Good morning, Chicago. ✶
🔎 Below: Some Chicago boaters are calling for stricter rules following a fatal crash Thursday that they say is all too common.
🗞️ Plus: South Siders call for housing protections after the Obama Presidential Center opens, the Pride Parade marches on and more news you need to know.
📝 Keeping score: The Cubs beat the Brewers, 4-3; the White Sox lost to the Royals, 5-4; the Sky fell to the Aces, 107-99.
🚧 Heads up: Street closures have begun around Grant Park for the Taste of Chicago Festival, which runs July 8-12.
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⏱️: A 7-minute read
TODAY’S WEATHER 🌤️
Sunny with a high near 94 and heat index values as high as 103. The city plans to open six cooling centers this week.
TODAY’S TOP STORY 🔎
Options trader is jailed 4 years over unpaid $10M divorce judgment
By Frank Main
Civil contempt: Unlike most of the people being held in the Cook County Jail, Steve Fanady is not accused of any crime. Instead, he has been locked up since June 28, 2022, as a result of a civil contempt finding that stems from a bitter divorce fight and a multimillion-dollar judgment he says he doesn’t have the money to pay.
Key context: The case has made Fanady one of the longest-held civil contempt detainees in recent Cook County history. And he’s not the only one jailed in such circumstances. A recent Sun-Times investigation found that more than 2,500 people — mostly men — have been jailed in Cook County during the past decade for indirect civil contempt tied to unpaid spousal and child-support obligations. Most are released after a week or so. Some spend months in jail. A few are held for years.
Zooming in: Fandy’s confinement began when Cook County Circuit Judge Michael Forti ordered him jailed, finding that he failed to comply with court orders that required him to turn over valuable stock shares awarded to his first wife during their divorce. Fanady and his lawyer, Laura Grochocki, say that’s left him stuck in a modern-day “debtors’ prison.”
PUBLIC SAFETY 🚨
Boaters in Chicago demand stronger rules after fatal crash they say is too common
By Kaitlin Washburn
Common collisions: Last week’s fatal boat crash that killed 26-year-old Johanna Gregory was a regular tragedy on Chicago’s waterways, longtime boaters and professional captains say.
At issue: Illinois has few rules for operating a recreational boat. A person looking to buy or rent a boat in Illinois doesn’t need a license nor do they need to complete safety training, longtime boaters told the Sun-Times. They say this contributes to crashes on Lake Michigan.
IMMIGRATION ✶
Haitian and Syrian communities in limbo after SCOTUS ruling
By Elijah James, Mary Norkol and Violet Miller
High court decision: In a ruling Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to move forward on doing away with the 36-year-old temporary protected status program, ending legal status for hundreds of thousands of Haitian and Syrian migrants — and potentially millions of other people from other countries.
Expert advice: Refugees and migrants affected by the ruling can seek legal counsel to explore alternate pathways to stay in the country, said Fred Tsao, senior policy counsel at the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights.
MORE NEWS YOU NEED 🗞️
- Calls for protections: The Obama Community Benefits Agreement Coalition met Saturday with neighborhood residents, with some sharing stories of being priced out by the Obama Presidential Center. The neighbors said they’re not against the center, but are “for protecting the people who already call this community home.”
- Charges in alleged White House attack: Federal prosecutors accuse a Chicago man of obstruction of justice for allegedly deleting an encrypted messaging app from his phone after being questioned on his role in the “planning of a violent attack” at the White House’s recent UFC event.
- Khadijah Farrakhan dies at 90: “Mother Khadijah” for decades worked alongside her husband, Nation of Islam head Louis Farrakhan, helping to lead their religious and sociopolitical movement
- Twista income tax case: The rapper, born Carl Mitchell, pleaded guilty to willfully failing to pay roughly $175,000 in federal income taxes for five years, according to a plea agreement filed in federal court.
