University of Illinois College of Law Professor Andrew Leipold joins the Steve Cochran Show to discuss cash bail ending September 18th, the measures judges will take to ensure that dangerous offenders remain behind bars, and how cash bail ending will benefit residents of Illinois.
‘There will be a climate migration.’ -Meteorologist Paul Douglas weighs in on why millions worldwide are battling record-breaking heat
Meteorologist Paul Douglas joins the Steve Cochran Show to discuss the difference between weather and climate, what you can do to curb climate control, and climate migration.
Author of ‘Easy Money: Cryptocurrency, Casino Capitalism, and the Golden Age of Fraud’ Ben McKenzie unravels the flawed world of cryptocurrency
Author of Easy Money: Cryptocurrency, Casino Capitalism, and the Golden Age of Fraud Ben McKenzie joins the Steve Cochran Show to discuss his transition from the acting world to the economics community and the flawed world of digital currency.
John Howell’s Essential Cuts (07/18) – Should We Write Off Ron DeSantis Just Yet?
• Rick Pearson, the Chicago Tribune’s Chief Political Reporter, joins John to discuss the Netroots Nation conference.
• Ed Kilgore, longtime political observer and columnist, says we, perhaps, shouldn’t write off Ron DeSantis just yet.
• Steve Bernas, President and CEO of the BBB of Chicago and Northern Illinois, has the latest on Artificial Intelligence scams and more.
• Plus, Alex Stone talks about the heat wave hitting the nation and breaking records in Phoenix.
Madigan is Back in the Headlines
A federal judge just dismissed the Madigan-related bribery charges against ComEd in Illinois. Madigan’s not quite in the clear, though, as he’s due to face corruption charges at trial next year. Jon Seidel of the Chicago Sun-Times joins John Howell to clear up what this means for the IL Dems’ disgraced former leader, Chicagoland’s electricity provider, and everyone caught in the middle.
Trump’s Legal Battles Continue
In the face of a classified documents case, defamation lawsuits, and tax inquiries, Trump’s mountain of legal battles grew taller after he was informed that he is the target in a probe of efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Now, experts and the public await what happens next. ABC News Los Angeles’ Legal Analyst Royal Oakes joins John Howell to break it down.
The Illinois Supreme Court rules the cash bail provision in the SAFE-T act is constitutional
The state Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld the constitutionality of a state law ending cash bail and ordered implementation in mid-September, giving Illinois one of the more expansive bail overhauls nationally.
The 5-2 ruling overturns a Kankakee County judge’s opinion in December that the law violated the constitution’s provision that “all persons shall be bailable by sufficient sureties.”
Supreme Court Chief Justice Mary Ann Theis delivered the court’s opinion, saying that the constitution “does not mandate that monetary bail is the only means to ensure criminal defendants appear for trials or the only means to protect the public.”
The General Assembly dominated by Democrats approved the plan in January 2021 as part of an expansive overhaul of the state’s criminal justice system known as the SAFE-T Act. It followed the police-involved murders of George Floyd in Minnesota the previous spring.
Proponents of eliminating cash bail describe it as a penalty on poverty, suggesting that the wealthy can pay their way out of jail to await trial while those in economic distress have to sit it out behind bars.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker, on a trade mission to the United Kingdom, hailed a “transition to a more equitable and just Illinois.”
“We can now move forward with historic reform to ensure pre-trial detainment is determined by the danger an individual poses to the community instead of by their ability to pay their way out of jail,” Pritzker said in a statement.
The Kankakee County judge’s ruling did not block implementation of the law, set to take effect on Jan. 1, 2023. The ruling sent the issue directly to the Supreme Court, which stopped its implementation while promising a quick resolution.
In her opinion of the case, known as Rowe v. Raoul, Theis ordered that the halt on the law be lifted 60 days after Tuesday’s opinion, on Sept. 18, 2023.
“Our constitution creates a balance between the individual rights of defendants and the individual rights of crimes victims,” Theis wrote. “The act’s pretrail release provisions set forth procedures commensurate with that balance.”
New Jersey essentially eliminated cash bail in 2014, replacing it with a risk assessment process which gauged the potential danger to the community a defendant posed if released. In Illinois, judges have the same discretion in multiple instances that involve violent or other serious crimes.
Justice David K. Overstreet dissented, arguing that the law violates the constitution’s Crime Victims Bill of Rights, which voters added in 2014. He said it gives victims the right “to have their safety and the safety of their family, considered in denying or fixing the amount of bail.” Changing that requires voter approval, not just legislative fiat.
