Good morning, Chicago.
For four hours Wednesday, Heather Mack sat nearly expressionless in a Chicago federal courtroom as her relatives called her a cold, calculating sociopath who plotted the murder of her own mother at a Bali resort and tried to cover it up by stuffing the body into a suitcase.
But when it was her turn to speak, Mack, dressed in orange jail clothes and wearing dark eyeglasses, approached the lectern slowly, unfolded a sheet of paper, and said something her family has waited a decade to hear.
I’m sorry.
“From the bottom of my heart, I’m sorry,” Mack said, her voice cracking a bit with emotion as she turned slightly to face her mother’s siblings and other relatives in the gallery. “I know that words are not enough for the damage I have caused. It breaks my heart. If I could take my pain away, I would.”
Moments later, U.S. District Judge Matthew Kennelly sentenced Mack to 26 years in federal prison for the gruesome 2014 crime, which sparked international headlines and a sensational legal saga that led police on a trail back to suburban Chicago.
Read the full story from the Tribune’s Jason Meisner.
Here are the top stories you need to know to start your day.
Subscribe to more newsletters | Puzzles & Games | Today’s eNewspaper edition
While Chicagoans woke up Wednesday with wind chills below zero, the region experienced a brief “warmup” that’s expected to last until Thursday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.
The lull was a welcome reprieve for some electric vehicle owners. Teslas use more energy in the cold to heat the battery and cabin, according to the company. The increased energy consumption left many drivers with dying batteries and longer waits at charging stations during the cold snap.
Cook County records seventh weather-related death as cold snap eases
Bally’s Chicago to relocate planned hotel tower
The change in plans arose recently when Bally’s began a detailed exploration of the foundation it would need to erect a 500-room hotel tower along the river at Chicago Avenue, Bally’s Chairman Soo Kim said. After discussions with the city, it was determined that driving caissons into the ground might damage municipal water management infrastructure pipes.
Maine judge delays decision on removing Trump from ballot until SCOTUS rules in Colorado case
A Maine judge on Wednesday put on hold a decision on former President Donald Trump’s ballot status to allow time for the U.S. Supreme Court to rule on a similar case in Colorado.
Democratic candidates for Cook County state’s attorney ramping up fundraising
With the March 19 primary a little over two months away, Judge Eileen O’Neill Burke has nearly $250,000 ready to spend and almost $100,000 more than opponent Clayton Harris III as the Democrats vie to succeed Kim Foxx as Cook County state’s attorney.
Harris and O’Neill Burke were roughly neck-and-neck in fundraising during the final three months of 2023, with Harris raising $200,000 during the final quarter of the year — about $15,000 more than O’Neill Burke, the latest campaign finance reports released this week show.
Texas transportation company sues Chicago for migrant bus restrictions
The legal move continues a back-and-forth battle as Chicago works to control the arrivals of asylum-seekers and Texas adjusts to continue sending them. Nearly 35,000 migrants have arrived in Chicago since Texas Gov. Greg Abbott began sending buses in August 2022.
Read the Tribune’s latest immigration stories
‘Everything we thought and more’: Bears’ 3 biggest acquisitions of 2023 all paid big dividends
A look back at the roster improvements in 2023 shows three high-profile acquisitions that panned out exactly as the Bears hoped they would.
Are the Chicago White Sox eyeing the South Loop for a new stadium?
Will the South Siders be playing baseball in the South Loop? Just where the Sox will be playing in the future has been a topic of conversation for several months.
Helmet manufacturer: Patrick Mahomes’ shattered lid in Kansas City Chiefs playoff game ‘did its job’
The manufacturer of the helmet that Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes shattered during an AFC wild-card game against the Miami Dolphins says it “did its job” by protecting the league MVP “during a head-to-head impact in unprecedented cold temperatures.”
‘Criminal Record’ review: Apple’s British cop drama tackles racism within police ranks
A police detective in London is asked by her boss to listen to a tape of an emergency call concerning an allegation of domestic violence. It’s more a formality than anything; the caller refused to give her name or any other identifying details. But she does let slip one bit of information that catches the detective’s attention: Her abusive boyfriend told her he killed his previous girlfriend years ago — and now another man is serving a prison sentence for the crime. Then she screams and the line goes dead.
That call will be the undoing of several cops in the Apple TV+ police procedural “Criminal Record,” writes critic Nina Metz.
Chicago’s Third Coast Baroque is shutting down
The Chicago classical music group Third Coast Baroque is calling quits, according to a statement Wednesday by executive director and co-founder Angela Young Smucker on its website. The statement was co-signed by artistic director and co-founder Rubén Dubrovsky, as well as director of community engagement and co-founder Nathalie Colas and board president James Klock.
Indigo Girls will kick off a joint tour with Melissa Etheridge at Ravinia
The Indigo Girls and Melissa Etheridge will play together this August at Ravinia Festival as the launch of a short joint tour.
