Casey Toner
@ctoner.bsky.social
News reporter, SAG-AFTRA steward, weary Chicagoan. Bird dogging and door stopping, @illinoisanswers. Tell the truth
Pinned
Casey Toner
@ctoner.bsky.social
· Apr 4
‘Where is the Glock?’ Gun turned over to Chicago police wound up in the hands of a teenager
The Chicago Police Department has used gun buybacks to get thousands of guns off the street, but at least two of them have resurfaced at crime scenes.
chicago.suntimes.com
chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdog... My latest about police gun buybacks, a Glock handgun that was stolen inside a Chicago police district, the mad scramble to find it, and the consequences being borne by a 16-year-old-boy the w/ @schuba.bsky.social @peternickeas.bsky.social
illinoisanswers.org/2025/11/13/f... good work from @schuba.bsky.social and @peternickeas.bsky.social about the tear gas the feds knowingly unleashed on CPD
Feds Deployed Tear Gas on the Far South Side Even After Cops Told Them They Had No Gas Masks, Sources Say
Chicago police officials had offered to clear a path for the federal agents so they could leave a tense scene of residents protesting the agents’ shooting of a woman
illinoisanswers.org
November 13, 2025 at 2:58 PM
illinoisanswers.org/2025/11/13/f... good work from @schuba.bsky.social and @peternickeas.bsky.social about the tear gas the feds knowingly unleashed on CPD
Reposted by Casey Toner
Photos of the Feds with weapons out taken by @chicagotribune.com photographers yesterday @briancassella.bsky.social @mandophotos.bsky.social
November 9, 2025 at 4:41 PM
Photos of the Feds with weapons out taken by @chicagotribune.com photographers yesterday @briancassella.bsky.social @mandophotos.bsky.social
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/08/c... "Near 26th and Ogden a woman sat in the passenger seat of a car, bouncing an infant girl. The girl was silent, her eyes damp and bloodshot. Next to the car, a man screamed and stripped off his shirt. The man and the baby had both been hit by pepper spray."
DHS reports shots fired at immigration agents in Little Village as residents confront Bovino, Border Patrol
Community members once again confronted a convoy of Border Patrol agents led by Cmdr. Gregory Bovino as it moved through Chicago’s South Side neighborhoods.
www.chicagotribune.com
November 9, 2025 at 2:39 AM
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/08/c... "Near 26th and Ogden a woman sat in the passenger seat of a car, bouncing an infant girl. The girl was silent, her eyes damp and bloodshot. Next to the car, a man screamed and stripped off his shirt. The man and the baby had both been hit by pepper spray."
Reposted by Casey Toner
A Sharon Begley byline, almost 5 years after her death.
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
James Watson, dead at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers
James Watson, the co-discoverer of the structure of DNA who died Thursday at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers.
www.statnews.com
November 8, 2025 at 1:39 PM
A Sharon Begley byline, almost 5 years after her death.
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
Reposted by Casey Toner
Questions remain why ICE targeted day care teacher who was detained in North Center facility. A very interesting nuanced story here
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/06/i...
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/06/i...
Questions remain why ICE targeted day care teacher who was detained in North Center facility
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents targeted Diana Patricia Santillana Galeano, of Colombia
www.chicagotribune.com
November 7, 2025 at 2:54 PM
Questions remain why ICE targeted day care teacher who was detained in North Center facility. A very interesting nuanced story here
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/06/i...
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/06/i...
Reposted by Casey Toner
My favorite Sandburg poem, which may be even more relevant in the context of immigration raids
November 6, 2025 at 7:27 PM
My favorite Sandburg poem, which may be even more relevant in the context of immigration raids
Bah GAWD that's US District Judge Sara Ellis' music!
Ellis starting the day off by reading out Carl Sandburg's poem "Chicago" in its entirety.
November 6, 2025 at 5:51 PM
Bah GAWD that's US District Judge Sara Ellis' music!
Reposted by Casey Toner
This is the teacher federal agents grabbed yesterday at Rayito De Sol daycare in front of children. Attorneys for Diana Santillana have filed a petition in federal court to have her freed from ICE custody.
November 6, 2025 at 3:56 PM
This is the teacher federal agents grabbed yesterday at Rayito De Sol daycare in front of children. Attorneys for Diana Santillana have filed a petition in federal court to have her freed from ICE custody.
Reposted by Casey Toner
RIP to Nanci Koschman, who lost her son at the hands of Mayor Richard Daley's nephew and then suffered through the city's bumbling effort to cover it up.
Nanci Koschman, long-grieving mother, dies 21 years after her son was killed by Mayor Daley's nephew
In the face of a Chicago police cover-up, she couldn't get answers until a Sun-Times investigation prompted the appointment of a special prosecutor and Richard J. "R.J." Vanecko's conviction.
chicago.suntimes.com
October 29, 2025 at 2:58 PM
RIP to Nanci Koschman, who lost her son at the hands of Mayor Richard Daley's nephew and then suffered through the city's bumbling effort to cover it up.
