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Chicago Tribune: In a highly unusual move, former Gov. Pat Quinn has been subpoenaed to testify about a commutation
Former Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn has been subpoenaed in a federal civil rights case regarding his decision to commute the sentence of a man who served more than two decades in prison for the 1993 killing of a Chicago college basketball player. The move to compel a former governor to testify about the reasons behind a commutation or pardon is rare, possibly unprecedented, legal experts say.
The subpoena of Quinn comes in a federal civil case involving two men who served time in prison for murder, Tyrone Hood and Wayne Washington. Hood was convicted of the murder of 20-year-old Illinois Institute of Technology honor student Marshall Morgan Jr. and sentenced to 75 years in prison. Washington’s trial ended in a hung jury; he later pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 25 years in prison.
The Southern: Lawmakers: SIU 'test case' for stricter presidential severance laws
Last August, the Illinois legislature passed the Government Severance Pay Act to curb a rash of expensive severance payouts for university presidents around the state.
The bill honed in on deals like the one given to Chicago State University president Thomas Calhoun Jr., who was paid two years’ salary, $600,000, to leave his post after just nine months in 2016 — the same year the school was forced to lay off about 40% of its employees due to financial troubles.
Chicago Tribune: Tipping your servers 15-20% is standard. But what if Chicago requires they get paid full minimum wage?
Ali Baker, a server at Dos Urban Cantina in the Logan Square neighborhood, feels lucky to work where she does. Her boss is kind, the restaurant is well regarded, and tips can be very good.
But on slow weeks, or when customers aren’t feeling so generous, Baker gets nervous. Like most restaurant servers across Chicago, Baker earns a base hourly wage of $6.40 an hour and relies on tips for the bulk of her income. Fluctuating paychecks — $200 on a bad week, $700 on a good one — can make it tough to pay bills.
Daily Herald: More suburbs starting to say 'yes' to pot sales
Discussions about whether to allow recreational marijuana sales in the suburbs have ramped up in the last two weeks, and more suburbs are leaning in favor after early negativity this summer.
Elburn has voted to allow marijuana sales, and village boards in South Elgin, Pingree Grove and East Dundee plan to do the same after they decide on zoning regulations.
Bloomington Pantagraph: Cannabis task force nominations head to Bloomington City Council for approval
Mayor Tari Renner has named two downtown business owners, two police officers, a Black Lives Matter member, president of the local NAACP chapter, an addiction specialist, a Chamber of Commerce executive and two alderwomen to serve on the city’s newly created cannabis task force.
“As a group, these are people who I think know the community and business environment well,” said Renner about his nominations.