Rebecca Johnson

Rebecca Johnson is a news reporter on the Tribune’s metro desk. A University of Pittsburgh graduate, she previously worked at the Austin American-Statesman and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. She welcomes story tips or coffee shop recommendations.

A Ukrainian solder lights a candle as he holds cards and flowers from students during a visit to St. Nicholas Cathedral School, May 22, 2026. (Josh Boland/Chicago Tribune)

Wounded Ukrainian soldiers run the Soldier Field 10 to remember lives lost: ‘Fighting for freedom’

May 24, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

They hope to honor both fallen U.S. and Ukrainian service members on the holiday as the war in their homeland continues.

A woman stands in a Cook County forest preserve on May 6, 2026, where she likes to walk to calm her mind. She said she was sexually assaulted in 2024 in her apartment at Niche 905 by a building’s security guard. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)

Chicago woman sues luxury residential managers for not allowing her to break lease after an alleged assault

May 12, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

The woman said she’s ready to speak out to spread awareness of the challenges faced by those who report they’ve been sexually assaulted.

Adrian Williams, a senior at Portage High School, with his mother, Tiffany May, in Portage, Indiana, on April 29, 2026. He was charged with a felony after officers responded to a report of a gun — which turned out to not be real — outside a Planet Fitness. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

A Portage teen faces a felony after playing ‘Senior Assassin’: What to know about the game that worries police

May 7, 2026 at 1:29 p.m.

Senior assassin, a popular tag-style game where teens hunt down their opponents with Nerf and water guns, has become tradition for many high school seniors across Chicago and the country.

Kenwood Academy High School students hold a banner reading "Workers Over Billionaires" as they lead a march of labor unions, activists groups and citizens through the West Loop during a May Day march on May 1, 2026. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)

May Day unfolds across CPS with rallies, civic education and some teacher absences

May 1, 2026 at 7:28 p.m.

About 40 civic engagement field trips were approved for 2,200 students, according to Chicago Public Schools.

Melody Winston, right, senior executive of Living Fresh Market, speaks at the store during a news conference about the impact SNAP cuts will have on her business and the community on April 27, 2026, in Forest Park. Standing are Danielle Perry, vice president of policy, advocacy and community engagement at the Greater Chicago Food Depository, center, and Yolanda Wallace, owner of Yo’s Yummy’s. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)

120,000 Illinoisans may lose SNAP food assistance starting Friday due to work requirements

May 1, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

New federal requirements for SNAP recipients to work or volunteer for 80 hours a month could mean 120,000 Illinois residents lose their benefits.

A police officer salutes as an ambulance transports the body of a police officer to the medical examiner's office from Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center where two officers were taken after being shot by a suspect at Endeavor Health Swedish Hospital, April 25, 2026, in Chicago. One of the officers died, and the other is in critical condition, according to Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

Chicago police officer killed, another critically injured in shooting at Swedish Hospital: ‘A devastating loss’

April 25, 2026 at 9:14 p.m.

One Chicago police officer was killed and another critically injured after they were shot at Endeavor Health Swedish Hospital Saturday morning by a man they brought in for treatment at...

Bicyclists pass the Chicago Theological Seminary on the campus of the University of Chicago on April 14, 2026. (Josh Boland/Chicago Tribune)

Chicago Theological Seminary stops admitting new students as financial pressure grows

April 15, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

The Chicago Theological Seminary has stopped admitting new students in its degree programs amid mounting financial woes at the 170-year-old institution.

Transporter Anjelica Miles helps Bill Rosales to his car after he is discharged from Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood on March 27, 2026, after receiving a successful kidney transplant. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

Chicago firefighter facing a ‘death sentence’ receives kidney from fellow firefighter

April 14, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Bill Rosales learned it was inevitable that he’d need a kidney transplant by the time he got a call from a high school friend, Jason Fuggiti.

A frame grab from security video shows a person swinging an object in the parking lot of Engine Company 16 at 53 E. Pershing Road, April 6, 2026. (WGN)

Axe-wielding Englewood man caused more than $130,000 in damage at Chicago firehouses, prosecutors allege

April 14, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Jacob Bogdan faces a total of 21 felony counts for criminal damage to government property and criminal damage to property.

Family and friends gather outside a home on the 10400 block of South Green Street in Chicago's Washington Heights neighborhood on April 13, 2026, following an early-morning fire that claimed the life of a 10-year-old boy and left a teenager critically injured. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

Boy, 10, killed and teenager critically injured in Far South Side fire, police say

April 13, 2026 at 1:19 p.m.

A 10-year-old boy was killed and a teenager critically injured in an early Monday morning fire in the Washington Heights neighborhood, according to Chicago police.

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