Riots

By Zeke Miller and Robert Burns Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's Pentagon chief shot down his idea of using troops to quell protests across the United States, then reversed course on pulling part of the 82nd Airborne Division off standby in an extraordinary clash between the U.S. military and its commander in chief. Both Trump and Defense Secretary Mark Esper also drew stinging, rare public criticism from Trump's first defense secretary, Jim Mattis, in the most…

Staff Report CHICAGO - Gov. J.B. Pritzker added five counties to an existing disaster proclamation Wednesday to aid local jurisdictions in their efforts to keep communities safe. Lake, Peoria, Rock Island, Williamson and Stephenson counties were added to the edict because they represent a threat for looting or destruction through planned protests. To date, 15 counties are included in the current disaster proclamation. Pritzker activated 375 Illinois National Guard soldiers Sunday to…

Staff Report CHICAGO - Illinois Gov.  J.B. Pritzker on Monday signed a disaster proclamation for nine counties in Illinois to expedite the use of state resources, personnel and equipment to help municipalities keep residents safe from looters and rioters. The counties include Champaign, Cook, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, Macon, Madison, Sangamon and Will. The Governor also activated an additional 250 members of the Illinois National Guard to support various jurisdictions throughout the state in…

By Jim Hagerty Reporter ROCKFORD - Peaceful, yet boisterous protests became destructive Saturday as more than a thousand demonstrators converged on Rockford Police District 1 headquarters. The events began just before 4 p.m., at Haskell Park, where a crowd of a few dozen quickly became several hundred within the hour. Some held signs honoring George Floyd that bore phrases like "I can't breathe" and "Say his name," while the Black Lives Matter slogan was even better represented.…

By Tim Sullivan and Amy Forliti Associated Press MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minneapolis officer who was seen on video kneeling on the neck of George Floyd, a handcuffed black man who died in custody after pleading that he could not breathe, was arrested Friday. Public Safety Commissioner John Harrington said Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension arrested Derek Chauvin. He's charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.  The arrest comes after three days of protests,…

By Tim Sullivan and Amy Forlitti Associated Press MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz called in the National Guard on Thursday as looting broke out in St. Paul and a wounded Minneapolis braced for more violence after rioting over the death of George Floyd, a handcuffed black man in police custody, reduced parts of one neighborhood to a smoking shambles. The Minneapolis unrest ravaged several blocks in the Longfellow neighborhood, with scattered rioting reaching for miles across the…