Caroline Kubzansky

Caroline Kubzansky covers criminal justice with a focus on violence and its root causes for the Tribune. She previously worked as a general assignment reporter and started her career covering the northern suburbs. A graduate of the University of Illinois-Springfield's Public Affairs Reporting Program and the University of Chicago, she is a committed Chicago partisan and a native of Washington, D.C.

Paramedics transport a person from the scene where seven people were shot, two fatally, near the 5100 block of South Wood Street in Chicago's New City neighborhood in the early hours of June 5, 2026. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)

‘We’re nowhere close to victory’: Community members, officials seek solutions after New City mass shooting

June 5, 2026 at 5:59 p.m.

Seven people were wounded, two fatally, in a mass shooting overnight in the New City neighborhood, authorities said.

Eloisa Garcia, left, and Asucena Velazquez, parents of slain Tilden High School student Pedro Ramírez, hold a banner at the memorial for Ramírez following a march on June 4, 2026. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

‘He was just walking to school’: Friends, family mourn shooting death of honor roll student

June 4, 2026 at 4:55 p.m.

Dozens of high schoolers, neighbors and friends gathered outside Tilden High School in Back of the Yards on Thursday morning on the last day of classes for Chicago Public Schools to...

This 2025 photo provided by the Islamic Society of Milwaukee shows Salah Sarsour in Franklin, Wisconsin. (Islamic Society of Milwaukee)

Wisconsin Muslim community leader in immigration detention due to pro-Palestinian speech, attorneys allege

June 3, 2026 at 2:45 p.m.

Federal immigration agents arrested Palestinian-born Wisconsin community leader Salah Sarsour, a legal permanent resident, setting off court battles over his detention and release.

An attendee wears a button with an image of Chicago police Officer John Bartholomew during his visitation at St. Andrew's Greek Orthodox Church on May 7, 2026. Bartholomew was fatally shot April 25 while guarding a prisoner at Endeavor Health Swedish Hospital. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

CPD reported death of officer slain in hospital shooting to the state days late, records show

May 29, 2026 at 11:47 a.m.

The Chicago Police Department was three days late in reporting the shooting death of Officer John Bartholomew to state labor authorities last month, records show.

A memorial has grown for 17-year-old Pedro Ramírez, who was fatally shot Tuesday. The memorial, seen here on May 28, 2026, was near the spot in the 1300 block of West 51st Street in Chicago where the teen was hit with a bullet. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

Police release man without charges in New City shooting that left Tilden honor roll student dead

May 28, 2026 at 9:26 p.m.

Pedro Ramirez, 17, was shot early Tuesday morning in a triple shooting that also left two other men wounded in the New City neighborhood.

Chicago police officers respond to a "teen trend" event near 57th Street Beach in Hyde Park on May 25, 2026. Three people were wounded in a shooting nearby around 10 p.m. (Network Video Productions)

Chicago Memorial Day weekend ‘teen trends’ and mass gatherings end in violence and spark backlash

May 26, 2026 at 6:27 p.m.

The "trend" took place at 57th Street Beach Monday night, capping a weekend that saw 23 shooting incidents and 36 people wounded, police said.

Bennie Currie, flanked by Doreen Barrett, left, and Grace Chan McKibben, all of Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood, meet at Valois Restaurant on May 23, 2026. They are members of Currie’s organization CollaBOOration, a community-led violence prevention network. (Josh Boland/Chicago Tribune)

As ‘teen trends’ flare and fizzle in high-profile areas, anti-violence workers and police dig in for summer

May 26, 2026 at 12:52 p.m.

Chicagoans from Mayor Brandon Johnson and Superintendent Larry Snelling on down are pondering the best way to respond to teen takeovers, which have become increasingly common since the COVID-19 pandemic...

Video released by the U.S. attorney's office shows an incident from Oct. 4, 2025, where Diego Emmanuel Reyes allegedly rammed his sport utility vehicle into the rear of a vehicle driven by an ICE agent on Chicago's Southwest Side and accelerated his vehicle forward pushing the agent’s SUV. A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Reyes with using a deadly or dangerous weapon, specifically, his vehicle, to assault a federal immigration agent during Operation Midway Blitz. (U.S. Attorney's Office)

Man charged with ‘ramming’ federal agents in Brighton Park confrontation

May 21, 2026 at 3:09 p.m.

A federal grand jury has indicted a 21-year-old man for allegedly ramming a car driven by federal immigration agents.

Chicago police Deputy Chief Jon Hein speaks to the media after a shooting in Chicago's Loop on Jan. 26, 2024. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

Jon Hein, chief of patrol at CPD and leader in Midway Blitz response, prepares to exit June 1

May 18, 2026 at 7:11 a.m.

Jon Hein, the Chicago Police Department’s chief of patrol and effectively the second-in-command of the nation’s second-largest police department, will retire next month, according to two sources with knowledge of...

Crime scene tape flaps in the wind in the 200 block of North Homan Avenue on May 9, 2026, in Chicago. A ride-share driver and passenger were fatally shot at the intersection of North Homan Avenue and West Lake Street on May 7, 2026, by a gunman in a passing SUV, according to police. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

Teen released without charges in East Garfield Park homicides

May 15, 2026 at 2:43 p.m.

Chicago police originally arrested the boy after the shooting deaths of Jassen Cho, 38, and Damarion Johnson, 18.

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