Sam Charles
@samjcharles
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@chicagotribune reporter covering the Chicago Police Department / criminal justice. @ctguild member. Ex- @suntimes & @WGNNews . I bomb atomically.
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Joined June 2009
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Method Man and Ghostface Killah are hanging out with James Comey and may be discussing the Wu-Tang album that Martin Shkreli bought.
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There’s a special place in hell waiting for the person who slapped these power outlet stickers around O’Hare
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Chrystul Kizer, a 19-year-old facing life in prison on charges of murdering her alleged sex trafficker, was freed from a Kenosha jail on Monday after two years awaiting trial. Her $400,000 bond was paid by the Chicago Community Bond Fund.
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Today is the 14th anniversary of the Dave Matthews Band tour bus emptying its septic tank as it crossed the Kinzie Bridge, dumping 800 pounds of human waste onto people on an architectural tour boat right underneath it.
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The guy is warming up his pizza under the heat lamps on the L platform
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A Cook County judge today ordered the CPD to turn over its entire history of police misconduct investigation files from 1967 to 2015.
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Everyone in this picture is an attorney in O'Hare's intl terminal
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Our front page today is a work of genius. The design staff knocked it out of the park.
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I don't remember the last time I saw this at 5:20 p.m. on a weekday
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BREAKING: Less than a week after a Cook County prosecutor said 13-year-old Adam Toledo had a gun in his hand when he was shot, a spokeswoman for the SAO now says that prosecutor "failed to fully inform himself before speaking in court."
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BREAKING: Austin Jones sentenced to 10 years in prison with 8 years of supervised release.
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I'm over at the Dirksen for the 2 p.m. sentencing of former YouTube star Austin Jones. He pleaded guilty to receipt of child pornography last February and prosecutors are asking Judge John Z. Lee to sentence him to 11 years.
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Judge Lee has called a recess. For the last 90 min or so, several of Jones' victims & members of their families have given some sobering statements. Several have hurt themselves or attempted suicide. Some forgive him, others haven't. Jones has broken down crying at least 4 times.
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BREAKING: Cook County judge approves the city’s motion to let inspectors into R. Kelly’s rented warehouse at 219 N. Justine. The inspection will take place next Wednesday.
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Before Jones gave his statement, he asked Judge Lee if he could turn around to look at some of his victims who are in court when he apologized to them. Asst. U.S. Atty. Katherine Welsh conferred with them and told Lee that they wanted Jones to only look at the judge as he spoke.
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There have to be more than 1,000 people rallying outside O'Hare's Intl terminal and more keep showing up
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CPD officers who haven't complied with the city's vaccine mandate are being summoned to headquarters today, per sources.
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Breaking: King Louie's manager confirms he was shot in the head at 83rd and Pulaski earlier today. He's awake and talking.
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There are more than 20 cameras here at CPD HQ awaiting a 9 am presser on the Jussie Smollett charges. I’ve never seen that many at any CPD press conference, including when the Laquan McDonald video was released.
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A day before Illinois is set to lift the prohibition on recreational marijuana, Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Tuesday granted pardons for 11,017 low-level pot offenses from 92 counties statewide.
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Me walking through the West Loop every single day.
Pedestrian Crossing Street Makes Sure To Look At Approaching Car So Driver Will Feel More Guilty If They Run Him Over
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Mohammad Amirisefat, whose sister, brother-in-law and niece are currently held, thanks supporters in O'Hare's Intl terminal
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Only hours after city beaches opened for the season, North Ave Beach was closed after shots were fired.
Video shared with the Tribune shows a CPD officer driving through a busy park in pursuit of a suspect.
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A whiskey/ginger ale at Ceres Cafe is a glass of whiskey and a can of ginger ale.
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It’s a disgusting anniversary in Chicago.
15 years ago today, the Dave Matthews Band tour bus dumped 800 pounds of human waste as it crossed the Kinzie bridge, landing on an architectural tour boat directly beneath it.
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More, per sources:
Upon arrival at HQ, officers are given the chance to comply w/ mandate. If they decline & refuse a subsequent order, the officer is then taken to HR where they are stripped of police powers and ordered to turn over their police ID, star and hat shield.
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Reminder to reporters in the Midwest: Don't forget your pencils for the next few days.
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Happy second birthday to the greatest video ever recorded.
'Bruh! You're From Evanston': FOX panelist called out for saying 'I'm from Chicago'
@GiannoCaldwell
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Jones also gave a lengthy statement of his own. Part of it here:
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I don’t think it’s just me, but it feels like Chicago has packed 7 months’ worth of news into the first 7 weeks of the year.
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Crossed with the name of each Chicago murder victim this year on the Mag Mile
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It's fair to say there are a few thousand people out here now
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This sounds like the start to an either great or terrible joke:
“Two members of the Wu-Tang Clan and the former FBI Director are hanging out...”
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CPD: The 2 brothers who were previously considered suspects in the Jussie Smollett case met with police and prosecutors at 26th/Cal today, though did not testify before a grand jury. Also, the tip that Smollett was seen with them the day of the reported attack was deemed bogus.
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A judge today restricted the hours of access for the studio/warehouse rented by R. Kelly to 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (despite it not being zoned for such use, according to the city). Several photos from last week's inspection were also released.
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Let's all say a prayer for the employees of the Wrigleyville Taco Bell.
True heroes.
