Get the latest news on how COVID-19 is impacting Chicago and Illinois. Follow here for live updates.

The latest

J&J’s R&R ending? Johnson & Johnson shots to resume in Cook County after feds’ OK: ‘We will continue to offer it as an option’

Brian Rich/Sun-Times

Cook County public health officials on Wednesday said they expect to soon resume administering doses of the federally scrutinized Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, as federal regulators appear poised to give providers the go-ahead to do so.

The one-and-done J&J shot was shelved nationwide last week following six reports of rare blood clots surfacing among almost 7 million recipients.

European regulators decided earlier this week that the benefits of the 66% effective vaccine outweigh the “very low risk” of the one-in-a-million side effects, and Dr. Rachel Rubin, co-lead and senior medical officer for the Cook County Department of Public Health, said she expects U.S. regulators to follow suit.

“We anticipate hearing from the CDC and FDA later this week that the vaccine will be put back into use, but probably with some restrictions and certainly a warning about the potential for the very rare complication of blood clots,” Rubin said during a news conference at Provident Hospital on the South Side.

Read the full story here.

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News

2:30 p.m. Cook County offering walk-in COVID-19 vaccinations at 2 sites

Cook County will offer vaccinations without appointments at two of its mass vaccination sites as part of a pilot program running through Saturday.

Vaccinations were previously available by appointment only at the Matteson and Tinley Park sites. The two sites are open 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday for walk-ins and for those with appointments, county officials said. A photo ID is required. Those younger than 18 must be accompanied by an adult. People can make appointments online at vaccine.cookcountyil.gov or by calling 833-308-1988.

The Tinley Park site at 18451 Convention Center Drive has a supply of Moderna vaccine. The Matteson site at 4647 Promenade Way has a supply of Pfizer vaccine. The Pfizer vaccine is the only one approved for 16 and 17 year olds.

Read the full story from Stefano Esposito here.

12:55 a.m. CPS announces full-time, in-person learning in the fall

Chicago Public Schools students will have the option of returning to classrooms full time in the fall, district officials announced Wednesday, in what will be the largest step yet toward the resumption of pre-pandemic schooling.

Though a few thousand high school students started learning in person four days per week on Monday, no CPS students have been back daily since schools closed because of COVID-19 conditions 13 months ago.

All students in all grades will have that choice available to them in the fall, while families uncomfortable or unable to return will still be allowed to learn remotely, CPS leaders said. Few other details were immediately available.

“To ensure the district’s plans are aligned to the needs of families, CPS will be engaging families in the weeks ahead to help develop specific plans for the upcoming school year,” CPS said in a news release.

Read Nader Issa’s full story here.

11:15 a.m. Hitting latest vaccine milestone, Biden pushes shots for all

The United States is set to meet President Joe Biden’s latest vaccine goal of administering 200 million coronavirus shots in his first 100 days in office as the White House steps up efforts to inoculate the rest of the public.

Biden, in remarks planned for Wednesday, will note that the U.S. will surpass that shot goal this week, according to a White House official who was not authorized to publicly discuss specifics of the speech before the president gives it and spoke on condition of anonymity.

With more than 50% of adults at least partially vaccinated, Biden will reflect on his efforts to expand vaccine distribution and access in his first three months in office. But with all those 16 and older now eligible for shots, the president is expected to outline his administration’s plans to drive up the vaccination rate even further.

Read the full story here.

10:25 a.m. Budweiser giving away free beer with proof of COVID vaccination

Budweiser is the latest brand to raise awareness for the COVID-19 vaccines by offering free beer to those who get vaccinated.

The Anheuser-Busch beer brand has brought back its popular Budweiser Clydesdales and a puppy for the commercial called “Reunited with Buds,” which posted to YouTube Thursday and is scheduled to run on national television April 26, the company told USA TODAY.

Set to the tune of Queen’s hit “Don’t Stop Me Now,” the ad “celebrates our favorite bars as they start to reopen and reminds people to safely return to them once they have been vaccinated,” the company said.

