U ncorking a risky election-year gambit, Gov. Quinn on Wednesday proposed a 33 percent increase in the state income tax to avoid "sacrificing the future of a generation of children". Gov. Pat Quinn said Wednesday that the Illinois is in a "crisis of epic proportion," and introduced a budget that includes massive cuts to education. The governor said that, given how important education funding is, increasing the personal income tax rate from 3 percent to 4 percent to fund education is a far preferable idea to cutting education funding by $1.3 billion. (Read More...)

C ubs general manager Jim Hendry says Milton Bradley should stop blaming the team, manager and fans for his failure to produce during his tumultuous season in Chicago. "I think it's time maybe Milton looked himself in the mirror," an agitated Hendry said Wednesday in response to Bradley's latest charges that he was mistreated by the Cubs. The Milton Bradley over North America tour continues, its latest stop in the Pacific Northwest, underwritten by his former associates in the Midwest. (Read More...)

A northwest suburban school bus driver was arrested Tuesday and charged with DUI after allegedly failing field sobriety tests and registering nearly three times the legal limit on a breath test. About 3:45 p.m. Tuesday, Mount Prospect police Sgt. Michael Eterno got a call from Vincente Ramirez, transportation coordinator for Mount Prospect School District 57, according to a release from police. A co-worker had reported smelling an alcoholic beverage on Burden's breath about 2:30 p.m. and Ramirez wanted police to investigate, the release said. (Read More...)

A n admittedly corrupt Chicago alderman was "worth his weight in gold" to a millionaire real estate developer when he used political clout to push through a big-money zoning change, a federal prosecutor said Wednesday. "The defendant decided to buy the vote of Alderman Isaac Carothers," Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon Fox said as the bribery trial of developer Calvin Boender got under way. Noticeably absent from Wednesday's opening statements to jurors in the trial of developer Calvin Boender was any reference to possible testimony from the former 29th Ward alderman who quit last month. (Read More...)

A sked Wednesday if it's conceivable with their current personnel for the Bulls to play the style they need to to have success - defend, rebound, run - the coach didn't hesitate. The Chicago Bulls barely had enough bodies with which to practice Wednesday, a day after losing their fifth straight game. It appeared the Bulls hit rock bottom Tuesday as a late collapse resulted in a humiliating 132-108 loss to the Utah Jazz -- their fifth loss in a row. (Read More...)

C hicago police on Wednesday announced they will supply officers with 380 more Taser stun guns, including one for each patrol car. Tactical officers and specialized units such as the Mobile Strike Force will get them, too, thanks to $514,000 in federal funds. About 3,000 officers will go through mandatory eight-hour training sessions on using the weapons, and voluntary four-hour sessions are being offered, too. (Read More...)

A man given probation just two days ago for criminal damage to property died Tuesday night after plunging into the Chicago River while being chased by police for tagging a building. Jason Kitchekeg, 26, of Mokena was one of three men being chased by officers for spray-painting a building on Ashland Avenue, police said. Cops caught two of the men, but Kitchekeg jumped into the river near the 2800 block of South Ashland, officials said. (Read More...)

B lackhawks coach Joel Quenneville outlined his criteria for what he is looking for in his No. 1 goaltender a day before his team hosted the Los Angeles Kings at the United Center. The Blackhawks raced out of the gate with another strong start to grab the lead Wednesday night against the Kings. It may have been Denis Savard's Heritage Night at the United Center, but it was Adam Burish's long-awaited return to the lineup that spurred the Chicago Blackhawks to a 3-2 overtime victory over the Los Angeles Kings. (Read More...)

A man in the Mount Greenwood neighborhood on Chicago's South Side is being less than subtle about who -- or more specifically, who he doesn't -- want to move into the vacant home next door. Michael Corrigan, a spitting image of Wilford Brimley, put letters up on the side of his garage that says, "No to the ghetto," "white power," and "Mt. Greenwood the next Englewood". Corrigan is a South Side homeowner who put up a racist message on his garage, apparently to warn African Americans not to buy the house next door. (Read More...)

T he stakes are simple: His type of players, his style of play, his butt on the line if it all goes wrong. While most managers would try to distance themselves from that type of bull's eye, well, Ozzie Guillen isn't most managers. The White Sox manager was in the dugout Wednesday afternoon embracing the idea that this could all fall back to him -- and that public opinion might turn against him if 2010 is a failure for the Sox. (Read More...)

