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Tag: Long Reads
Trashed: The death of Michael York and how heroin has invaded the Chicago suburbs
By Bryan Smith
Nearly two years ago, the body of Michael York turned up in an alley on the West Side. The high-school student had died of an apparent overdose after a weekend bacchanal at a St. Charles mansion, and his friends had dumped his corpse in the neighborhood where they bought drugs. Three young people have now been charged in a case that painfully illustrates how heroin has invaded the suburbs Read more
A Mugging on Lake Street
By John Conroy
FROM SEPTEMBER 2009: A veteran investigative reporter looks into his own beating and finds himself confronting harsh and lingering questions of race Read more
The Fawell Affair
By Steve Rhodes
He was George Ryan’s chief aide——a gifted, arrogant operator who spent his life in politics. And, prosecutors say, Scott Fawell stood at the center of a vast network of corruption. His story mixes tragedy, farce, and soap opera (a scorned husband helped bring him down)——and adds up to a dismaying case study of the political culture of Illinois Read more
The Great American Novelty
By Michael Lenehan
The Fluffy Ball? Check. The Robolite Pop Up Book Light? Been there, done that. This time around, JD Ma, a Darien entrepreneur who connects American sellers with Chinese manufacturers, is on to something that just might revolutionize ... your closet? Read more
The Jay Cutler Playbook
By Bryan Smith
He swaggered into town with a gun for an arm and a penchant for shooting from the lip, raising hopes that he was the savior who would return the Bears to Super Bowl glory—but also questions about his judgment and leadership. As the Bears gear up for the 2009 season, we examine the file on the team’s ballyhooed new quarterback—and explain what all the fuss is about Read more
Numbers Man
By Ryan Blitstein
He modernized Chicago’s emergency-response center, served as Mayor Daley’s chief of staff, and led (albeit briefly) the CTA—all before his 38th birthday. Now Ron Huberman, the Israeli-born gay ex-cop, has brought his intensity and his technocratic management style to the city’s public schools. Failure is not an option. Read more