- BP workers picket: As unionized British Petroleum oil refinery workers reached the 100th day of being locked out of their jobs in northwest Indiana, they took the fight to BP’s headquarters downtown Friday to demand the company accept their contract offer.
- Damen Silos site owner warning: The city has warned Michael Tadin Jr. for allegedly operating an “unauthorized” parking lot at the site of the now-demolished silos without submitting a stormwater management plan.
- Songs for American figures: Supported by a National Endowment for the Arts grant, Chicago’s Sones de Mexico Ensemble composed corridos, or traditional Mexican ballads, about figures in President Donald Trump’s National Garden of American Heroes.
WATCH: TEXAS TAKEAWAYS ▶️
After helping Texas Democrats take refuge in Illinois amid a redistricting battle last year, Gov. JB Pritzker came to Texas on Friday to rally Democrats as they fight for their first blue statewide seat in 32 years. The governor is also building coalitions in key states that could prove helpful should he run for president in 2028.
Watch Sun-Times national political reporter Tina Sfondeles‘ recap of what happened by clicking above, or read her big takeaways here.
ON WBEZ 91.5 FM 📻
In the Loop with Sasha-Ann Simons, 9 a.m.
- Inside ‘teen takeovers’: Discussing the issue are Hyson Harper of Anchor Chicago; Robert Jordan, formerly of WGN; NuNu Coleman, a teen organizer; and local teenager Isaiah Williams.
- What’s that building?: Dennis Rodkin of Crain’s Chicago Business and South Shore resident Paulette Curry explore the history of the South Shore Cultural Center and beach.
Say More with Mary Dixon and Patrick Smith, 10 a.m.
- Scams: How do you identify and handle the latest online scams? Larry Smith, a Chicago-based consumer rights attorney, offers ideas. Callers weigh in.
FROM THE PRESS BOX 🏈⚽🏒
- Bears test land: As the team continues to zero in on a specific stadium site in Hammond, Indiana, they have begun testing soil at Wolf Lake Terminal, west of Interstate 90 and near their original proposed plot.
- Fire to sign Robert Lewandowski: The Polish superstar, 37, is reportedly in talks with the Club, though no contract has been signed yet.
- Blackhawks draft picks analysis: Xavier Villeneuve and Ryan Roobroeck are high-upside swings, writes Ben Pope.
CHICAGO MINI CROSSWORD 🌭
Today’s clue: 2D: Number of screens at the Music Box Theater now.
BRIGHT ONE 🔆
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Candace Dane Chambers/Sun-Times
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Candace Dane Chambers/Sun-Times
55th annual Chicago Pride Parade marches on despite attacks against community
By Violet Miller
The 55th annual Chicago Pride Parade strutted Sunday in Lake View, bringing thousands to the 20-block route. With 155 entrants, it was four parade floats longer than last year’s.
This year’s theme, “Free to Be Proud,” comes amid increasing attacks on LGBTQ+ communities across the nation — including in Illinois, which is largely considered a haven for queer people in the Midwest.
Miley Asari, a born and raised Roscoe Village resident, has been to the parade enough times that she knew to quickly find a shady spot on the route.
Along the way, she spotted lots of queer youth, which she said is a testament to the progress being made and “how far we’ve come.” To her, “this is Chicago.”
Friends Olivia Atkins and Kalyah Jackson’s drive from Bloomington in Central Illinois took almost as long as it took Atkins to make the crocheted lesbian flag-inspired hats they wore there.
Jackson said she loves the outfits that surround her every year at the event — this being her fourth — but more than anything, she takes comfort in being in community.
“I just enjoy being around my people,” Jackson said. “Love whoever you want, and even though there’s people who don’t think that way, it’s nice to know you’re surrounded by people who do.”
YOUR DAILY QUESTION ☕️
Calling all experienced boaters: What practical tips do you have for a first-time boater in the Chicago area?
Respond via email (please include your first and last name). We may run your answer in a future newsletter or story.
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Written and curated by: Matt Moore
Editor: Eydie Cubarrubia
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