To help encourage more to get vaccinated, there’s also a contest with 10,000 free beers up for grabs.

Now through May 16, or while supplies last, U.S. residents 21 and older can enter the “Reunite with Buds” giveaway at ABeerOnBud.com with proof of vaccination.

Read the full story here.

9:30 a.m. Lightfoot expects Blackhawks, Bulls fans will be allowed to return to United Center this season

Tyler LaRiviere/Sun-Times

Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Tuesday she expects Bulls and Blackhawks fans will be allowed to watch home games at the United Center this season, barring a turn for the worse in COVID-19 cases.

“We feel like we might be plateauing and even, dare to dream, going down,” Lightfoot said of COVID-19 cases during an unrelated news conference. “Going down is the right time to have that conversation. So we’ll continue with that, and I expect before seasons end there will be fans in the United Center.”

The Bulls and Blackhawks each have seven regular-season home games on their schedules.

A limited number of fans have been able to attend home games for the Chicago Cubs and White Sox, but those fans are at a decreased risk of COVID-19 transmission because seats are in an open-air setting. Fans were allowed into Soldier Field to watch the Chicago Fire home opener on Saturday, too.

Read Mitch Dudek’s story here.

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New cases and vaccination rates

• The Illinois Department of Public Health reported 2,587 new coronavirus cases diagnosed among 62,406 tests on Tuesday, decreasing the seven-day average statewide positivity rate to 3.8% — the first time that figure has fallen below 4% since April 6.
• The numbers have now trended in the right direction for eight straight days, including in Chicago, where the regional positivity rate has inched down to 5.5% after more than a month of troubling increases.
• Hospitals across the state are still feeling the effects of Illinois’ uptick, even if it is flattening out. COVID-19 patients took up 2,288 beds statewide Monday night, the highest number of admissions since the first week of February.
• The state reported nine more coronavirus deaths Tuesday, including that of a Cook County woman in her 40s.
• COVID-19 has killed at least 21,694 Illinoisans since March 2020, as more than 1.3 million residents have tested positive.

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Other guest hosts will include “Good Morning America” anchors George Stephanopoulos and Robin Roberts, author and CNBC host David Faber, and sportscaster Joe Buck.

LeVar Burton fans will be out-of-this-world excited to tune into ”Jeopardy!” soon.

The former “Roots” and “Star Trek: Next Generation” star, who has vociferously campaigned for ”Jeopardy!” host, is among a new crop of guest hosts who will preside over the iconic game show through the rest of its 37th season. The other guest hosts will include “Good Morning America” anchors George Stephanopoulos and Robin Roberts, author and CNBC host David Faber and sportscaster Joe Buck. Specific dates for the hosts have not yet been announced, but will begin showing up in June.

“Our goal has been to present a wide variety of guest hosts with different skill sets and backgrounds on our path to finding a permanent host,” executive producer and one-time guest host Mike Richards said in a statement. “Our passionate fans are telling us what they like, and we are listening. All of the guest hosts have brought individualism, energy and an authentic love of our show to each of their episodes. We look forward to sharing the rest of the season with our viewers.”

After the death of beloved and longtime host Alex Trebek in 2020, “Jeopardy!” has been cycling through guest hosts while producers search for a permanent replacement. The hosts so far have included:”Jeopardy!” champ Ken Jennings; Richards; journalist Katie Couric; talk show host Dr. Mehmet Oz; Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers; and CNN anchor Anderson Cooper, who is in the midst of a two-week run now. Future guest hosts who have already been announced include “Today” host Savannah Guthrie, neurosurgeon and CNN medical adviser Dr. Sanjay Gupta, “60 Minutes” correspondent Bill Whitaker (who’s next up on May 3) and actress Mayim Bialik.

The inclusion of Burton, an actor and educator who hosted PBS’s “Reading Rainbow” for over 20 years, is significant because there was a very loud social media campaign supporting him as a successor to Trebek. ”This is something that I really think is a good idea,” Burton told USA TODAY last week while appearing on an episode of The Mothership podcast. ”I think it’s a good fit of what the show is, what the show requires and what I feel like I bring to the table.” Over 200,000 fans have signed a Change.org petition supporting his bid.

