In Illinois, 1 million people are estimated to be compulsive gamblers or at risk of becoming one. Illinois Answers and @capitolnewsil.bsky.social spoke anonymously with people whose gambling spiraled into an addiction that cost them money, relationships and peace of mind. These are their stories.

We've been working on this dive into Chicago's tree planting record for the better part of a year. Worth your time today!

I can tell you about every tree the city has planted in the past ~5 years. Why do I know a 3 foot tall American Hornbeam was planted on Leavitt in August of 2022? Because I want to make sure the city keeps its promises. 🧵 about trees, equity and how Chicago does (and doesn't) live up to its word.

My colleagues @alexnitkin.bsky.social @binghuihuang.bsky.social @drewjayadams.bsky.social investigated former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot's promise to plant 75K trees by 2027. They even put together a really cool tool that shows you tree stats for your area! illinoisanswers.org/2026/06/26/c...

@maggiedough.bsky.social and I sat down with more than a dozen compulsive gamblers in recovery about let them speak at length about their own lives. It is at turns sad, frightening, infuriating, occasionally funny and painfully human 🧵 illinoisanswers.org/2026/06/24/w...

Illinois raked in more than $2.6B in gambling tax revenues last year to help balance its budget. But that’s just a slice of the more than $7.7B that people lost gambling — more than $4.1B went to sportsbooks, slot machines and casino operators. illinoisanswers.org/2026/06/24/a...

illinoisanswers.org/2026/06/24/w... "They’ll give you tickets to the Cubs game just to go in their little suite area, but I know it’s just like they lure you in so that you just spend a lot more and more and more."

Gamblers lost $7.7 billion in Illinois last year. The state collected $2.6 billion in gambling revenue. But for every $100 it collects, it devotes less than 6 cents to gambling addiction treatment.

A story about how Gov. JB Pritzker presided over the expansion of a predatory and extractive industry. This, by @ctoner.bsky.social and @maggiedough.bsky.social #chicago capitolnewsillinois.com/news/addicte...

illinoisanswers.org/2026/06/24/w... @maggiedough.bsky.social and I spoke at length with people addicted to gambling. What they shared with us was sad, shocking, occasionally funny, infuriating and profound. Something to think about next time you Kevin Hart doing an ad for Draft Kings

illinoisanswers.org/2026/06/24/a... Our story on Illinois lawmakers including Gov. JB Pritzker balancing the budget off the backs of gamblers. Last year people in the state lost $7.7 billion gambling. Of those losses, more than $4.1 billion went to sportsbooks, slot machines and casino operators

“Represented by the MacArthur Justice Center, BGA and DuPage County service provider Radical Hospitality Ministries, has filed suit against elements of the judicial branch to force compliance with transparency requirements under the SAFE-T Act.”

an update on the quantum campus development, per its board meeting: -Partnership with Lake Effect Development to create some 50 homes on vacant lots near the quantum site -Hiring underway for the 750 IBM jobs for the site, with a commitment to hire a third through a City Colleges program

Trump privacy restrictions may reduce Census Bureau data www.npr.org/2026/06/12/n... Bad news for rural areas

So Chicago maintains data on of every rideshare trip in the city, including pickup/dropoff locations. I tried mapping trips from a given location, but there's gotta be something more useful to do. Has anyone done a cool analysis or built anything with Chicago's TNP data?

Something I'm watching: Illinois politicians said they got $154k in campaign cash today. The big winner? 42nd Ward Ald. Brenden Reilly. He reported about 1/5 of that ($27.5k), all coming from business and real estate executives yesterday. More in the thread 🧵👇

US Dept of Education found Illinois failed to meet its targets for providing timely therapy for infants and toddlers. High demand, poor pay for therapists. Telehealth option complicated by shifting attitudes toward virtual visits, and hasn't improved wait times or therapist shortage.

Are you a journalist, campaign staffer, activist or involved voter working on Chicago School Board elections? I'm building something that could be useful to you and I need some off the record feedback. My DMs are open.

Early Intervention is a free program for Illinois families who need physical or occupational therapy for their toddlers. It’s proven to help improve developmental delays. But the therapists who provide the care are paid less than those working in other states:

Today's @tradeoffs.org podcast episode features our @illinoisanswers.bsky.social @mindsitenews.bsky.social reporting on mental health courts, with context from Dr. Debra Pinals, a forensic psychiatrist who has spent 20 years studying + working in mental health courts. tradeoffs.org/2026/06/04/m...

Early Intervention therapies help kids — but Illinois pays providers less than other states, stalling access by @meredithnewman.bsky.social and Madison Hopkins for @illinoisanswers.bsky.social illinoisanswers.org/2026/06/04/e...

New from me: an under-the-radar bill pending in Springfield would beef up rules designed to push wealthy Illinois suburbs to allow more affordable housing. Here's what HB5198 would do, and where it stands: (1/7)

Cops trying to rush Ofc Krystal Rivera to a hospital in an SUV were delayed more than a minute because they couldn't find keys. Rivera's partner, who accidentally shot her and took cover for 90 seconds thinking someone else had, was holding them. #chicago chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdog...

chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdog... Missing car keys, a traffic jam and miscommunication cloud the aftermath of Chicago Police Officer Carlos Baker fatally shooting his partner Krystal Rivera w/ @peternickeas.bsky.social @schuba.bsky.social

Federal prosectors to post their Ls.