In spring 2020, the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Pretrial Practices strongly endorsed bail reform, noting that found that a defendant who can’t afford bail sees his or her life unravel within days — loss of a job, loss of child custody, health problems without access to medication.
What’s more, the commission found that it tends to generate spurious plea deals. Defendants reason that pleading to a lower-level offense gets them out of jail sooner.
Critics have argued that bail is a time-honored way to ensure defendants released from jail show up for court proceedings. They have warned that violent criminals will be released pending trial, giving them license to commit other crimes. But Democrats have relented and added numerous violent crimes that would still be subject to cash bail.
Joining Theis in her opinion were Justices P. Scott Neville Jr., Joy V. Cunningham and Elizabeth M. Rochford. Justice Mary K. O’Brien specially concurred with her own opinion.
Justice Lisa Holder White joined Overstreet in his dissent.
COPA Can’t Find Alleged Victim
(CHICAGO) — Leaders of the city’s Civilian Office of Police Accountability say they have been unable to identify any victim in their investigation of allegations that at least one officer engaged in a sexual act with a migrant at the 10th district police station. But since the investigation began, COPA says another allegation has surfaced, this time at the 19th district station. The identity of the officer and alleged victim in the second case is also not known.
Most of the details contained in the original complaint remain out of public view and it’s still not clear if any officers have been stripped of their powers.
Last week, Fraternal Order of Police President John Catanzara called the allegations “BS.”
“From the jump we had pretty strong suspicions it was an anonymous complaint that was BS and I can just give you two simple caveats on why we know this is true,” Catanzara told The Steve Cochran Show on WLS-AM. “Number one, there’s never been a case report generated for the actual crime that’s been implied. That tells me, one, it’s suspicious at best. What tells me it’s BS is that no officer has been relieved of their police powers, what, two week’s plus now and counting? And if that had any iota of truth, COPA and the superintendent would have moved to remove police powers and sent an officer to desk duty somewhere else.”
Copyright 2023 WLS News
Cash Bail to be Eliminated, Court Rules
(Springfield, IL) — The Illinois Supreme Court has upheld a state law eliminating cash bail.
The states high court ruled today that eliminating cash bail for defendants awaiting trial does not violate the state Constitution.
The 5-2 decision along party lines comes more than four months after the high court heard arguments in the case when a coalition of state’s attorneys argued that the legislature overstepped its authority in approving the law.
The ruling means judges and other court staff will shift how they handle cases. Courts now have 60 days to prepare for the new rules, with cash bail to be eliminated on September 18.
Copyright 2023 WLS News
FAA Investigates After Debris Falls from Plane
(CHICAGO) — Parts from an aircraft landing at O’Hare International Airport were found in a Chicago yard Monday, authorities said.
The United Airlines Boeing 767 arriving from Switzerland landed safely, but maintenance workers discovered the plane was missing an emergency evacuation slide, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
The slide was found in a yard in the 4700 block of North Chester Avenue about 12:15 p.m. and the residents reported it, according to Chicago police.
No injuries were reported, and the FAA is investigating.
© Copyright 2023 Sun-Times Media, LLC. All rights reserved.
New smoking cessation drug trials show promise for individuals aiming to quit smoking
Northwestern Medicine Chief Medical Officer Dr. Kevin Most joins the Steve Cochran Show to discuss a new smoking cessation drug that may be hitting the market soon, the new over-the-counter birth control that may be available as soon as 2024, and the potential long-term health implications associated with Ozempic usage.
Dr. Kevin Most’s Show Notes:
Over-the-counter oral contraceptive pill FDA approved.
- On Thursday the FDA approved the first OTC birth control pill.
- Drastic change? There are 100 other countries that already have this in place, so we are lagging not cutting edge
- The drug named Opill has been safely used for years across the world
- The medication is expected to be available in January and will not have an age restriction
- Will be interesting to see the pricing and if insurance companies will cover the cost.
