Taking a photo of your filled-in ballot is a felony in Illinois

By Austin Berg

09/28/2020

State lawmakers across the country have struggled to square ballot secrecy with the advent of smartphones and social media.

TAGS: ballot, felony, Illinois Election Code, selfie

Plea deal drops felony against former Lake Forest city manager who pushed for Amtrak stop

By Vincent Caruso

02/27/2020

Hiding lobbyist payments led to a felony indictment in October against Lake Forest’s longtime former city manager. His plea bargain drops the felony and could eventually leave his record clean.

TAGS: Amtrak, Bob Kiely, felony, investigation, Lake County, Lake Forest, laundering, lobbying, misconduct

Illinois voters from all political parties favor reducing state prison population

By Bryant Jackson-Green

08/19/2016

A recent Illinois Policy Institute-commissioned poll finds 4 in 5 registered Illinois voters – including overwhelming majorities of Republicans, Independents and Democrats – support reforms to reduce the number of nonviolent offenders in prison.

TAGS: criminal justice reform, felony, prison overcrowding, prison population

It’s now a Class 4 felony to hide public records in Illinois

By Brian Costin

08/30/2014

It’s not all bad news in Illinois. Sometimes our politicians get it right. Illinois lawmakers have made it a Class 4 felony to intentionally hide public records from the public. House Bill 4216, introduced by state Rep. Anthony DeLuca, D-Chicago Heights, was passed unanimously by both the Illinois House and Senate. It was signed into...

TAGS: felony, prison, public records, transparency

Beyond degrees: Empowering Illinoisans through career-first education

Published June 3, 2025 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The best path to empowerment and success, especially for poor people, is work. Work allows us to prosper while providing dignity, upward mobility, the means to support ourselves and create value for others. It’s how we become thriving members of our community. Central to this process is our education...

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Beyond degrees: Empowering Illinoisans through career-first education

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Allan Luzbetak

Process for unionizing non-state workers raises red flags

CBS Chicago: Illinois’ highest-paid superintendent receives $400K per year to oversee 1,200 students