Burton told USA TODAY that winning ”Celebrity Jeopardy!” in 1995 is one of his proudest moments. Up until then, he didn’t have much interaction with Trebek, but recalled a time he ran into the beloved host backstage at a taping in Las Vegas.

“He was unbelievably smooth. You sense that on TV. In person it’s even more apparent just how comfortable he was. And relaxed. And very, very, very, very smooth. Just effortless. And I know how much work it takes to make it look that easy,” he said of Trebek.

The five newly announced hosts will be the final group to join the series for this season, which will conclude in August. The series recently tapped all-star player Buzzy Cohen, who won the 2017 champions tournament, to guest host the 10-day battle of 15 top winners, which will be broadcast May 17-28 (check local listings).

Contributing: Bill Keveney

Read more at usatoday.com

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Get the latest news on how COVID-19 is impacting Chicago and Illinois. Follow here for live updates.

The latest

Cook County offering walk-in COVID-19 vaccinations at 2 sites

Brian Rich/Sun-Times

Cook County will offer vaccinations without appointments at two of its mass vaccination sites as part of a pilot program running through Saturday.

Vaccinations were previously available by appointment only at the Matteson and Tinley Park sites. The two sites are open 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday for walk-ins and for those with appointments, county officials said. A photo ID is required. Those younger than 18 must be accompanied by an adult. People can make appointments online at vaccine.cookcountyil.gov or by calling 833-308-1988.

The Tinley Park site at 18451 Convention Center Drive has a supply of Moderna vaccine. The Matteson site at 4647 Promenade Way has a supply of Pfizer vaccine. The Pfizer vaccine is the only one approved for 16 and 17 year olds.

Read the full story from Stefano Esposito here.

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News

12:55 a.m. CPS announces full-time, in-person learning in the fall

Chicago Public Schools students will have the option of returning to classrooms full time in the fall, district officials announced Wednesday, in what will be the largest step yet toward the resumption of pre-pandemic schooling.

Though a few thousand high school students started learning in person four days per week on Monday, no CPS students have been back daily since schools closed because of COVID-19 conditions 13 months ago.

All students in all grades will have that choice available to them in the fall, while families uncomfortable or unable to return will still be allowed to learn remotely, CPS leaders said. Few other details were immediately available.

“To ensure the district’s plans are aligned to the needs of families, CPS will be engaging families in the weeks ahead to help develop specific plans for the upcoming school year,” CPS said in a news release.

Read Nader Issa’s full story here.

11:15 a.m. Hitting latest vaccine milestone, Biden pushes shots for all

The United States is set to meet President Joe Biden’s latest vaccine goal of administering 200 million coronavirus shots in his first 100 days in office as the White House steps up efforts to inoculate the rest of the public.

Biden, in remarks planned for Wednesday, will note that the U.S. will surpass that shot goal this week, according to a White House official who was not authorized to publicly discuss specifics of the speech before the president gives it and spoke on condition of anonymity.

With more than 50% of adults at least partially vaccinated, Biden will reflect on his efforts to expand vaccine distribution and access in his first three months in office. But with all those 16 and older now eligible for shots, the president is expected to outline his administration’s plans to drive up the vaccination rate even further.

Read the full story here.

10:25 a.m. Budweiser giving away free beer with proof of COVID vaccination

Budweiser is the latest brand to raise awareness for the COVID-19 vaccines by offering free beer to those who get vaccinated.

The Anheuser-Busch beer brand has brought back its popular Budweiser Clydesdales and a puppy for the commercial called “Reunited with Buds,” which posted to YouTube Thursday and is scheduled to run on national television April 26, the company told USA TODAY.

Set to the tune of Queen’s hit “Don’t Stop Me Now,” the ad “celebrates our favorite bars as they start to reopen and reminds people to safely return to them once they have been vaccinated,” the company said.

To help encourage more to get vaccinated, there’s also a contest with 10,000 free beers up for grabs.