- The medication is sometimes called a “mini pill” it has progestin, it suppresses ovulation
- The FDA voted unanimously that the benefits outweigh the risks
- There is obviously the political as well as religious concerns
- It is not uncommon for a drug to go from prescription to OTC (Aleve, Nexium, Pepcid, Zyrtec)
Drug for smoking cessation does well in clinical trial
- Smoking cessation has always been a difficult thing to accomplish
- Many things have been tried- nicotine patch, nicotine gum, antidepressants, acupuncture, hypnosis- most with little or no success
- Currently a Phase 3 study on a drug historically known as Cytisine being done at Mass General
- Results out in JAMA recently are very positive- effective and well tolerated
- Cytisine is a natural plant based compound that binds to the nicotine receptors in the brain that slow the urge to smoke
- This is better than the slow decline in nicotine replacement
- This was done at 17 sites with over 800 participants with the end goal being total stopping of smoking for a 4 week period
- Individuals in the trial noted a rapid and sustained decline in the craving and smoking urges in the first month
- Over the long term it continued to show great success at the 6 month mark
- Well tolerated with low rates of side effects
Drug information-
- Drugs have a patent life where no generics can be made and a company has the exclusive rights to produce and sell the drug
- The patent life for a drug is 20 years from the date the patent was submitted, however there are extensions for antibiotics, some pediatric drugs, orphan drugs
- The patent does not mean that a company has 20 years of sales without a competitor as some of these drugs will take 10-15 years to go thru the trails necessary for approval
- There are 51 drugs coming off patent in 2023 including billion dollar drugs used to treat diabetes, depression, arthritis, ADHD
- If you are taking a brand name drug and want to see when it will come off patent Pharsight is a great resource
Drug shortages- safety lapses- razor thin margins- tough competition
- Drug shortages in the US are at the highest level in 9 years
- Medications currently in short supply include Chemotherapy drugs, ADHD drugs and antibiotics
- Drug shortages are not where a drug is out 100% it is where the current supply exceeds the current need
- Chemotherapy shortages are the most detrimental as patients are on specific medications with specific dosing and alternates are not easy to find if even possible
- Chemotherapy in those cases is delayed, or lower doses are given
- Currently close to 2 dozen chemotherapy drugs and in shortage status
- Why is it occurring? Multi factorial – a factory in India, Intas Pharmaceuticals , that made about one half of Chemo used in the US, had quality issues and was shut down by the FDA last December, other companies did not step up and fill that void
- This has forced the FDA to allow for some chemo drugs to be imported from China
- Information on demand is not easy to get as drug companies often want to keep that private to minimize competition
- 90% of prescriptions are for generic medications- the goal is to keep prices down- encourage sufficient supplies – ensure the meds are safe and effective in generic format
- Those 3 goals are difficult to hit all at once the 3 pull at each other.
- Margin on generic drugs is small as companies had a race to the bottom as they tried to gain market share. Continuing to lower the price to knock out competitor but also shrinking margins
- Covid, inflation and work force shortages have impacted many generic drug manufacturers
- No perfect solution
Medicare to finally negotiate pricing on medications- good or bad?
- We are all waiting to see the list of drugs that federal officials will target as they pen negotiations on pricing later this year.
- The new law, part of the Inflation Reduction Act, allowing for Medicare to negotiate on drug prices goes into effect in September of this year
- For the past 30 years this negotiation was not allowed by law
- The first round will focus on 10 drugs that are selected for being the most expensive with high use.
- The list is not yet decided on but a few expected include Embrel- for arthritis, Xarelto- a blood thinner, Januvia- a diabetes medication
- The price difference in different companies is ridiculous. An example- Xarelto the blood thinner, in the US a years prescription costs $6,240. While in Canada it cost just above $1,000
- Now, don’t expect any quick changes, the negotiations are scheduled for 2024 and 2025, with the negotiated price change going into effect Jan 1, 2026, however one drug has been impacted with Insulin having a $35 / month cap for Medicare patients that is now in effect.
John Howell’s Essential Cuts (07/17) – The Security Risks of Unfilled Posts & The Cost of Two Strikes
• Ike Ejiochi has the details on Secretary Blinken’s latest warning on the risks to National security created by unfilled State Department posts.
• Gregory Royal Pratt from the Chicago Tribune discusses the Chicago watchdog report on Ald. Jim Gardiner’s violations of the city ethics code.
• Jason Nathanson runs the numbers on the cost of a double strike in Hollywood.
• Plus, a caller shares his opinion of Chris Christie, and Rachel cannot stop raving about the new “Mission Impossible” movie.
Mauled by Hype Surrounding ‘The Bear’
It’s all everyone’s been talking about since it dropped on Hulu, but Chicago-based food writer John Kessler joins Big John Howell to tell us just how accurate ‘The Bear’ really is. According to Kessler, anyone who’s ever worked in a restaurant will relate to something in the show.
At What Age Should Rock Stars Slow Down?