Reposted by Casey Toner
Ellis: "These kids, you can imagine, their sense of safety was shattered on Saturday. And it's gonna take a long time for that to come back, if ever."
She said it "should have been a really happy day."
She said it "should have been a really happy day."
October 28, 2025 at 4:01 PM
Ellis: "These kids, you can imagine, their sense of safety was shattered on Saturday. And it's gonna take a long time for that to come back, if ever."
She said it "should have been a really happy day."
She said it "should have been a really happy day."
Reposted by Casey Toner
Ellis on the use of tear gas Saturday: "That was the instance, as well, where children were present and they were dressed up in their Halloween costumes. … Those kids were tear gassed on their way to celebrate Halloween in their local school parking lot."
October 28, 2025 at 4:00 PM
Ellis on the use of tear gas Saturday: "That was the instance, as well, where children were present and they were dressed up in their Halloween costumes. … Those kids were tear gassed on their way to celebrate Halloween in their local school parking lot."
illinoisanswers.org/2025/10/28/l... "In many instances, that money wasn’t being spent on transportation at all — $83 million of the roughly $193 million in transportation taxes collected last year by the collar counties was spent on cops and courts." 🤔
A Little-Known Legal Loophole Has Scrambled State Efforts to Save Transit Agencies From Financial Disaster
Suburban counties last year spent $83M in RTA sales taxes on jails and courts; they'll fight to keep the money as the state scrapes for cash.
illinoisanswers.org
October 28, 2025 at 2:55 PM
illinoisanswers.org/2025/10/28/l... "In many instances, that money wasn’t being spent on transportation at all — $83 million of the roughly $193 million in transportation taxes collected last year by the collar counties was spent on cops and courts." 🤔
Reposted by Casey Toner
Amid a looming fiscal cliff for transit in Northern Illinois that could force deep CTA cuts, less attention is on suburban riders who depend on on-demand transit.
Read the story from @gracehauck.bsky.social and @alexnitkin.bsky.social here: illinoisanswers.org/2025/10/28/c...
Read the story from @gracehauck.bsky.social and @alexnitkin.bsky.social here: illinoisanswers.org/2025/10/28/c...
These Counties Spend Transit Tax Money on Ride Services. They’re Lifelines for Thousands of Residents
Fledgling dial-a-ride networks are filling gaps in public transit in the collar counties, but they struggle to meet demand.
illinoisanswers.org
October 28, 2025 at 2:17 PM
Amid a looming fiscal cliff for transit in Northern Illinois that could force deep CTA cuts, less attention is on suburban riders who depend on on-demand transit.
Read the story from @gracehauck.bsky.social and @alexnitkin.bsky.social here: illinoisanswers.org/2025/10/28/c...
Read the story from @gracehauck.bsky.social and @alexnitkin.bsky.social here: illinoisanswers.org/2025/10/28/c...
Reposted by Casey Toner
The latest on Chicago's "worst landowner" from Mina Bloom and @ctoner.bsky.social.
"Nobody wanted most of the properties... That leaves the city without the money it anticipated and homeowners still saddled with weed-strewn vacant lots."
blockclubchicago.org/2025/10/15/h...
"Nobody wanted most of the properties... That leaves the city without the money it anticipated and homeowners still saddled with weed-strewn vacant lots."
blockclubchicago.org/2025/10/15/h...
Hundreds Of Lots Owned By 'City's Worst Landowner' Went Up For Sale. But Only A Fraction Have Sold
Parcels that belonged to Suzie B. Wilson and her sister accumulated $15 million in city fines for rat-related violations. Hundreds are still sitting empty without any promise of redevelopment.
blockclubchicago.org
October 15, 2025 at 1:20 PM
The latest on Chicago's "worst landowner" from Mina Bloom and @ctoner.bsky.social.
"Nobody wanted most of the properties... That leaves the city without the money it anticipated and homeowners still saddled with weed-strewn vacant lots."
blockclubchicago.org/2025/10/15/h...
"Nobody wanted most of the properties... That leaves the city without the money it anticipated and homeowners still saddled with weed-strewn vacant lots."
blockclubchicago.org/2025/10/15/h...
Her team did "The Twitter Files" 👎. My team did "'Where is the Glock?' Gun Turned Over to Chicago Police Wound up in the Hands of a Teenager" 👍. Put me in charge of CBS News, I will do a good job
October 6, 2025 at 3:01 PM
Her team did "The Twitter Files" 👎. My team did "'Where is the Glock?' Gun Turned Over to Chicago Police Wound up in the Hands of a Teenager" 👍. Put me in charge of CBS News, I will do a good job
Reposted by Casey Toner
A mural that can be seen on the Kennedy has been blasted as "AI slop" by local artists and commuters. blockclubchi.co/428g9tg
September 22, 2025 at 3:00 PM
A mural that can be seen on the Kennedy has been blasted as "AI slop" by local artists and commuters. blockclubchi.co/428g9tg
Reposted by Casey Toner
Two absolute pros and outstanding people behind the mics for this new show on @wbez.org www.wbez.org/say-more-wit...
