeting next month. The Schaumburg native and author is working to get similar laws passed in all 50 states. It took Merryn three years to get the Illinois state law passed. She had tears in her eyes as she accepted Quinn's invitation, saying: "You will save me many, many years."

saho@tribune.com

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Pentagon chief to remove military ban on women in combat

Former Navy SEAL Dick Couch comments on U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta's decision to lift the military's ban on women serving in combat.

WASHINGTON—

The U.S. military will formally end its ban on women serving in front-line combat roles, officials said on Wednesday, in a move that could open thousands of fighting jobs to female service members.

The move knocks down another societal barrier, after the Pentagon scrapped its “Don't Ask, Don't Tell” ban in 2011 on gays and lesbians serving openly in the military.

The decision by outgoing Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is expected to be formally announced on Thursday and comes after 11 years of non-stop war that has seen dozens of women killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

They have represented around 2 percent of the casualties of those unpopular, costly wars, and some 12 percent of those deployed for the war effort, in which there were often no clearly defined front lines, and where deadly guerrilla tactics have included roadside bombs that kill and maim indiscriminately.

“This is an historic step for equality and for recognizing the role women have, and will continue to play, in the defense of our nation,” said Democratic Senator Patty Murray from Washington, the outgoing head of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee.

The move was also welcomed by Democratic Senator Carl Levin of Michigan, the head of the Senate Armed Services Committee, who said it reflected the “reality of 21st century military operations.” In addition, the American Civil Liberties Union, which filed a suit in November seeking to force the Pentagon to end the ban, applauded the move.

The decision overturns a 1994 policy that prevents women from serving in small front-line combat units.

‘HISTORIC MOMENT'

Following the expected announcement on Thursday, the military services will have until May 15 to submit a plan for implementing the decision. That plan, which has to be approved by the defense secretary and notified to Congress, will guide how quickly the new combat jobs open up and whether the services will seek an exemption to keep some closed.

The policy would be implemented by 2016.

Anu Bhagwati, a former Marine captain and head of the Service Women's Action Network, said her decision to leave the Marine Corps in 2004 owed partly to the combat exclusion policy.

“I know countless women whose careers have been stunted by combat exclusion in all the branches,” said Bhagwati, who called the decision an “historic moment.”

“I didn't' expect it to come so soon,” she said.

For Panetta, the decision adds to his legacy as a secretary who oversaw the end of “Don't Ask, Don't Tell” and now started the process to end discrimination against women. Otherwise, his tenure has been dominated by budget wrangling, the end of the Iraq war and the troop reduction in Afghanistan.

President Barack Obama has nominated former Republican Senator Chuck Hagel as Panetta's successor.

The decision comes nearly a year after the Pentagon unveiled a policy that opened 14,000 new jobs to women but still prohibited them from serving in infantry, armor and special operations units whose main function was to engage in front-line combat.

Asked last year why women who had served in Iraq and Afghanistan conducting security details and house-to-house searches were still being formally barred from combat positions, Pentagon officials said the services wanted to see how they performed in the new positions before opening up further.

Nearly 300,000 women have been deployed in the U.S forces in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars over the past 11 years, or about 12 percent of the total. Women have counted some 84 hostile casualties in those wars.

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