Now through May 16, or while supplies last, U.S. residents 21 and older can enter the “Reunite with Buds” giveaway at ABeerOnBud.com with proof of vaccination.

Read the full story here.

9:30 a.m. Lightfoot expects Blackhawks, Bulls fans will be allowed to return to United Center this season

Tyler LaRiviere/Sun-Times

Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Tuesday she expects Bulls and Blackhawks fans will be allowed to watch home games at the United Center this season, barring a turn for the worse in COVID-19 cases.

“We feel like we might be plateauing and even, dare to dream, going down,” Lightfoot said of COVID-19 cases during an unrelated news conference. “Going down is the right time to have that conversation. So we’ll continue with that, and I expect before seasons end there will be fans in the United Center.”

The Bulls and Blackhawks each have seven regular-season home games on their schedules.

A limited number of fans have been able to attend home games for the Chicago Cubs and White Sox, but those fans are at a decreased risk of COVID-19 transmission because seats are in an open-air setting. Fans were allowed into Soldier Field to watch the Chicago Fire home opener on Saturday, too.

Read Mitch Dudek’s story here.

---

New cases and vaccination rates

• The Illinois Department of Public Health reported 2,587 new coronavirus cases diagnosed among 62,406 tests on Tuesday, decreasing the seven-day average statewide positivity rate to 3.8% — the first time that figure has fallen below 4% since April 6.
• The numbers have now trended in the right direction for eight straight days, including in Chicago, where the regional positivity rate has inched down to 5.5% after more than a month of troubling increases.
• Hospitals across the state are still feeling the effects of Illinois’ uptick, even if it is flattening out. COVID-19 patients took up 2,288 beds statewide Monday night, the highest number of admissions since the first week of February.
• The state reported nine more coronavirus deaths Tuesday, including that of a Cook County woman in her 40s.
• COVID-19 has killed at least 21,694 Illinoisans since March 2020, as more than 1.3 million residents have tested positive.

Read More

“What our community demands and deserves is more than prayers or platitudes, but action, Mayor Lightfoot,” Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez told the mayor, who replied: “Sir, you are now out of order. You are out of order. … Mister clerk, please move on.”

Mayor Lori Lightfoot clashed with Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez (25th) Wednesday — and ruled him out of order — during debate on a resolution honoring the life of 13-year-old Adam Toledo.

“What our community demands and deserves is more than prayers or platitudes, but action Mayor Lightfoot,” Sigcho-Lopez told the mayor.

“We have a bill right now and you know this very well … in the Committee on Public Safety” empowering a civilian oversight panel to hire and fire the police superintendent and be the final arbiter on disputes over police policy.

Lightfoot banged the gavel and interrupted Sigcho-Lopez at the mere mention of a civilian oversight ordinance she promised to deliver in her first 100 days in office.

“Sir, you are now out of order. You are out of order. … Mister clerk, please move on,” the mayor said.

Sigcho-Lopez’s microphone was promptly cut off as he continued to speak from the Council floor. That’s a tactic Mayor Richard J. Daley’s administration famously used to silence independent Ald. Dick Simpson (44th) nearly 50 years ago.

“Sir, out of respect for the chamber, lower your voices. We are proceeding with business,” Lightfoot admonished aldermen as Sigcho-Lopez continued to speak while aldermen talked to each other, apparently prompted by the clash.

Wednesday’s brief dust-up happened after the mayor agreed to suspend the rules and allow Little Village Ald. Mike Rodriguez (22nd) to debate a resolution that was only being introduced, not voted on.

Debate is supposed to be limited to matters the Council is voting on, but Lightfoot allowed it because of the sensitivity of the matter.

Toledo was shot and killed by a Chicago police officer summoned to the area by a Shot Spotter in the early morning hours of March 29. Toledo fled on foot and was chased by the officer into an alley.

Video released by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability last week appeared to show Toledo with both hands in the air after tossing the gun he was carrying behind a fence a split second before he was shot in the chest.

