As Illinois turns the calendar to 2026, it will bring more than fresh resolutions. It will also usher in hundreds of new state laws, statutes that will quietly reshape daily life from grocery store checkout lines and police departments to college classrooms, hospital exam rooms and workplaces.

Beginning Jan. 1, roughly 300 new laws will take ...Read more

First, Danielle Delange saw the news alert: Bristol Health & Rehab, the nursing home where her mother lived, was on fire.

Within minutes, Delange got a phone call from an unfamiliar number. On the line, she heard her 64-year-old mother’s trembling voice.

“My mom said there was a gas explosion,” Delange said. “And I said, ‘How do you ...Read more

At first, Everly Green’s parents didn’t understand why her doctors wanted genetic testing. Their daughter was behind on her milestones at 18 months, but was gradually making progress, and they expected that to continue.

Then, when she turned 2, the seizures started. She suddenly began to lose skills. Three months later, Everly needed a ...Read more

Attorneys for condemned Pittsburgh synagogue shooter Robert Bowers have formally filed an appeal to the Third Circuit Court seeking at least a resentencing for their client.

In a 500-page document, they argue, among a dozen other perceived issues, that the court improperly excluded some jurors, improperly included another juror, and improperly ...Read more

One person died after two helicopters collided midair Sunday in Atlantic County, New Jersey, according to authorities.

The Enstrom helicopters collided about 11:25 a.m. near Hammonton Municipal Airport, the Federal Aviation Administration said. One helicopter was engulfed in flames near U.S. Routes 30 and 206, the Hammonton police department ...Read more

Last week's rain won't be the end of Southern California's wild weather as strong wind gusts are forecast through the area until Tuesday.

Gusts of up to 65 mph are expected in mountains and valleys throughout the region, with the National Weather Service warning that power outages were possible and that residents should keep an eye out for ...Read more

For President Xi Jinping, what began as a challenging year is ending on a note of triumph.

China was peerless in confronting Donald Trump’s renewed trade war, wielding its dominance over rare earths to extract concessions on tariffs and export controls. Chinese shipments found new homes outside the U.S., pushing its trade surplus beyond $1 ...Read more

President Donald Trump said he made “a lot of progress” in talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy over a possible peace deal, but that it might take a few weeks to get it done and there’s no set timeline.

The pair met at the U.S. president’s Mar-a-Lago resort Sunday, where they had lunch and later spoke on the phone with a ...Read more

At least three people were killed and 60 injured in Latakia, with Syria’s Interior Ministry blaming the violence along the country’s Mediterranean coastline on the remnants of Bashar Assad’s toppled regime.

The area is home to many of the country’s Muslim Alawite minority, to which Assad belongs. It has been restive since the downfall ...Read more

Minnesota laws and policy changes taking effect Jan. 1 will create new work break requirements, end a long-standing hunting restriction and end state-funded health insurance for adults without legal immigration status.

Perhaps the most impactful change will be the launch of the state’s paid family and medical leave program. Minnesota is the ...Read more

San Diego officials say they’re helping to solve the local housing crisis with a little-known “gap financing” program that has spurred nearly two dozen apartment complexes with more than 2,000 units across the city.

Launched four years ago, the program pools an array of funding sources from city, county, state and federal governments to ...Read more

Rob Simmons estimates that, over the last decade, Oak Park Public Library employees have helped save the lives of about 20 people who overdosed on opioids.

In some cases staff members saw that a patron had potentially overdosed in the library and called 911. In other instances, staffers administered a naloxone nasal spray that can reverse the ...Read more

Some Kentuckians felt the shake of an earthquake Sunday along Madison and Garrard County lines, according to the United States Geological Survey.

A 3.1 magnitude earthquake was recorded Sunday afternoon, according to the Louisville National Weather Service.

Around 12:47 p.m., the earthquake struck the Madison and Garrard county lines near the ...Read more

At least three people were killed and 60 injured in Latakia, with Syria’s Interior Ministry blaming the violence along the country’s Mediterranean coastline on the remnants of Bashar Assad’s toppled regime.

The area — home to many of the country’s Muslim Alawite minority, to which Assad belongs — has been restive since the downfall...Read more

President Donald Trump said he had a “good and very productive” phone call with Russian leader Vladimir Putin just before he began a face-to-face meeting with Ukraine’s president.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Trump are meeting Sunday at the U.S. president’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida as he pushes for a peace deal in the long-running war. ...Read more

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called Europe “the main obstacle to peace” as U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators prepare for talks on a way to end Moscow’s four-year invasion of its neighbor.

“After the change of administration in the U.S., Europe and the European Union have become the main obstacle to peace,” Lavrov said in an ...Read more

A New Jersey actor was indicted earlier this month on attempted murder and other charges in connection with accusations he shot a woman in the face following a traffic dispute.

Ernest W. Heinz, 46, of Port Republic, faces 31 charges, including aggravated assault and weapons infractions, stemming from the September incident in Galloway Township,...Read more