Accused Highland Park shooter faces arraignment – Chicago Tribune

Good morning, Chicago.

Robert E. “Bobby” Crimo III is set to be arraigned today after a grand jury indicted him on 117 felony counts for the July 4 mass shooting in Highland Park that killed seven people and wounded dozens of others.

During the hearing, Crimo, 21, will be informed that under Illinois law he will face a sentence of natural life in prison if he is convicted of murder in the deaths of more than one person. The indictments say authorities will also seek sentence enhancements for crimes committed with a firearm.

Follow chicagotribune.com for updates. Read the full story from the Tribune’s John Keilman.

Here are the top stories you need to know to start your day.

COVID-19 tracker | Monkeypox tracker | Afternoon briefing | Puzzles & Games | Daily horoscope | Ask Amy | Today’s eNewspaper edition

As a federal judge granted a lengthy extension for Michael Madigan’s racketeering case, the former Illinois House speaker’s state pension has risen to nearly $149,000 a year, reports Ray Long and Jason Meisner, a more than $63,000 increase since he retired last year, records show.

The windfall is the result of both Madigan’s 50-plus years in the House and an often-beneficial state pension formula for lawmakers that Madigan himself helped push through. It also comes as the former Southwest Side lawmaker continues to battle a federal bribery-related case that will likely not see any significant court action until next year.

A longtime prosecutor who resigned last week told the Tribune that he stands by a letter he penned faulting Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx’s administration for deep-seated issues in the office.

Afternoon Briefing

Daily

Chicago Tribune editors’ top story picks, delivered to your inbox each afternoon.

James Murphy was just one of the latest in a growing number of high-ranking prosecutors to leave one of the nation’s busiest state’s attorney’s offices.

Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker launched a TV spot criticizing Republican challenger Darren Bailey for a 2017 statement in which the wealthy downstate farmer contended the Holocaust during World War II pales in comparison with lives lost through abortion.

“The attempted extermination of the Jews in World War II doesn’t even compare on a shadow of the life that has been lost with abortion,” Bailey says in a Facebook video made during his run for state representative, an excerpt highlighted in Pritzker’s new ad.

It was a day of shock and ouch for Chicago baseball fans, writes Paul Sullivan.

The shock of seeing Willson Contreras still wearing a Cubs uniform after the trade deadline was something no one expected, while the agony of watching the White Sox stand still at the deadline was another punch in the gut for fans already immune to the pain.

You can spot the cephalopod at a shocking number of new restaurants. It’s almost strange not to find octopus on new menus. Just in the past year, you can find it at Alpana, Alla Vita, Jibaritos y Mas, Nisos Mediterranean, Lyra, Obelix, Peanut Park Trattoria, Rose Mary and Bazaar Meat.

Not that Nick Kindelsperger is complaining. Octopus is consistently one of the most enticing offerings on any menu.