“Ordinarily, this is simply referring ordinary matters to committee. This is not really the proper place to speak to this. You can certainly speak to it during the committee process,” Lightfoot said.

Rodriguez said he understood, but “given the recency and the tragic nature of this occurrence, I just wanted to briefly speak to this resolution. It’ll be under a minute. … I just want to raise up the situation as one that has been internationally recognized.”

When Lightfoot told him to keep it brief, Rodriguez read from the resolution expressing the City Council’s “grief and sorrow” at the police shooting that culminated in Toledo’s death.

“As a city, we need time to grieve, to mourn and to heal together. But we also need to re-imagine, re-invent and reform the societal factors and pressures that led to losing one of our sons far too soon,” Rodriguez said, reading from the resolution.

“We need to do the work for Adam and for all of Brown and Black boys to reform our police department and commit to substantive, sustained investments in our communities to create real futures for young people of color across our city. … While we rightly demand accountability for Adam’s death through an open, transparent, just and expedient investigation, we also want everyone to remember and celebrate Adam’s life … as a 13-year-old child whose life was taken much too soon.”

Lightfoot agreed with the tone of the resolution.

“We all need to pray for the Toledo family as we continue giving them support,” the mayor said.

Lightfoot then agreed to recognize Sigcho-Lopez, even as she warned, “Folks, we’re not gonna start a precedent here of speaking on matters that are simply being introduced. … So, Alderman Sigcho-Lopez, I will give you a brief moment to speak. Brief, sir.”

Sigcho-Lopez promised not to take long. But he made the mayor regret the exception she had just made.

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The team has the worst batting average in baseball, and watching it unfold has been a cruel form of punishment.

Most people don’t have jobs that come with oppressive slumps, at least not slumps that are public and subject to scrutiny. Certainly not slumps like major-league hitters go through.

Bob down at the bottle-opener factory goes the equivalent of 2-for-30 from the plate and no one outside of his supervisor cares. Betty in HR makes a mistake on someone’s overtime claim and fixes if with a few keystrokes. No harm, not foul language from social-media critics. I’ll beat you to the punch: Rick from the sports department has been in a four-decade slump, nobody is in the forest to hear the sound of his fall anyway and somehow he has remained gainfully employed.

But a baseball player forgets the mechanics of a good swing for two weeks and the glare of the spotlight makes him look like a lurching extra in a zombie movie. This happens regularly in the sport, and it’s easy to tell who’s hitting well and who isn’t. The slumping players are the ones with a grimness of purpose on their faces and a heaviness to their steps. The players who are hitting well are the ones doing everything humanly possible to stay away from the slumpers, these days thanking God for the pretext of masks, six feet of separation and the regular washing of hands.

Once in a while, there is the phenomenon of an entire baseball team that, for the life of it, cannot hit a baseball for a considerable period of time. That would be the current fortunes of the Cubs, who were batting a combined .189 heading into Wednesday night’s game against the Mets. Watching this has been like watching someone unable to pass kidney stones.

On Tuesday, the Cubs managed to beat the Mets 3-1 on just four hits, all of them singles. Afterward, all anyone associated with the team wanted to talk about was how opportunistic they had been, which is like bragging about a bomb-sniffing dog’s sense of hearing. But I get it: You want to build on the positives because if you don’t, you’re left looking at the team’s Major League Baseball-worst batting average. The Cubs took advantage of Taijuan Walker’s six walks and his frustration with home plate umpire John Libka’s strike zone. They scored one run on a throwing error and another on a bases-loaded walk.

Nothing about the Cubs’ hitting problems was solved Tuesday, unless you believe that a victory can produce momentum. I do, but momentum usually has to be tied to something positive. It’s hard to use a team’s four-hit evening as a rallying cry. (On the other hand, to the Cubs’ if-it-moves-it-can-be-moved business department: Can this be monetized? T-shirts? A Bad Is Good boutique hotel? Just spitballin’.)

