Tagged: Illinois

Updated at 11:05 a.m. with statement from Ill. Governor Pat Quinn.

Updated at 10:10 with statement from Ill. Attorney General Lisa Madigan.

Former Illinois comptroller Dawn Clark Netsch has died at age 86.

Netsch's former chief of staff and longtime friend Wendy Cohen says Netsch died early Tuesday. The Democrat announced in January that she had been diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease, a fatal nerve disorder.

The full U.S. appeals court for the 7th Circuit will not reconsider its ruling that Illinois' ban on the concealed carry of weapons is unconstitutional.

Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan had asked all 11 judges to hear the case. Today's decision by six of those judges allows the earlier 2-1 ruling to stand. One judge, Michael Kanne, did not participate in the petition for a full court hearing.

It's the start of Illinois' new legislative session, and Governor Pat Quinn laid out, yesterday, what he wants lawmakers to accomplish.  

In his fifth state of the state address since becoming governor, Quinn laid out a wide-ranging agenda which includes letting same-sex couples get married, raising the minimum wage, and prohibiting the sale of assault weapons.

Host Don Marsh talked with Illinois Public Radio/WUIS statehouse bureau chief Amanda Vinicky about the speech and politics in Illinois.