Sam Charles

Sam Charles is a criminal justice reporter for the Chicago Tribune covering the Chicago Police Department. He was previously a staff reporter at the Chicago Sun-Times and an investigative producer at WGN-TV. He is a graduate of Columbia College Chicago.

A blurred image from a Chicago police body camera video shows an officer speaking with federal agents after a raid at a South Shore apartment complex on Sept. 30, 2025. Chicago police blurred the video upon releasing videos to the media. (Chicago Police Department)

Chicago police release redacted video of peripheral role in controversial South Shore immigration raid

October 17, 2025 at 5:15 p.m.

Newly released — though heavily redacted — video footage released by Chicago police sheds new light on the arrest of a U.S. citizen the night that federal immigration agents stormed...

Olga Bautista, vice president of the Chicago Board of Education, speaks Oct. 15, 2025, at a news conference at United Workers' Center in response to Immigration and Customs Enforcement's neighborhood raid the day before. (Dominic Di Palermo/Chicago Tribune)

East Side neighborhood leaders decry tear gas response by immigration agents

October 15, 2025 at 5:22 p.m.

Community leaders from the city’s East Side neighborhood gathered Wednesday morning to denounce the actions of federal agents who deployed tear gas canisters on a residential street after a pursuit...

U.S. Border Patrol agents scuffle with community members in the 10500 block of South Avenue M on Oct. 14, 2025. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

Tear gas used by federal immigration agents following East Side traffic crash, neighborhood uprising

October 15, 2025 at 7:35 a.m.

Federal agents deployed multiple canisters of tear gas in a residential block of the East Side neighborhood Tuesday to quell a clash with residents who demanded the enforcement officers leave...

Former Chicago police Cmdr. Jon Burge, center, walks with his attorney, Richard Beuke, after leaving the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse in Chicago on May 6, 2010. Jury selection was beginning in his trial. (José M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune)

Former Mayor Richard M. Daley’s deposition in Burge case stays under wraps

October 8, 2025 at 5:00 a.m.

Sworn testimony from former Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley regarding torture tactics used by detectives working for disgraced Chicago police Cmdr. Jon Burge will remain out of the public view,...

Chicago police arrest Derek Rucker, 37, of Blue Island, on Sept. 30, 2025, at the CTA Loyola Red Line station after he allegedly punched Yara Afaneh in the back of her head. (Yara Afaneh)

Man arrested after allegedly punching Chicago woman as ‘Loop puncher’ videos go viral on social media

October 1, 2025 at 6:56 p.m.

Numerous people claim to have been victims of a “Loop puncher” in posts across social media though it’s unclear how many perpetrators there are.

Kevin Jackson leaves the Leighton Criminal Court Building on Aug. 6, 2025. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

Prosecutors object to certificate of innocence for Kevin Jackson

September 30, 2025 at 3:27 p.m.

The Cook County State’s Attorney’s office has objected to an effort by Kevin Jackson to obtain a certificate of innocence in the case, a move that comes some 20 years...

Anti-violence outreach workers from the Institute for Nonviolence Chicago Travaris "Breezy" Brown, left, and Marcus "Bully" Simpson visit locations on the West Side of Chicago, Sept. 19, 2025. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

With national eye on Chicago violence, mayor’s neighborhood among those still waiting for progress

September 26, 2025 at 5:00 a.m.

Trump's hyperbole on violent crime in Chicago has come during a steep decrease in homicides, but not in the Austin neighborhood of Mayor Brandon Johnson.

Chicago officer charged with using status to buy assault rifle for associate to smuggle to Mexico

September 24, 2025 at 4:18 p.m.

A veteran Chicago police officer has been indicted on federal charges alleging he used his position to purchase an assault rifle and a pistol from area dealers last year and...

A Glock 34 9 mm handgun with an 18-round capacity clip on Jan. 24, 2023, in Minooka. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)

County judge rules city’s lawsuit against Glock can proceed

September 19, 2025 at 3:50 p.m.

A Cook County judge on Thursday denied motions to dismiss a lawsuit brought last year by Chicago against gun manufacturer Glock and several suburban gun stores.

Police Superintendent Larry Snelling delivers an address during a Chicago Police Department Graduation and Promotion Ceremony on July 22, 2025, at Navy Pier. (Dominic Di Palermo/Chicago Tribune)

Top cop says Chicago police still have not been told of federal immigration crackdown plans

September 5, 2025 at 6:26 p.m.

Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling said he still had no information Friday afternoon about a promised sweeping federal immigration crackdown that could potentially bring the National Guard to city streets.

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