Chicagoan and Ides of March singer Jim Peterik collapsed in Des Plaines over the weekend. He’s expected to be OK, but why’d he go down? Ron Onesti, CEO and President of Onesti Entertainment Group, joins John Howell to share an insider’s point of view.
A young boy remains hospitalized after being thrown from a carnival ride in Antioch
A ten year old boy remains hospitalized after he was thrown from a carnival ride at the Taste of Antioch on Sunday. Carnival rides were shut down after the boy was thrown from his seat and seriously injured, authorities said.
The boy was riding Moby Dick, which locks people in at the shoulders and then goes up and down as speed increases. The boy was thrown as the ride was moving.
“The carnival was packed, and so a lot of people experienced seeing it,” said Charles Smith, operations commander at the Antioch police department. “It’s a traumatic event for our community.”
The boy was in critical condition when taken to a hospital, WLS-TV reported, though his condition Monday wasn’t immediately known.
Mayor Scott Gartner shut down rides at Taste of Antioch after the boy was injured.
There have been other incidents on summer rides this year. On July 2, eight people were trapped upside down on a roller coaster at a festival in Crandon, Wisconsin. A large crack was discovered in the support column of Fury 325, a towering roller coaster at Carowinds, an amusement park in Charlotte, North Carolina on June 30.
James Zagel, Judge in Blago Case, Dies
(CHICAGO) — U.S. District Judge James Zagel, who oversaw famous cases, including the corruption trial of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, died Saturday after a long illness. He was 82.
Judge Zagel presided over thousands of cases during his nearly 30-year career on the bench and also kept busy outside the courtroom. He played a judge in the 1989 film “Music Box” and wrote a novel about a federal judge who robs the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.
“Jim Zagel was a Renaissance man — a lover of the arts, music and literature,” Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer, chief judge of the Northern District of Illinois, said in a written statement announcing Judge Zagel’s death.
She said it was clear why Zagel played a judge in the movie.
“Anyone who knew him could see why: He looked the part, and he truly inhabited the role, reflecting the best of the third branch in his wisdom, common sense and dry wit,” Pallmeyer said.
Judge Zagel was born in Chicago in 1941. As a child, he walked to Bears games at Wrigley Field from his family’s Lakeview apartment, according to a court biography. He played tennis at the University of Chicago, where he received a master’s degree in philosophy in 1962.
After Judge Zagel graduated from Harvard Law School in 1965, he became an assistant Cook County state’s attorney.
Later, as a federal judge, he presided over numerous high-profile cases.
In 2011, Judge Zagel handed Blagojevich a stunning 14-year prison sentence for his attempt to sell an appointment to fill the U.S. Senate seat of then-President-elect Barack Obama. He told the former governor, “The fabric of Illinois is torn and disfigured and not easily or quickly repaired.”
Blagojevich appealed and was given a new sentencing hearing. But Judge Zagel left Blagojevich’s daughters in tears when he again sentenced the former governor to 14 years in 2016.
Judge Zagel also oversaw the landmark Operation Family Secrets trial of the Chicago Outfit that led to the convictions of Chicago mobsters Joseph “Joey the Clown” Lombardo and Frank Calabrese Sr. In 2009, Judge Zagel found Calabrese Sr. responsible for 13 murders and sentenced him to life in prison.
He presided over the trials of Cook County Undersheriff James Dvorak and the Rev. Jesse Jackson’s half-brother, Noah Robinson.
In 1966, Judge Zagel was on the prosecution team for the case against Richard Speck, accused of murdering eight student nurses at a Chicago apartment. “The Speck case put Zagel at the forefront of forensic science and psychology,” the court said in its obituary.
One of the more unusual turns in Judge Zagel’s career was when he wrote a novel, “Money to Burn.” In the book, a federal judge plans and robs the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.
When the book was released in 2002, Judge Zagel told the Chicago Sun-Times why he turned to writing crime fiction: “Throughout my life, I’ve been on every side of the law except the wrong one. I’ve been a prosecutor. I’ve investigated cases. I’ve been a police chief. I’ve been a trial judge. The one thing I’ve never done is commit a crime.
“If you see this stuff come before you day after day after day, you sometimes wonder what it would be like. Not so much what would lead somebody to do it but what would it be like. And since I’m unwilling to commit a crime, the only way to find out basically was to write a book like this.”
Judge Zagel also served in Gov. James Thompson’s administration, first in 1979 as director of the Illinois Department of Revenue, and as director of the Illinois State Police, where he was responsible for the investigation of the still-unsolved Tylenol murders.
