Daywatch: Chicago’s travel advisory now covers most of US, prosecutors detail slaying of CPD Officer Ella French and if you want live music, have your vaccine card ready
Good morning, Chicago.
The highly contagious delta variant continues to drive up coronavirus case numbers in Chicago. The city is seeing an average 362 daily COVID-19 cases as of yesterday, up 46% from a week ago, prompting officials to greatly extend the travel advisory to much of the U.S.
Meanwhile, forecasters say at least seven tornadoes have been recorded from Monday’s storm and that hot, humid and stormy conditions are supposed to extend into today in the Chicago area. Follow along here for the latest weather updates.
And in company news, Colin McMahon is stepping down as the Chicago Tribune’s editor-in-chief and will be succeeded by Mitch Pugh, who has been named executive editor and comes from The Post and Courier in Charleston, South Carolina.
— Nicole Stock, audience editor
Here are the top stories you need to know to start your day.
COVID-19 tracker | For your smart speaker | More newsletters | Puzzles & Games | Daily horoscope | Ask Amy | Today’s eNewspaper edition
Chicago’s travel advisory now covers majority of US — including Wisconsin and Indiana — as delta variant continues to surge
As new daily COVID-19 cases in Chicago and statewide rise to levels not seen in months, the city on Tuesday added 12 states to its travel advisory, including three of Illinois’ neighbors.
The new additions bring the list’s total to 31 states and two territories, meaning travelers coming to Chicago from those areas are advised to quarantine for 10 days or test negative for COVID-19 no more than 72 hours upon arrival. The last time more states were on the travel advisory than off it was mid-April, Chicago health officials said.
Prosecutors detail slaying of Chicago police Officer Ella French as brothers charged in the case are ordered held without bond
It started routinely enough Saturday night, prosecutors said: a typical traffic stop for expired license plates, near a nondescript West Englewood viaduct. It ended in chaos and tragedy: a Chicago police officer dead, one of her partners critically wounded and two brothers facing felony charges for their alleged roles in the fatal encounter.
Officer Ella French and her partner had their service weapons holstered when Emonte Morgan shot them both at close range during a struggle, exchanged fire with a third officer, then ran and gave the gun to his brother Eric before Emonte collapsed with two gunshot wounds, Cook County prosecutors said Tuesday. Both men were ordered held without bond in separate hearings.
Rex Huppke column: Chicago police officer’s death can be honored by tracing the path that led her killer to shoot
Tony Esposito, Hall of Fame Chicago Blackhawks goalie and ‘pillar of this franchise,’ dies at 78
Tony Esposito, one of the NHL’s all-time elite goaltenders who starred for the Chicago Blackhawks for 15 seasons, died Tuesday at 78. He died of pancreatic cancer, the Blackhawks said in a statement.
After a stellar career at Michigan Tech, where he was a three-time first-team All-America selection, Esposito broke into the NHL during the 1968-69 season and served as a backup for the Stanley Cup champion Montréal Canadiens. He started his long and storied Hawks career when the team selected the Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, native during the intraleague draft before the 1969-70 season. Read his full obituary here.
Meet the 3rd generation of entrepreneurs carrying on the Johnson Hair Products legacy by way of Baldwin Richardson Foods: ‘What we do well, allows us to do good.’
If you grew up with Afro Sheen and Ultra Sheen hair products on your bathroom shelves, the Johnson family has already been a part of your household for some time. Joan Johnson and her husband, George, co-founded Johnson Products Co. with $250 in 1954, bringing those hair care products to a previously unserved African American market. By 1971, Johnson Products Co. became the first Black-owned company to be listed on the American Stock Exchange.
So it shouldn’t be a shock to see Johnson’s legacy of Black entrepreneurship going strong in 2021 under the auspices of Johnson’s granddaughters, Cara Hughes, 40 and Erin Tolefree, 41, third-generation entrepreneurs who recall being mischievous when they used to get their hair done in the testing salon as children.
Want to live music in Chicago? Bring your vaccine card. The city’s music clubs lead the way with COVID rules — but the way is not always smooth
Eighteen long months ago, Chicago-area music stages went dark and remained silent for more than a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, after mostly reopening and experiencing about a month or so of semi-normalcy, club owners and managers are taking steps to guard against the prospect of any new COVID spread.
