What’s New

No-knock warrants will be strictly prohibited except in “specific cases where lives or safety are in danger.” And even in those extreme cases, they will need to be approved by a “bureau chief or higher.”

Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Wednesday unveiled an array of reforms aimed at preventing a repeat of the botched raid on the wrong house that humiliated an innocent woman and forced a crying and pleading Anjanette Young to stand naked and handcuffed before male police officers for 40 minutes.

No-knock warrants will be strictly prohibited except in “specific cases where lives or safety are in danger.” And even in those extreme cases, they will need to be approved by a “bureau chief or higher.”

All other search warrants will need to be approved by a “deputy chief or higher,” instead of by a lieutenant.

Before either type of search warrant is executed, the team involved will be required to conduct a “planning session” to identify “any potentially vulnerable people who may be present at the location in question, including children.”

In addition, an “independent investigation” will be required before warrants are served to “verify and corroborate that the informed used to obtain the warrant is accurate.”

To prevent a repeat of the indignity that Anjanette Young suffered, at least one female officer will be required to be present for the serving of all search warrants. So must a “lieutenant or higher.”

The reforms are not nearly as sweeping as those unveiled by Black female aldermen and embraced by Anjanette Young.

But Lightfoot is hoping they’re enough to regain the trust she lost after the now-infamous airing of the botched raid on Young’s home.

“What Ms. Young experienced served as an abrupt wake-up call to our entire city to the reforms our city needs and our values demand,” the mayor was quoted as saying in a press release.

“Every step we have taken and we continue to take will be with that goal in mind.”

Lightfoot has been under fire for her changing story about what she knew and when she knew it about the botched raid that saw a crying Anjanette Young telling officers more than 40 times that they had the wrong house as they cavalierly allowed her to stand there naked. It took a long time before one of the officers finally gave her a blanket to cover up.

The mayor initially insisted she knew nothing about the raid until WBBM-TV (Channel 2) aired the video in December.

But after reviewing internal emails, the mayor was forced to admit she learned about the raid in November 2019, when a top aide warned Lightfoot about a “pretty bad wrongful raid” by Chicago police.

“I have a lot of questions about this one,” she wrote at the time to top aides.

The mayor has emphatically denied knowing anything about her Law Department’s efforts to block the CBS2 from airing bodycam video of the raid. To underscore the point, she forced the resignation of Corporation Counsel Mark Flessner, a longtime friend who served together with Lightfoot in the U.S. attorney’s office.

Lightfoot is a former Police Board president who co-chaired the Task Force on Police Accountability in the furor that followed the police shooting of Laquan McDonald.

Former Mayor Rahm Emanuel was ordered to release the video of convicted Chicago Police officer Jason Van Dyke shooting McDonald sixteen times after the video was concealed until Emanuel had been safely re-elected in 2015.

Lightfoot personally drafted the policy that requires the city to release body and dash cam video of police shooting and other incidents involving police shootings within 60 days.

That’s apparently why the accusation that she somehow played a role in the Law Department’s efforts to conceal the video hit so close to home. It’s also why she is so sensitive to trust that she has lost.

“There’s a lot of trust that’s been breached. And I know that there is a lot of trust in me that’s been breached,” the mayor said in December.

“We will do better. We will win back the trust that we have lost.”

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Chicago Blackhawks: Patrick Kane eyeing NHL scoring title by Vincent Parise

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Chicago Bulls (Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)

Chicago Bulls vice president of basketball operations, Arturas Karnisovas, sat down before the Chicago Bulls vs. Denver Nuggets game for a rare media session.

Before the season started, Karnisovas stated, “Preserving cap room for next summer and using this season to look at our roster and evaluate and see what the long-term goals will be following this season,” via K.C Johnson of NBC Sports.

At first, Bulls fans were curious as to what the future held for star players like Zach LaVine and Lauri Markkanen. The vice president made it seem like no one was safe from being traded or released into free agency in his evaluation period.

Now, nearing the all-star break of the season, Karnisovas dropped some hints as to what the future of the Chicago Bulls could look like.

The Bulls have a jam-packed schedule in the second half of the season and they currently sit in tenth place in the Eastern Conference, just two games behind the New York Knicks, who hold the fourth place spot.

LIVE: Arturas Karnisovas takes questions from the media ahead of tonight’s game against the Denver Nuggets https://t.co/Z6ARIn7whV

— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) March 1, 2021

The former Lithuanian basketball player showed his commitment to the Bulls by rattling off several team and player statistics to the press, evidential of an improving Bulls team.

From there, he spoke only good things about the team and its star players like LaVine and Markkanen, and the rest of the team. Here are the essential takeaways from the quotes he shared with the press on Monday night.

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Chicago Bears: Ravens dropped out of Allen Robinson sweepstakes by Ryan Taylor

Chicago Bulls: 3 Takeaways from Arturas Karnisovas’s interview by Ryan Taylor

Winning the Art Ross Trophy as the National Hockey League’s leading scorer is incredibly difficult. Patrick Kane of the Chicago Blackhawks has already done it once in his career and he is looking to do it again. He has his eyes on it as he is tied for second in the league with Leon Draisaitl of the Edmonton Oilers. Patrick Kane has one more goal than Draisaitl so that is the tiebreaker but they have the same number of points at 34. They trail Connor McDavid of the Oilers who is in first with 40.

