Afternoon Briefing: GOP lobbyist testifies in Mapes perjury trial

Good afternoon, Chicago.

Efforts to transfer a state-owned parcel of land to Chinatown developers that are at the heart of the racketeering charges against former House Speaker Michael Madigan got their first airing in a federal courtroom today, where Madigan’s former chief of staff is on trial for allegedly lying to the federal grand jury leading the probe.

Here's what else is happening today. And remember, for the latest breaking news in Chicago, visit chicagotribune.com/breaking and sign up to get our alerts on all your devices.

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Dolton Park District sues village, seeks injunction to block use of barriers at parks

The Dolton Park District is taking on the village in Cook County Circuit Court, alleging the village is infringing on its ability to govern its own property following the shutdown of a car show on Park District property. Read more here.

More top news stories:

• Lake Barrington woman killed in Wednesday wreck

• Photos: Toro Nagashi Lantern Ceremony in Jackson Park

5 new lawsuits allege former Duly Health and Care gynecologist engaged in misconduct

Duly said in a statement it takes allegations of physician misconduct extremely seriously. Read more here.

More top business stories:

• University of Chicago settles financial aid lawsuit for $13.5 million

• Average long-term US mortgage rate climbs to 7.09% this week to highest level in more than 20 years

Uncertainty swirls around Marcus Stroman’s injury. ‘I have no idea, that’s the honest truth,’ Jed Hoyer says of Cubs righty.

The Chicago Cubs aren’t ruling anything out amid the range of outcomes and uncertainty surrounding the rarity of a new injury Marcus Stroman sustained earlier this week. Read more here.

More top sports stories:

• Gregory Santos experiences the highs and lows of closing during the Chicago White Sox’s City Series split

• Scouting the Naperville Sun’s girls volleyball teams for the 2023 season

‘August Wilson: A Life’: A theater giant’s symphony of 20th century Black lives, captured by biographer Patti Hartigan

She writes of the rift between playwright Wilson and director Lloyd Richards. “It was like a divorce, but perhaps an inevitable one. While it lasted, it was one of the key relationships in the American theater.” Read more here.

More top Eat. Watch. Do. stories:

• ‘Strays’ review: Dogs go hunting for laughs on comedy’s mean streets, with Will Ferrell and Jamie Foxx

• LED drone show to be finale of Saturday’s Elgin End of Summer Bash

How Donald Trump uses supporters’ donations to pay his legal bills

Experts say the practice is most likely legal but that it raises ethical questions about how the former president treats his donors. Read more here.

More top stories from around the world:

• Air evacuations are to begin for people in the path of wildfires in Canada’s Northwest Territories

• The school bus driver shortage is getting worse