Judge Zagel left the Illinois State Police in 1987 when he was appointed to the federal bench by President Ronald Reagan. He stepped down from his full-time role in 2016 when he assumed senior status as a judge in the Northern District of Illinois.
He is survived by his wife of 44 years, Margaret Maxwell Zagel.
© Copyright 2023 Sun-Times Media, LLC. All rights reserved.
SAG-AFTRA Joins the Writers On Strike
Marked by a fiery announcement from President Fran Drescher, SAG-AFTRA has officially gone on strike. It’s the largest such demonstration from the actors’ union in decades, so John Howell is joined by ABC’s Entertainment Correspondent Jason Nathanson to explain what this means for the industry and what it will take for our favorite shows to come back.
Columbus Statues Can Provoke a Lot of Discourse
A tweet many feel is insensitive from a North Side Alderwoman has sparked outrage between her, an Italian American action group, and a much smaller Italian American action group. Shia Kapos, author of POLITICO’s Illinois Playbook, joins John Howell to help him answer these questions: should Ald. Rodriguez-Sanchez be censured, and if so, will she be?
The Race for the Big Bucks Has Begun
Minimum donor amounts, a divided GOP, and a crowded primary has led to a fascinating fundraising race on the right. Still, Trump’s $35 million raised is less than half of what’s in Biden’s campaign wallet. Why is this? Andy Field from ABC News Washington joins John Howell to break down the numbers and what we might expect as the election draws nearer.
K-9 Officer killed as the fallen dog in northwest Indiana chased an aggravated battery and criminal recklessness suspect
A man has been arrested after Falco, the K-9 officer was shot to death in northwest Indiana Thursday afternoon, July 13.
The Gary Police Department says the shooting happened on Thursday during a foot chase just before 2:00 p.m. CST. This coming moments after the dog’s handler, 17-year veteran Corporal Angel Lozano, tried to pull over a suspect wanted for aggravated battery and criminal recklessness.
“That subject fired a hand gun at Falco and his handler striking Falco and ultimately ending his life,” Gary Police Chief, Anthony Titus, says.
Police share the suspect opened fire in a backyard near East 35th Court and Tennessee Street.
The officer involved in the foot pursuit was not injured, and a 29-year-old man was taken into custody.
Neighbors told ABC7 they heard the shots from inside their homes.
“The guy was basically shooting like he was walking down the sidewalk like it was Fourth of July all over again,” Mark Brooks Jr. who lives near the incident says.
In his tenure, the K-9 officer Falco apprehended 1,000 violent offenders and found multiple missing children and endangered adults.
Three finalists selected to be Chicago’s next police superintendent
The Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability announced the finalists it is recommending to Mayor Johnson to be Chicago’s next superintendent. The finalists are Counterterrorism Chief Larry Snelling, Constitutional Policing Chief Angel Novales and the only outsider, Shon Barnes, the Madison, Wisconsin police chief who, worked at COPA for a year. Johnson now has 30 days to choose one of the finalists or reject all three, which would force the commission to start over.
Inside NU’s Managing Editor David Gold talks alleged Northwestern hazing and the future of Northwestern’s football season
Managing Editor of Inside NU David Gold joins Ramblin’ Ray on the Big 89 to discuss how long the alleged Northwestern hazing has been going on, any concerns they may have had about publishing as student journalists, and the possibility of Northwestern’s participation in the upcoming football season.
The iconic voice of the Midwest Farmer Max Armstrong announces retirement
Chicago radio legend Max Armstrong joins Ramblin’ Ray on the Big 89 to talk about his illustrious broadcasting journey, if Illinois is in a drought, and the anticipated release date of his upcoming book.
Chicago Fire Games Are On Fire This Season
If you thought Chicago Fire FC games were fun, team President Dave Baldwin shares how upcoming games will exceed your expectations. He joins Andrea Darlas, in for John Howell, to share some of the promotions that will be run during the rest of the season for Chicago’s soccer team. Plus, they discuss some of the new perks added for season ticket holders.
The “Dog Days of Summer” with Goddess and Grocer and PAWS
Emma Watson from Goddess and Grocer joins Andrea Darlas, in for John Howell. Watson shares the latest on their fundraising partnership with PAWS Chicago, one of the largest no-kill shelters in the area. Until July 11th, Goddess and Grocer is featuring special menu items and drinks, with portions of each sale going to PAWS.
