Equity & Justice

A law signed Friday is expected to cut down on HIV infections among the hardest hit groups – Black, Latinx and LGBTQ individuals.

Federal prisoners said to be the most dangerous are sent to a special unit at an Illinois penitentiary. NPR and The Marshall Project have uncovered violence, abuse and a string of inmate deaths there.

On Tuesday afternoon, a gunman walked into an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, and killed 15 people. At a press conference, Gov. Greg Abbot said the suspected shooter is dead.

A gunman killed at least 19 children and 2 adults at a Texas elementary school. The 18-year-old gunman is also dead, police said.

Law professor Kim Mutcherson said that while states are bound by HIPAA laws, individuals are not. This means that abortion "bounty hunters" could help punish people who seek abortions in other states.

Republican Barry Loudermilk denies he showed people around the complex before the insurrectionists laid siege. The committee says it has evidence contradicting that denial.

Seven-in-10 U.S. adults say they support some restrictions on abortions, and Americans are split on 15-week bans and whether abortion-inducing medication should be allowed to be mailed to homes.

Pontiac residents and community leaders are worried. The Illinois Department of Corrections moved 171 medium-security inmates from the Pontiac Correctional Center to other prisons early this year, and the fear is the rest of the prison built in the 1870s will shut down, too.

Republican Illinois Supreme Court Justice Rita Garman announced Monday that she will retire on July 7, marking the end of a long legal career that has included 48 years as a jurist. She would have been up for retention this year, but the timing of her retirement means the other six justices will appoint someone to serve in her 4th District seat until the 2024 elections. She has served on the high court since 2001.

Michael Chavarria is the executive director of the HOPE Fair Housing Center.