Newcomer Joc Pederson is hitting .137, and every time he swings a bat, it comes with a wind-chill warning. Anthony Rizzo is hitting .236 but will come out of it because he always does. Jason Heyward is hitting .200 with one home run. Kris Bryant leads the team with a .264 average and is tied for the team lead with five home runs. Compared with his teammates, he looks like a combination of Ty Cobb and Babe Ruth.

Javy Baez is looking more like the undisciplined rookie who swung and missed at everything than the MVP candidate who hit .290 and had 111 runs batted in three years ago. He leads the majors with 31 strikeouts (in 16 games) and has drawn just one walk. Cubs manager David Ross says it’s simply Baez’ way, that things will get better, but jeez. I pull a hammy just watching the guy swing.

“I think he’s the best version of himself when he’s turned loose and able to play freely,” Ross said. “Asking Javy to cut down his swing, spread out and play pepper, put the ball in play, I don’t know that that’s going to be the best version of him.

“I know he is trying extremely hard to get the ball in. And I think when he is at his best and seeing the ball well, he does that really good.’’

There are various theories about what ails Cubs hitters. Poor plate discipline. A strange, concerning inability to catch up with fastballs. Aging hitters. Weather. It was 39 degrees at Wrigley Field at the start of Tuesday’s game. Other teams have to play in the cold, too. Boston won’t be mistaken for Miami this time of year, but the Red Sox lead the majors with a .287 average, .026 better than their next closest competitor, the warm-weather Angels.

For the Cubs, there was a weird vibe to this season well before it started, with trade talk dominating the discussion. Whatever happens going forward, these are the last gasps of the 2016 World Series team, and everybody in baseball knows it. Maybe that has played a part in the club’s poor hitting. We’re told constantly that baseball is a mental game. What’s the effect on the psyche when all the talk is of a breakup?

I worry more about Cubs fans. We don’t know what the long-term ramifications are of watching ballplayers swing and miss so often. A decline in workplace production? A flagging will to live? You see the problem. Somebody, anybody, make it stop. Get a hit.

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The network and PointsBet are partnering to give viewers data, analysis and commentary with a gambling focus. The alternate broadcast will air on NBCSCH+.

NBC Sports Chicago will present an alternate broadcast of the Hornets-Bulls game at 8 p.m. Thursday geared toward sports betting. The “BetCast” will appear on NBCSCH+, opposite the regular broadcast on NBCSCH.

The network and sportsbook PointsBet are partnering for the presentation, which will be led by NBCSCH host David Kaplan, Bulls analyst Kendall Gill and PointsBet senior editor Teddy Greenstein. They’ll give viewers data, analysis and commentary with a gambling focus.

The broadcast will show live odds on the screen, including the spread, over/under totals, moving money lines and player prop bets. Team and player performances and trends also will appear on a graphic overlay surrounding the game telecast.

In 2019, NBC Sports Washington produced gaming telecasts for Wizards games that included a “Predict the Game” contest with the chance to win $500. Also that year, NBC Sports Philadelphia produced BetCasts for some 76ers games.

NBC Sports and PointsBet partnered with the PGA Tour in February to produce a BetCast for the Phoenix Open, the first betting companion show during a PGA event. It provided 10 hours of coverage in four days of the tournament on streaming service Peacock Premium.

More to come …

Read More

Get the latest news on how COVID-19 is impacting Chicago and Illinois. Follow here for live updates.

The latest

Lightfoot expects Blackhawks, Bulls fans will be allowed to return to United Center this season

Tyler LaRiviere/Sun-Times

Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Tuesday she expects Bulls and Blackhawks fans will be allowed to watch home games at the United Center this season, barring a turn for the worse in COVID-19 cases.

“We feel like we might be plateauing and even, dare to dream, going down,” Lightfoot said of COVID-19 cases during an unrelated news conference. “Going down is the right time to have that conversation. So we’ll continue with that, and I expect before seasons end there will be fans in the United Center.”

The Bulls and Blackhawks each have seven regular-season home games on their schedules.

A limited number of fans have been able to attend home games for the Chicago Cubs and White Sox, but those fans are at a decreased risk of COVID-19 transmission because seats are in an open-air setting. Fans were allowed into Soldier Field to watch the Chicago Fire home opener on Saturday, too.

