While the state infuses hundreds of millions of dollars a year into child care programs, the strict eligibility requirements and limitations for its largest child care subsidy exclude tens of thousands of families.
Investigating Responses
Posted inInvestigating Responses
When Seniors Face Expensive Home Repairs, the Solutions Can be a Lifeline…Or Leave Their Families an Inheritance of Debt
Wealth and property passed down from parents to their children can be a major financial boost. But as some aging parents struggle financially, they can become prey to mortgage scams or even the complicated lifeline of reverse mortgages, where homeowners trade equity in their homes for cash but won’t be able to leave their property to their family. Home repair is at the root of the ability of senior Chicagoans to stay in their homes as they age. Local organizations are trying to provide relief without depriving seniors of the ability to pass their homes down to the next generation.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
Jobs. Block Clubs. Investment: How Chicagoans are Interrupting Violence at its Roots
The causes and solutions to gun violence are difficult to quantify—or control. One thing is clear: gun violence is highest in Chicago’s poorest neighborhoods.
Organizers in the hardest-hit communities like Garfield Park say tackling poverty is the only way to create lasting change.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
Cook County Tried to Rid People of Medical Debt, but, for Many, Help Comes Too Late
Since 2022, Cook County has spent more than $4 million to forgive nearly $500 million worth of medical debt for some 278,000 residents, becoming a pioneer among local governments and garnering waves of positive publicity for their efforts.Â
But an analysis of Cook County’s debt relief accounts show that many people like Ciaccio saddled with debt should have qualified for free care, a sign that local hospitals are failing to screen for some of the region’s poorest patients even as some use aggressive tactics to collect debt.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
How three states are addressing the use and abuse of restraint chairs
The “Strapped Down” series investigated the use of restraint chairs in county jails. For the final stories in the series, we’re examining how three other states have addressed the use and misuse of restraint chairs.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
A Mentally Ill Man Died After Being Restrained. His Family’s Advocacy Led to Statewide Changes in California.
The knock came around midnight.
The officers told Carty Holland that his son, Andrew, had died at the county jail.
“They didn’t tell me how he passed,” Holland said. “The ugliness of it came later on.”
Posted inCriminal Justice & Public Safety
Iowa Jails Abused Restraint Chairs. A Watchdog Agency Intervened, Spurring Reform.Â
Two Iowa jails have made reforms after an ombudsman report found the facilities were restraining people with mental illnesses in chairs for long periods of time.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
This Pennsylvania County Banned Restraint Chairs at its Jail. Public Data Was Key.
Jason Porter takes comfort in knowing restraint chairs have been banned from Allegheny County Jail.
He was strapped down in the controversial device for six hours without food or water in 2020. His testimony bolstered by public data helped bring about a ban on restraint chairs at Allegheny County Jail.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
Six Ways Cities Are Trying to Keep Rental Properties and Tenants Safe
In some places with crime-free housing laws, landlords must kick out tenants who have had too much contact with the police.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
Amid Budget Tensions, City Council Members Push to Bring Some Sunshine to City Spending
Other big city governments have robust watchdogs, paid for by taxpayers, to analyze city budgets and financial deals. The City Council’s anemic office could use some brawn, some alderpeople argue.