It is going to be really hard to catch McDavid as he has been the NHL’s best player pretty much since coming into the league. It will also be hard to keep up with Draisaitl because of the fact that he is one of the best scorers in the league and he plays significant power-play time with McDavid. There are also two Toronto Maple Leafs in Mitchell Marner and Auston Matthews on his tail as well. Mark Scheifele of the Winnipeg Jets isn’t that far behind them.

If you take a deep dive, Kane is the only player in the top-six that doesn’t play for a Canadian team. That North Division is loaded with scoring and not so loaded with stellar defense. Every team scores a lot and it makes sense for them to have a lot of players in the scoring race. For Kane, however, he plays in the Central which is a much more sound defensive division which makes it that much more impressive.

It isn’t a sure thing that he catches McDavid or even keeps up with Draisaitl. The odds are against him as they are all young and in more prolific situations but if there was anyone to bet on to beat the odds, it is Kane. He does have Alex DeBrincat going well as he is tied for seventh in scoring. The fact that he is having a bounce-back year is really helping Kane out as well.

Kane’s 400th career goal came last week and it was an incredible milestone in the history of the franchise. Now, people are talking about Kane and where he ranks in terms of American hockey history, the history of the organization, and the history of Chicago sports. Another scoring title would certainly add even more to his already decorated career.

Related Story: Takeaways from Blackhawks vs Red Wings

Kane was named as the NHL’s Second Star of the Week for last week and then that was followed by being named the Central Division’s Star of the Month yesterday. All of these things are significant for Kane as he tries to lead this team into the playoffs. If he succeeds, expect to see his name in the Hart Trophy race as well.

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“When someone reads you those Hans Christian Andersen stories when you’re young, this is the music that’s playing in your mind.”

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Fish kills after ice-out are not expected to be as bad as in the polar-vortex winter of 2013-14, but some fish kills are expected on smaller, shallower mud-bottom lakes.

Homeowner groups sometimes ask fisheries biologist Frank Jakubicek if having ice rinks will help prevent fish kills. It helps.

In the old days, kids and parents were more apt to clear snow from ice for skating or hockey games. By doing so, they unwittingly helped prevent winter fish kills by allowing sunlight in to help oxygen levels.

As the weather broke last week, I wondered whether the extended heavy snow cover (the fourth-longest stretch with 10 inches or more) and thick ice (up to 18 inches on the Chain O’Lakes) would lead to winter fish kills, which usually are noted at ice-out. And ice-out is coming.

‘‘Yeah, we are probably going to have some fish kills,’’ said Jakubicek, who covers Cook and Lake counties. ‘‘I haven’t heard of any fish kills yet, but we still have ice-up.

‘‘There are always marginal ponds with soft mud bottoms and relatively shallow that have kills.’’

But Jakubicek said he thinks the area should be relatively unscathed by winter fish kills.

Dale Bowman

‘‘We had our ice later in the year,’’ he noted.

That’s a key distinction from the polar-vortex winter of 2013-14.

‘‘I would say if any lakes or ponds had troubles in 2013-14, they should be checked out,’’ emailed Andy Plauck, a fisheries biologist for McHenry, Kane and DuPage counties. ‘‘The ice in 2013 started early [in November] and didn’t go away until late March. I think we’ll be in the clear if the weather keeps warming up!’’

So far, the weather forecast indicates a gradual ice-out.

‘‘I haven’t heard of anything yet, but we had 13 inches of ice on McCollum Lake as of Feb. 21,’’ Plauck emailed.

‘‘All quiet in my neck of the woods,’’ emailed biologist Seth Love, who covers Kendall, Grundy, Kankakee and Will counties.

In terms of ice, there is generally a remarkable difference between the area Love covers and the far northern counties.

That’s why Jakubicek said: ‘‘I expect some dead gizzard shad on the Chain. We are going to have dead fish in some lakes and ponds, usually the more shallow ponds with mud bottoms, water retention ponds, those ponds. So, yes, we are probably going to have some.’’

The key time to watch is when the ice goes.

‘‘Sometimes fish will die, and they go to the bottom,’’ Jakubicek said. ‘‘It takes a couple of days after the ice leaves for them to float up. We will see.’’

Illinois’ fisheries biologists can be found at ifishillinois.org/FAQS/biologists.html.

People

Bob Kerans replaced the late Ray Thompson as chairman of the Illini Muskies Alliance. Kerans founded the Illinois Muskie Tournament Trail.

Wild things

Provided

Lawrence Narro reported his first find of a shed antler Saturday. ‘‘Still about 8 inches [of snow] in spots,’’ he messaged. . . . Sandhill cranes are migrating around the Chicago area. . . . William Meyer tapped his first maple tree over the weekend. Perfect timing: warm days, cool nights. . . . On Sunday, Joseph Kalas messaged, with photos: ‘‘Daffodils and snowdrops. Chicago west of Midway Airport.’’

Provided by Joseph Kalas

Stray cast

Baseball box scores in the Sun-Times again are like the first coho.

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