For years, Daniel Brown cycled in and out of jail. Then a judge sent him to mental health court. There, he was diagnosed with schizophrenia. “It made sense when they explained it, because it broke down a lot of things I was dealing with,” he said. Read the story: https://bit.ly/41YB95a

Joining @stlonair.bsky.social at noon to discuss our recent @illinoisanswers.bsky.social and @mindsitenews.bsky.social investigation into mental health courts! Tune in here: www.stlpr.org/show/st-loui...

“The city launched an ambitious plan to keep residents from getting displaced as speculators swooped in, but some projects never happened, while others show modest results.” @binghuihuang.bsky.social @skpineda.bsky.social @drewjayadams.bsky.social illinoisanswers.org/2026/05/07/a...

Talked with @abc7chicago.bsky.social over the weekend about our recent @illinoisanswers.bsky.social investigation with @mindsitenews.bsky.social abc7chicago.com/videoClip/19...

One week away! 🎉 Join us for ✨ Beyond the Byline✨ on May 7, which includes our storytelling panel, "Voices Behind the Byline." We will take you inside the reporting process and you'll meet people whose lived experiences shaped our reporting. 🎟️ Secure your tickets now: https://bit.ly/4triTgP

Despite limited research and transparency, Illinois counties have continued to launch new mental health courts, and advocates call for more, raising big questions about fiscal accountability and oversight

From the Illinois Answers Project: Mental health courts have proliferated across Illinois in recent decades. Now, the state has 31 courts across 25 counties. There’s at least one in most of the state’s judicial circuits, but about two million Illinoisans are still left out.

Despite limited research and transparency, Illinois counties have continued to launch new mental health courts, and advocates call for more, raising big questions about fiscal accountability and oversight

From the Illinois Answers Project: Mental health courts have proliferated across Illinois in recent decades. Now, the state has 31 courts across 25 counties. There’s at least one in most of the state’s judicial circuits, but about two million Illinoisans are still left out.

The courts offer an alternative to incarceration. Outcomes depend heavily on local services. @illinoisanswers.bsky.social story by Grace Hauck, Josh McGhee, and Andrew Adams. buff.ly/m8KWqyG

📣 📣 Did you get your tickets yet? Spots are filling up fast for "Beyond the Byline" next Thursday! Get your tickets for a $50 donation here: https://bit.ly/4triTgP

Months After Late Property Tax Bills, Thousands Are Still Waiting With No Resolution in Sight. by @adquig.bsky.social @chicagotribune.com and @alexnitkin.bsky.social @illinoisanswers.bsky.social illinoisanswers.org/2026/04/26/m...

Prison or treatment? Thousands participate in mental health courts. Half graduate — and millions are left out. w/ Josh McGhee @mindsitenews.bsky.social and @drewjayadams.bsky.social @illinoisanswers.bsky.social illinoisanswers.org/2026/04/27/m...

Breaking news with lasting impact. 📰🌍 Congratulations to the News #PeabodyWinners — champions of journalism whose voices bring clarity, courage, and depth to the stories that matter most. 🏆 peabodyawards.com/awards/winne...

Officials have released footage showing the fatal shooting of Krystal Rivera following months of work covering the case by Peter Nickeas, @ctoner.bsky.social and our friends in @cstguild.bsky.social. Another example of invaluable work made by our members.

Video released in the shooting death of Ofc Krystal Rivera from last summer. Been going through material, this story has been / will continue to be updated. illinoisanswers.org/2026/04/17/o...

illinoisanswers.org/2026/04/17/o... Our latest on the Carlos Baker Krystal Rivera shooting following the release of body cam footage that @illinoisanswers.bsky.social and @chicago.suntimes.com fought in court to release

BEYOND THE BYLINE: Our featured speaker is award-winning journalist Errin Haines, editor-at-large for The 19th, president of #NABJ and contributor at MS NOW. Get your tickets here: https://bit.ly/4triTgP

Join us @illinoisanswers.bsky.social on May 7 for Beyond the Byline! Come for food, drinks, storytelling sessions, awards and a conversation with @errinhaines.bsky.social of @19thnews.org ! illinoisanswers.org/event/beyond...

“There’s nothing in this world that was more terrifying.” Travis Braden, 39, says he was strapped down to a restraint chair for 3 days in the Williamson County Jail while in a mental health crisis. He sued the county and settled for $27,500.

If you haven’t seen this @kmbc9.bsky.social documentary featuring our @illinoisanswers.bsky.social reporting on the use of restraint chairs in Illinois county jails, check it out here: www.kmbc.com/article/kmbc...

A Chicago police sergeant told internal affairs he thought another cop stole a gun from his district tact office. CPD Internal affairs didn't add the theft allegation to their case file, closed the case without more interviews, only reopened their case after we asked CPD about the theft. #chicago

chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdog... Chicago police didn't interview most of the cops who were in the room when a Glock went missing. A supervisor said he thought another cop stole it. No one has been disciplined or charged in the theft of the gun, later used in shootings across the South side

Almost two years ago now, we wrote about a man with mental illness who was restrained in a chair for 3 days in an Illinois county jail. Now, he has received a settlement in his civil rights case. @illinoisanswers.bsky.social illinoisanswers.org/2026/04/07/t...

For Illinois, the litigation could have wide financial implications for the gambling industry. Sportsbooks such as FanDuel and DraftKings, which are subject to state regulation, alone have brought in more than $1.1 billion in state tax revenue since opening six years ago. https://bit.ly/4tmJc7w