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Stories by Jonathan Bilyk on Cook County Record

COOK COUNTY RECORD

Monday, March 17, 2025

Jonathan Bilyk News


'Desire to destroy those who disagree': Oak Lawn HS board kicks off Rob Cruz, who sued Pritzker over mask mandate

By Jonathan Bilyk |
The Oak Lawn High School District 229 school board removed Rob Cruz, one of its elected members, who is also running for Congress, saying Cruz had violated his oath of office and state law, in part, by suing Gov. JB Pritzker over the statewide school mask mandate.

IL Supreme Court to decide if IL 'transportation lockbox' amendment applies to Cook County, as well as state govt

By Jonathan Bilyk |
A coalition of road and transportation contractors have asked the Illinois Supreme Court to rule that Cook County has violated the so-called Safe Roads Amendment by refusing to spend $250 million more annually on transportation projects, rather than county operations.

IL high school sports lawsuit vs Pritzker revised to now seek order barring potential high school COVID vax mandates

By Jonathan Bilyk |
A legal challenge to Gov. JB Pritzker's use of emergency powers over high school athletics now has been amended to ask a Springfield judge to block Pritzker and others from requiring Illinois high school athletes and students to receive COVID vaccines

'Illegal strikes... must be stopped': Parents to continue lawsuit vs CTU, despite deal to reopen Chicago Public Schools

By Jonathan Bilyk |
The lawsuit vs the Chicago Teachers Union called the union's 'remote work action' an illegal strike that harmed children and families in Chicago

'Gerrymandering of the judiciary': New judicial maps drawn in Cook, collar counties, downstate

By Jonathan Bilyk |
Democrats say the changes are needed to boost diversity on the bench. Republican critics say the changes are simply efforts by Democrats to boost their hold on power in the state's courts

Parents sue Chicago Teachers Union, ask judge to rule union's COVID 'remote work action' actually illegal strike

By Jonathan Bilyk |
The parents of Chicago Public Schools students assert the union has violated state labor law and their contract by refusing to come to schools, even though CPS has declared school can be carried out safely amid the COVID surge

Lawsuit: Chicago vax passport mandate violated constitutional rights, illegally interferes with contracts

By Jonathan Bilyk |
A federal judge has refused to grant an emergency order sought to block Chicago from enforcing its vaccine passport mandates, which require all people over the age of 5 to prove they've been vaccinated against COVID before being allowed into restaurants, theaters, sports arenas and an array of other indoor facilities.

Pritzker can't toss FoxFire lawsuit over COVID restaurant closure orders

By Jonathan Bilyk |
A Springfield judge has again refused Gov. JB Pritzker's attempt to quickly end a lawsuit brought by the owner of Geneva restaurant FoxFire, asserting Pritzker violated the law when he issued indoor dining shutdown orders in 2020

American Airlines workers lawsuit says vax mandate without testing doesn't stop COVID spread

By Jonathan Bilyk |
A group of American Airlines workers say the company broke its CBA by requiring workers to get vaccinated, without also requiring regular COVID testing.

Class action accuses Mitek Systems of improper facial scans when verifying customers' identities online

By Jonathan Bilyk |
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of a named plaintiff who uploaded his driver's license and a selfie when registering to use the HyreCar app

Judges say Dems' partisan power grab in drawing new maps didn't also violate Voting Rights Act

By Jonathan Bilyk |
Democrat mapmakers were "motivated by partisan political considerations," a panel of federal judges said, so it doesn't matter that they divided Latino and Black populations up among various districts, rather than maximizing majority minority districts

Foxx, Cook County prosecutors could face possible sanctions for allegedly misleading public about Smollett case

By Jonathan Bilyk |
Illinois Supreme Court rules state it is considered “professional misconduct for a lawyer to… engage in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit or misrepresentation"

Hawthorne Race Course sued over facial recognition security system at horse racing track

By Jonathan Bilyk |
A class action lawsuit says Hawthorne has improperly scanned visitors' faces to weed out unwanted visitors without first providing notice and obtaining consent

Special prosecutor report: Foxx, deputy prosecutors deceived, misled public about Smollett case

By Jonathan Bilyk |
A newly released report from Special Prosecutor Dan Webb asserts Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx and others in her office may face further investigation for professional ethics violations in the handling of the Jussie Smollett case.

Chicago firefighters, city workers must get COVID vax, or face 'no-pay status,' arbitrator rules

By Jonathan Bilyk |
The arbitrator gave Chicago employees until Jan. 31 to complete the vaccine course, or risk losing their jobs, under Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot's mandate

Class action: Woodman's accused of shaving time off workers' paychecks

By Jonathan Bilyk |
A new federal lawsuit has accused supermarket chain Woodman's of improperly rounding workers' hours, rather than paying them based on punchclock records.

Ex-State Police Merit Board CFO used sex assault claims, ties to Pritzker to try to thwart review of alleged fake OT records: Court filing

By Jonathan Bilyk |
A judge could soon decide whether the former head of the Illinois State Police Merit Board should be allowed to press his claims that one of his former employees had falsely accused him of sexual assault, and exploited her ties to Gov. JB Pritzker, to get him removed

Who decides fate of activities, classes at Oak Park River Forest HS, other schools? During COVID, it could depend

By Jonathan Bilyk |
A fight over the recent decision to cancel, then resume, sports and other extracurricular activities at Oak Park River Forest High School illustrates a "grey area" in the law over school closures amid COVID

IL Dems, challengers spar in court over whose map would result in more Latino, Black lawmakers elected

By Jonathan Bilyk |
Republicans and Latino and Black advocates told a panel of federal judges that Illinois Democrats drew a new state legislative district map solely to protect Democratic incumbents and boost their party power, stepping on Black and Latino voting rights in the process.

Lawsuit accuses Massage Envy studio over alleged Nov-Dec 2019 sexual assault reports

By Jonathan Bilyk |
A third lawsuit has been filed against the owners of the Massage Envy Old Town location, now by a woman who claims she was inappropriately touched by a male massage therapist two years ago