Read Mitch Dudek’s story here.

---

News

11:15 a.m. Hitting latest vaccine milestone, Biden pushes shots for all

The United States is set to meet President Joe Biden’s latest vaccine goal of administering 200 million coronavirus shots in his first 100 days in office as the White House steps up efforts to inoculate the rest of the public.

Biden, in remarks planned for Wednesday, will note that the U.S. will surpass that shot goal this week, according to a White House official who was not authorized to publicly discuss specifics of the speech before the president gives it and spoke on condition of anonymity.

With more than 50% of adults at least partially vaccinated, Biden will reflect on his efforts to expand vaccine distribution and access in his first three months in office. But with all those 16 and older now eligible for shots, the president is expected to outline his administration’s plans to drive up the vaccination rate even further.

Read the full story here.

10:25 a.m. Budweiser giving away free beer with proof of COVID vaccination

Budweiser is the latest brand to raise awareness for the COVID-19 vaccines by offering free beer to those who get vaccinated.

The Anheuser-Busch beer brand has brought back its popular Budweiser Clydesdales and a puppy for the commercial called “Reunited with Buds,” which posted to YouTube Thursday and is scheduled to run on national television April 26, the company told USA TODAY.

Set to the tune of Queen’s hit “Don’t Stop Me Now,” the ad “celebrates our favorite bars as they start to reopen and reminds people to safely return to them once they have been vaccinated,” the company said.

To help encourage more to get vaccinated, there’s also a contest with 10,000 free beers up for grabs.

Now through May 16, or while supplies last, U.S. residents 21 and older can enter the “Reunite with Buds” giveaway at ABeerOnBud.com with proof of vaccination.

Read the full story here.

---

New cases and vaccination rates

• The Illinois Department of Public Health reported 2,587 new coronavirus cases diagnosed among 62,406 tests on Tuesday, decreasing the seven-day average statewide positivity rate to 3.8% — the first time that figure has fallen below 4% since April 6.
• The numbers have now trended in the right direction for eight straight days, including in Chicago, where the regional positivity rate has inched down to 5.5% after more than a month of troubling increases.
• Hospitals across the state are still feeling the effects of Illinois’ uptick, even if it is flattening out. COVID-19 patients took up 2,288 beds statewide Monday night, the highest number of admissions since the first week of February.
• The state reported nine more coronavirus deaths Tuesday, including that of a Cook County woman in her 40s.
• COVID-19 has killed at least 21,694 Illinoisans since March 2020, as more than 1.3 million residents have tested positive.

Read More

Columbus police shot and killed a teenage girl who swung at two other people with a knife Tuesday, according to bodycam footage from the officer who fired the shots just minutes before the verdict in George Floyd’s killing was read.

COLUMBUS — The fatal police shooting of Ma’Khia Bryant, a Black teenager seen on video charging at two people with a knife, came within minutes of the verdict in George Floyd’s murder — causing outrage by some over the continued use of lethal force by Columbus police.

Officials with the Columbus Division of Police released footage of the shooting Tuesday night just hours after it happened, a departure from protocol as the force faces immense scrutiny from the public following a series of recent high-profile police killings that have led to clashes.

The girl was identified by Franklin County Children Services, which said in a release that the 16-year-old Bryant was under the care of the agency at the time of her death.

The 10-second clip begins with the officer getting out of his car at a house where police had been dispatched after someone called 911 saying they were being physically threatened, Interim Police Chief Michael Woods said at the news conference. The officer takes a few steps toward a group of people in the driveway when Bryant starts swinging a knife wildly at another girl or woman, who falls backward. The officer shouts several times to get down.

Bryant then charges at another girl or woman, who is pinned against a car.

From a few feet away, with people on either side of him, the officer fires four shots, and Bryant slumps to the ground. A black-handled blade similar to a kitchen knife or steak knife lies on the sidewalk next to her.

A man immediately yells at the officer, “You didn’t have to shoot her! She’s just a kid, man!”

