CHICAGO (WLS) — The year 2024 began with our area’s biggest New Year’s Eve party!
Cheryl Scott and Terrell Brown teaming up for another spectacular dance performance for “Countdown Chicago.” They played secret agents on a mission to stop an A.I. robot takeover of the city.
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The new year also led to new action in multiple suburbs to address the growing migrant crisis. Several communities adopted rules to regulate buses dropping off migrants.
Later on in January, Joliet was rocked by a horrific murder spree. Eight people were killed at three separate homes. The suspect taking his own life after a manhunt that led police to Texas.
It was another record-breaking year for the Great Chicago Blood Drive. ABC7 proudly partnered with the American Red Cross for the 10th annual event. And thanks to our generous donors, we collected more than 2,800 units of blood.
In February, a tornado outbreak swept through the Chicago, damaging buildings and bringing down power lines and trees.
February also marked the start of a major story that’s still unfolding now in the south suburbs. Village trustees in Dolton formally asked for a federal investigation into embattled Mayor Tiffany Henyard.
Also happening in February, the trial began for the man charged with killing Chicago Police Officer Ella French. A jury would later find Emonte Morgan guilty of her murder.
The primary election was held in March, and the most-watched race was for the Democratic nomination for Cook County state’s attorney. Eileen O’Neill Burke won over Clayton Harris III.
Chicago also experienced its first measles case in five years. The number of cases continued to rise and led to a weeks-long outbreak that prompted a state response.
At the end of March, there was a stabbing rampage in Rockford. Four people were killed, including a postal worker and a teenage girl, and seven others were hurt.
In April, millions looked to the sky to witness the solar eclipse. We had live reports from across our region, as huge crowds gathered to experience the rare phenomenon from the path of totality – or close to it.
There was an arrest in the death of CPD Officer Luis Huesca, who was shot and killed on his way home from a shift.
April also saw a big announcement from the Chicago Bears. The team unveiled its proposal for a new lakefront stadium.
Then in May, cicadas were all the buzz! The bugs invaded Illinois during an incredibly rare double emergence.
Protests against the Israel-Hamas war continued on college campuses here and around the country. Students camped out for days, demanding a cease-fire in Gaza.
In June, former longtime Chicago Alderman Ed Burke was sentenced to two years in prison in his federal corruption case.
And later that month, Chicago’s Pride Parade drew huge crowds, with thousands of people lining the streets on the city’s North Side.
In July of 2024, NASCAR took over the streets of downtown for the second installment of the Chicago Street Race.
In the second half of 2024, the city council finally approved a budget plan and the White Sox secured the worst record in modern baseball history.
A global IT outage brought the world to a grinding halt, causing widespread disruption at airports, banks, and hospitals. The outage would later be blamed on a faulty software update. Here are your compensation rights if you were stranded or delayed by CrowdStrike technology outage.
Also in July, President Joe Biden announced he was withdrawing from the presidential race.
That same month, the Republican National Convention was held in Milwaukee, and on the final night, Donald Trump officially accepted his party’s nomination for president.
Then in August, all eyes were on Chicago for the Democratic National Convention. Huge crowds were inside the United Center, large protests took place outside, and the week ended with Vice President Kamala Harris making history, as she became her party’s presidential nominee.
Also that month, Chicago held the Air and Water Show and the Bud Billiken Parade, bringing people to the lakefront and to Bronzeville on the same weekend.
Later in August, the bodies of six hostages, including Israeli-American Hersh Goldberg-Polin, were discovered in Gaza. Hersh had been held hostage by Hamas since the October 7th attack on Israel.
In September, there was a second assassination attempt on Trump, following an earlier attempt in July.
There was also a quadruple murder on board a CTA train. All four victims were gunned down while they were sleeping.
The White Sox made history by losing their 121st game of the season. They became the team with the worst record ever in modern baseball history.
In October, the federal corruption trial of former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan began, and that trial is still underway today.
Then in November, Trump defeated Harris to win a second term in the White House. The biggest race locally was for Cook County state’s attorney, with Democratic nominee Eileen O’Neill Burke winning the election.
Also that month, Chicago police lost another one of their own. CPD Officer Enrique Martinez was shot and killed during a traffic stop.
There was a stunning reversal in the Jussie Smollett case. Nearly three years after the actor was found guilty of lying about being the victim of a hate crime, the Illinois Supreme Court overturned his conviction.
We kicked off the holiday season as November came to a close. The Wintrust Magnificent Mile Lights Festival, the Millennium Park tree lighting, and other fun festivities spread cheer throughout the month of December.
And after a weeks-long back-and-forth with the Chicago City Council, Mayor Brandon Johnson finally got a budget plan approved, without a property tax increase.
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