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BREAKING: R. Kelly is headed back to the Cook County Jail, according to the sheriff’s office
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First time I've heard the "Hands too small, can't build a wall" chant
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A few Englewood residents are not at all happy that there’s a rally in the neighborhood tonight that was organized by people who don’t live here.
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I’m over at the Daley Center where, in about 10 minutes, attorneys for the city are expected to file an amended complaint against R. Kelly and the owner of 219 N. Justine. Building inspectors went in last week and found several code violations.
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My dad retires today, a day before his 62nd birthday. A good boy who grew up near Marquette Park, he dropped out of high school to help provide for his single mom and three younger siblings. He kept busting his ass to do the same for me, my brother and my mom. Cheers, big daddy.
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Angry traveler just walked past me in his cell. "This is stupid, these people need to get fuckin' jobs."
Sir, it is 7:50 p.m. on a Saturday
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The Sun-Times was the first major media outlet to report on the allegations made against R. Kelly, way back in 2000. I went into the CST archives and dug up 20 stellar stories from
@JimDeRogatis
,
@AbdonPallasch
,
@kimjnews
& others. This is crucial work.
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Hope everyone enjoyed the 4 days of autumn we had this year.
A freeze warning has been issued for Chicago as temperatures are expected to dip to the upper 20s and lower 30s Friday morning.
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BREAKING: CPD Supt. Eddie Johnson has recommended that the Chicago Police Board fire officer Robert Rialmo for fatally shooting Bettie Jones and Quintonio LeGrier in December 2015.
@Suntimes
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After 8 years, today is my last day at the Sun-Times. I grew up reading this newspaper — the city’s newspaper — and it’s been a privilege to work alongside so many brilliantly talented and dedicated journalists.
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Prosecutor and Jones' defense atty now in a sidebar with the judge and probation officer discussing whether or not to take Jones into custody now or let him surrender at a later date. Pros says he's a danger to others and himself — he's previously expressed suicidal ideations.
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A moment of elation outside City Hall as the Jason Van Dyke verdict is announced
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But I’m not going too far. I’ve accepted an investigative producer position at WGN and I’ll be starting there in a couple of weeks. Let’s get after it.
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The Chicago Defender — the storied African American newspaper — will cease print operations after a final edition set to be released Wednesday. via
@SunTimes
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Rosemont police have closed the death investigation of Kenneka Jenkins. They also released a timeline leading up to her body being found.
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(Chicago has had a ban on the sale of spray paint for 30 years.)
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Kelly was fighting an eviction order at the time and he owed his landlord more than $165K in back rent, which was due yesterday. The Cook County Sheriff’s Office says that, as of this morning, it still has not received the eviction order.
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19 Chicago cops were stripped of their police powers yesterday after refusing to comply with the city's vaccine reporting mandate.
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This sentence implies that Chicago gun violence is a problem that can be solved in three weeks.
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This is objectively untrue.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot says weekend crime is "tragic and heartbreaking," but there is a "downward trend" in homicides and shootings.
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More:
CPD just sent out this memo, effectively saying that newly promoted officers can't take part in training if they are not in compliance with the vaccine reporting mandate.
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Three black Chicago Police officers talk about the fallout from the Laquan McDonald video
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The family of Adam Toledo — the 13 y/o boy fatally shot by a CPD officer last month — has just arrived at the office of the Civilian Office of Police Accountability to view the bodycam footage of the shooting.
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I'm already hyped.
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In a 75-page ruling, Judge Marrero called president’s argument “repugnant to the nation’s governmental structure and constitutional values.” Presidents, their families and businesses are not above the law, the judge ruled. via
@nytimes
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Jones' atty has said that, in the 2 years Jones has been in therapy, those ideations have stopped entirely.
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Personal/professional news: Today is my last day at
@WGNNews
.
I'm heading to the
@chicagotribune
, where I'll continue covering the Chicago Police Department and other criminal justice topics.
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A pretty clear and sustained chant of "Fuck Donald Trump" on State Street
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Downtown is so empty right now that pigeons outnumber people 2:1 on the outer El platform
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After a 10 min sidebar, Lee says there will another hearing Monday to determine when Jones will be taken into custody.
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Tracy Lyons was walking out of the hospital when gunfire erupted
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Hoo boy.
A Cook County judge on Friday ruled that a special prosecutor should investigate the alleged hate crime involving Jussie Smollett and how State’s Attorney Kim Foxx and her office handled the decision to drop charges against the “Empire” actor.
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The U.S. Attorney's Office in Chicago today field a lawsuit against the Cubs, alleging that renovations made to Wrigley Field violate the Americans with Disabilities Act. Story coming.
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Kudos to my neighbor across the street for snowblowing his entire side of the block
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No beer is worth this effort.
Crowds Wait Overnight To Try New Bourbon County Stout At Lincoln Park Binny's
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Fact check: Extremely false.
Trump claims to have cut Chicago’s murder rate in half
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"A Chicago Police Department officer who bragged on camera about having killed someone spent months assigned to the department’s team designed to improve police-community relations."
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CHICAGO'S BLOODY SUNDAY: While Chicago was roiled by another day of protests and looting in the wake of George Floyd’s murder, 18 people were killed Sunday, May 31 — making it the single most violent day in the city's modern history.
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A CTA first for me. This guy just sat down next to me on an empty train, pulled out some coke and did a bump.
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