The officer responds, “She had a knife. She just went at her.”

The race of the officer wasn’t clear and he was taken off patrolling the streets for the time being.

Bryant was taken to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead, police said. It remains unclear if anyone else was injured.

Columbus Police Department via WSYX-TV via AP

Woods said state law allows police to use deadly force to protect themselves or others, and investigators will determine whether this shooting was such an instance. Ohio’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation is now reviewing the killing following an agreement with the city last summer for all police shootings to be handled by the independent investigators under Attorney General Dave Yost’s office.

Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther mourned the loss of the young victim but defended the officer’s use of deadly force.

“We know based on this footage the officer took action to protect another young girl in our community,” he told reporters.

The shooting happened about 25 minutes before a judge read the verdict convicting former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin of murder and manslaughter in the killing of Floyd. It also took place less than 5 miles from where the funeral for Andre Hill, who was killed by another Columbus police officer in December, was held earlier this year. The officer in Hill’s case, Adam Coy, a 19-year veteran of the force, is now facing trial for murder, with the next hearing scheduled for April 28.

Less than three weeks before Hill was killed, a Franklin County Sheriff’s deputy fatally shot 23-year-old Casey Goodson Jr. in Columbus. The case remains under federal investigation.

Last week, Columbus police shot and killed a man who was in a hospital emergency room with a gun on him. Officials are continuing an investigation into that shooting.

Kimberly Shepherd, 50, who has lived in the neighborhood where Tuesday’s shooting took place for 17 years, said she knew the teenage victim.

“The neighborhood has definitely went through its changes, but nothing like this,” Shepherd said of the shooting. “This is the worst thing that has ever happened out here and unfortunately it is at the hands of police.”

Shepherd and her neighbor Jayme Jones, 51, had celebrated the guilty verdict of Chauvin. But things changed quickly, she said.

“We were happy about the verdict. But you couldn’t even enjoy that,” Shepherd said. “Because as you’re getting one phone call that he was guilty, I’m getting the next phone call that this is happening in my neighborhood.”

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Farnoush Amiri is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

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Because Jacob Fagundo’s pleaded guilty in federal court to civil disorder and obstructing law enforcement on April 7, prosecutors said they would be dropping state charges of arson and criminal damage to government property.

Cook County prosecutors dropped charges Wednesday against a man who set fire to a Chicago police SUV during the George Floyd protests last summer.

Because Jacob Fagundo’s pleaded guilty in federal court to civil disorder and obstructing law enforcement on April 7, prosecutors said they would be dropping state charges of arson and criminal damage to government property.

Associate Judge Alfredo Maldonado accepted the prosecutors’ motion.

Fagundo, 23, faces a sentence of eight to 14 months in federal prison. His sentencing before U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman is scheduled for July 14.

Chicago police

Fagundo, a student at the Art Institute of Chicago, admitted to bringing fireworks and lighter fluid to a May 30 protest and using them to set fire to a police SUV parked in a garage, at 30 E. Kinzie St.

Fagundo and others shattered the SUV’s windows before Fagundo tossed a lit firework inside the vehicle, according to federal prosecutors.

Replacing the SUV cost the Chicago Police Department $58,125, which Gettleman is expected to make Fagundo pay restitution for, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

Surveillance cameras tracked Fagundo after he set the fire and captured his face when he removed the hood of a sweatshirt. The cameras also captured his unique arm tattoos, an assistant state’s attorney said during Fagundo’s bail hearing last year.

After police released portions of the footage, Fagundo was identified through an anonymous tip, the prosecutor said. Fagundo turned himself in to police with his attorney when he learned he was wanted.

The state’s attorney’s office and Fagundo’s lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.

The looting and vandalism that occasionally accompanied the Floyd protests caused an estimated $20 million in damages, state officials said.

On Tuesday, former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty of murder and manslaughter for pinning his knee on Floyd’s neck while Floyd was handcuffed and repeatedly stated he couldn’t breathe.

The case led to protests worldwide over racism and policing.

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