S keletal remains discovered near a forest preserve this week were identified Wednesday as those of a 63-year-old homeless man who died of natural causes, St. Charles police said. He was last seen in the same area where his remains were found after a friend dropped him off there last August, Deputy Chief David Kintz said. Police found the skeletal remains, along with some clothing and an expired Minnesota driver's license, just south of the LeRoy Oakes Forest Preserve on the city's far west side. (Read More...)

A $103,980-a-year civil engineer with the Illinois Department of Transportation is facing misdemeanor disorderly conduct charges for allegedly peeping into windows at a suburban apartment complex. James A. Stumpner, 48, of Crystal Lake, is bureau chief of maintenance at IDOT's District 1 headquarters in Schaumburg. "As with all personnel issues, appropriate inquiry and investigation will be made," IDOT spokeswoman Marisa Kollias said (Read More...)

P ablo Sandoval now has bragging rights over Carlos Zambrano, the pitcher he grew up idolizing back home in Puerto Cabello, Venezuela. "I'm not going to tell him anything," Sandoval said Wednesday after his grand slam off Zambrano led San Francisco to a 5-1 victory over the Chicago Cubs. With three All-Star Game appearances, Zambrano used to be just that, but he won only nine games last season. (Read More...)

R epublican Senate nominee Mark Kirk and his now ex-wife made more than $232,000 in 2008 - the most since he became a congressman, according to ten years worth of tax returns his campaign made available Wednesday. Most of the money came from Kirk's $169,300 congressional salary, but more than $62,000 came from wages earned by his ex-wife, Kimberly Vertolli, who is an attorney, according to Kirk's campaign. They also reported rental real estate income of more than $3,900 for property they rented out in Alexandria, Va., the return shows. (Read More...)

T he Chicago Fire Department has declared the cause of Tuesday's fire at Lawrence House, 1020 W. Lawrence, "suspicious" and has turned its investigation over to Chicago Police. CFD spokesman Larry Langford told Lake Effect News that there "were multiple points of origin" inside a seventh-floor unit were firefighters found a male victim on the floor using a thermal imaging camera. The victim, who suffered smoke inhalation and second-degree burns, is in serious but stable condition at Weiss Memorial Hospital. (Read More...)

T he man authorities believe is responsible for a series of sexual assaults against teenage girls on the Southwest Side turned himself in to Area 1 headquarters Wednesday night, police said. Police issued a community alert Wednesday saying Chauvet Stiggers -- who also goes by the names Rashaun Little, Andre Harris and DeAndre Harris -- was a suspect in multiple sexual assaults and is considered armed and dangerous. Stiggers turned himself in at 7 p.m. to detectives at the Wentworth Area police station at 5101 S. Wentworth Ave., police News Affairs Sgt. Antoinette Ursitti said.

F ollowing a strong expansion of net income during the fourth quarter of 2009 and Wednesday's sale of the Cobra golf brand to PUMA AG, the stock of Chicago-based Fortune Brands Inc. rose to a new 52-week high. The share price has trekked a varied range over 52 weeks from $17.68 to $47.03, the top being Wednesday's closing price. The company sees the recovering economy as an opportunity to strengthen its hand, in part through product innovation. (Read More...)

T he police Bomb & Arson Section unit has secured the Red Line's Granville station after reports of a suspicious package Wednesday night on the North Side. Police were called after an unattended suitcase was reported at West Granville and North Broadway avenues, police News Affairs Sgt. Antoinette Ursitti said. By 8 p.m., police Bomb & Arson Section said they had secured the area after finding an abandoned suitcase was "non-threatening," police News Affairs Officer John Mirabelli said. (Read More...)

W ednesday hundreds of Chicago public high school athletes were rallying outside their schools, upset that the district has shut down sophomore sports to save money. Students, parents and faculty have all expressed anger over the plan, saying it punishes students for others' actions and that it doesn't give student athletes enough opportunities A letter from the CPS athletic director finally confirmed what had been rumored to be happening -- the end of sports for those caught between the freshmen and upper classmen. (Read More...)

I n the weeks and months leading up to Elgin's pit bull vote, dog owners pleaded with city council members to "punish the deed, not the breed". Wednesday night, Elgin leaders backed off a batch of new laws aimed specifically at pit bulls, much to the delight of about 275 people who erupted in cheers. The old proposal automatically declared all pit bulls "dangerous," a distinction that triggered a set of regulations punishable by fines of $1,000. (Read More...)