Say More with Mary Dixon & Patrick Smith
Hear what Chicago’s talking about — and chime in on topics that matter to you — from tariffs to construction, the Bears to “The Bear.” Weekday mornings at 10am
www.wbez.org
September 15, 2025 at 11:52 PM
Two absolute pros and outstanding people behind the mics for this new show on @wbez.org www.wbez.org/say-more-wit...
Reposted by Casey Toner
The official charity of the Savannah Bananas has a hard time explaining how its money is spent: defector.com/the-official...
The Official Charity Of The Savannah Bananas Has A Hard Time Explaining How Its Money Is Spent | Defector
Bananas Foster describes itself as “the official non-profit of Banana Ball,” the barnstorming baseball league that hosts the Savannah Bananas. Its mission, per executive director Jolie Chabala, is…
defector.com
September 15, 2025 at 4:28 PM
The official charity of the Savannah Bananas has a hard time explaining how its money is spent: defector.com/the-official...
Reposted by Casey Toner
In 2023, a Minnesota homeowner argued that the County violated her Fifth Amendment rights by taking her home and pocketing more than the $15,000 she owed in back taxes. Following the ruling, states rushed to reform their laws to avoid legal fallout.
All except Illinois.
(🖊️ Sidnee King Pineda)
All except Illinois.
(🖊️ Sidnee King Pineda)
NEW: Illinois is the only state that has yet to reform its tax sale laws after the Supreme Court found unconstitutional a process that can cost homeowners their residences.
illinoisanswers.org/2025/09/11/l...
illinoisanswers.org/2025/09/11/l...
Lawsuits Pile Up as Illinois Lags on Reforming Tax Sale Laws
Illinois is the only state yet to reform its law after the Supreme Court found unconstitutional a process that can cost homeowners their residences.
illinoisanswers.org
September 12, 2025 at 2:29 PM
In 2023, a Minnesota homeowner argued that the County violated her Fifth Amendment rights by taking her home and pocketing more than the $15,000 she owed in back taxes. Following the ruling, states rushed to reform their laws to avoid legal fallout.
All except Illinois.
(🖊️ Sidnee King Pineda)
All except Illinois.
(🖊️ Sidnee King Pineda)
Reposted by Casey Toner
NEW: Illinois is the only state that has yet to reform its tax sale laws after the Supreme Court found unconstitutional a process that can cost homeowners their residences.
illinoisanswers.org/2025/09/11/l...
illinoisanswers.org/2025/09/11/l...
Lawsuits Pile Up as Illinois Lags on Reforming Tax Sale Laws
Illinois is the only state yet to reform its law after the Supreme Court found unconstitutional a process that can cost homeowners their residences.
illinoisanswers.org
September 11, 2025 at 6:15 PM
NEW: Illinois is the only state that has yet to reform its tax sale laws after the Supreme Court found unconstitutional a process that can cost homeowners their residences.
illinoisanswers.org/2025/09/11/l...
illinoisanswers.org/2025/09/11/l...
Reposted by Casey Toner
BREAKING: Timothy C. Evans, chief judge of the Cook County circuit court system for 24 years, has lost his re-election bid to Judge Charles Beach, 2 courthouse sources just told me.
The vote this afternoon was Beach 144 and Evans 109, one of the sources said.
Awaiting official statement
The vote this afternoon was Beach 144 and Evans 109, one of the sources said.
Awaiting official statement
September 10, 2025 at 11:10 PM
BREAKING: Timothy C. Evans, chief judge of the Cook County circuit court system for 24 years, has lost his re-election bid to Judge Charles Beach, 2 courthouse sources just told me.
The vote this afternoon was Beach 144 and Evans 109, one of the sources said.
Awaiting official statement
The vote this afternoon was Beach 144 and Evans 109, one of the sources said.
Awaiting official statement
Reposted by Casey Toner
Strange, in court this morning. In the middle of a hearing, judge took a phone call from her "boss," then came back and ruled that documents + videos would remain secret despite prosecutors + defense agreeing the secrecy order could be lifted. When asked, chief judge's office refused to comment.
Judge Won't Lift Order Barring Release of Body-Cam Footage of Officer Krystal Rivera's Killing
Judge Barbara Lynette Dawkins declined to lift the order, even though prosecutors and defense attorneys had no objection to the move.
illinoisanswers.org
September 10, 2025 at 7:35 PM
Strange, in court this morning. In the middle of a hearing, judge took a phone call from her "boss," then came back and ruled that documents + videos would remain secret despite prosecutors + defense agreeing the secrecy order could be lifted. When asked, chief judge's office refused to comment.