Thomas Bierwirth peered into the plastic trash can lying on its side and saw only a dirty, wet bundle. “There was no other garbage,” the 48-year-old Chicago firefighter/EMT recalled Saturday. “I picked up the blanket slowly, unwrapped it and saw the head and his face. His eyes were open and fixed on me.”

On Friday, 70-year-old Bernard Smith walked his grown son up and down his Roseland block, introducing him to the neighbors. Smith was sharing his joy that his son was home after eight years in prison.

Gov. Quinn is urging all of the University of Illinois trustees to resign in the wake of a recently released report detailing how clout helped unqualified students gain admission.

At 80 years old, the Bud Billiken Parade is still turning cartwheels, executing precision dance moves and blaring Michael Jackson, marching band style.

Chicago Police Supt. Jody Weis on Friday hailed an 11 percent drop in homicides and a 9 percent dip in all crimes during the first seven months of 2009 as a “very encouraging” sign that his department’s strategies are working.

President Obama — and every federal employee — should take 15 unpaid days for the sake of the country, Mayor Daley suggested Friday.

Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart on Friday said investigators are done collecting evidence of an alleged grave-re-selling scheme at Burr Oak Cemetery in Alsip. But it’s unlikely that most of the 1,200 human bones recovered from the cemetery will ever be identified, he said.

With scorching temperatures expected this weekend, city and state officials are urging the public to take precautions to cope with the extreme heat.

With a street repair project in the background and a lousy economy on everyone’s mind, Mayor Daley defended this year’s $1.7 billion plan to build five libraries, fix several high-traffic bridges and resurface 550 blocks of streets across the city.

John E. Scully was training for the Chicago Triathlon on April 28, 2001, taking his road bike for an early-morning ride on the city’s Lakefront Trail. He’d just pedaled over the Chicago River bridge, drafting behind another cyclist as he headed south downhill. Then a woman suddenly walked in front of them — and Scully’s life changed forever.