Boy dies after being pushed off Navy Pier, shots fired at CPD facility and more in your Chicago news roundup

Today’s update is a 5-minute read that will brief you on the day’s biggest stories.

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Josiah Brown, 3, died days after he was pushed into Lake Michigan off of Navy Pier.

Family members grew alarmed when Josiah Brown and his aunt went missing from the family’s Des Plaines home Sept. 19.

Provided

Good afternoon. Here’s the latest news you need to know in Chicago. It’s about a 5-minute read that will brief you on today’s biggest stories.

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Top story

Toddler whose aunt is accused of pushing him into Lake Michigan dies

A 3-year-old boy who was pushed into Lake Michigan off Navy Pier has died, according to the medical examiner’s office.

Josiah Brown, 3, was pronounced dead at 10:16 a.m. yesterday, the Cook County medical examiner’s office said.

Authorities say Josiah was pushed into Lake Michigan on Sept. 19 by his aunt Victoria Moreno. Moreno then stood by as he sank below the water, where divers found him about 30 minutes later, Cook County prosecutors said. The boy was rushed to Lurie Children’s Hospital in critical condition.

Moreno was denied bail at her court hearing despite defense arguments that she suffers from mental health issues. Moreno, 34, is charged with attempted first-degree murder and aggravated battery to a child.

Moreno initially told responding officers that she was only a witness, then claimed she was holding the boy’s shirt and let go because he “was acting up,” according to a police report and a source with knowledge of the investigation.

Read the full story here.

More news you need

  1. A person was shot by police earlier today inside a Chicago Police Department facility in North Lawndale, a source says. Here’s more on this story as it develops.
  2. Chicago police this morning released surveillance photos of a man and a woman wanted for beating and robbing a man on a Red Line train over the weekend. Read the full story here.
  3. Our Pulse of the Heartland series continues today with a focus on voters from Waukegan, who told our Mitchell Armentrout they want public officials to take a holistic approach to the problems facing their lakefront city. Armentrout has more from suburban voters here.
  4. Chicago’s La Salle Street, a distinguished corridor suffering from high commercial vacancies, could be energized by using TIF money to convert some classic buildings to residential use, city officials said today. David Roeder has more on the “invitation for proposals” to move the corridor away from a “monoculture” of offices.
  5. Local bird watchers have their fingers crossed that piping plover Imani will return to Montrose Beach and find a mate next summer after he spent this season alone, Nicky Andrews writes. For now, Imani will head south while bird-loving Chicagoans hope the piping plover – an endangered species – heads back to his beach home next summer.
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A bright one

20 trails where Chicago-area hikers can enjoy nature, peace before winter sets in

It’s not “purple mountains majesty” for hiking, Jason King knows. But Illinois, Indiana and southern Wisconsin offer trails that are free, close, not congested, and they offer a solace and beauty all their own.

“I love Illinois,” says King, who teaches geography at Moraine Valley Community College in Palos Hills. “I’ve lived here all my life. If you like simplicity, if you like the feel of the wind blowing through the trees … there’s no place better.”

Cyclists ride through an outdoor trail as sunlight pours through trees.

The Palos Trail System is dear to hikers and also popular with mountain bikers.

Jason Lindsey/Illinois Office of Tourism

One of his favorite solo hikes to “get the world behind me” is near Gary, in the little-used western part of Indiana Dunes National Park. The Paul H. Douglas center is closed for now, but the namesake trail winds through Miller Woods and across the Grand Calumet River. It was named for the late U.S. senator from Illinois, who helped make the Dunes a national park. It’s a moderately challenging three and a half miles out and back, partly through sand dunes, so it’s a workout.

“It’s a truly unique trail,” King says. “I can’t think of another where, in a couple of miles, you’ll see a forest, you’ll see a marsh, you’ll see a unique biome called a black oak savannah, then the dunes, and finally you’re at the shore of Lake Michigan.”

There are many such gems within three hours of Chicago that aren’t as urban as the North Branch River Trail or as crowded as Starved Rock State Park in Utica. The joys of fall hiking include leaves changing colors, fewer mosquitos and ticks and cooler weather.

Check out the full list of recommended outdoor trails from WBEZ.

From the press box

Your daily question ☕

How confident are you in Justin Fields as the Bears’ long-term QB? Tell us why.

Send us an email at newsletters@suntimes.com and we might feature your answer in the next Afternoon Edition.

On Friday, we asked you: As we enter another season amid the pandemic, how has your approach to COVID-19 changed since 2020? Here’s what some of you said...

“It hasn’t. I am still cautious. I have my vaccines. I am retired so it’s much easier for me. I can see who I want and avoid strangers. Going to concerts is my only concern. I can’t stay away from the music. Knock on wood I haven’t gotten it yet.” — Bobette Staley

“My approach hasn’t change I still wear my mask everyday.” — Traci Hill

“Seriously? I don’t wear a mask unless a doctor’s office insists. If you wear one, I won’t judge you. Just came back from Great Britain and no one wears one except maybe a couple American tourists. If I’m sick, sure I’ll wear a mask. Btw, I’m all boostered and had COVID in 2020. But masks now are a rarity.” — Charlie Stewart

“My life hasn’t changed at all, I’ve never worn a mask, I just stay away from people that look like they have a flu, there’s still morons that wear their mask even when they’re driving alone in their car, some people are just afraid to live, not me.” — Roy Hillard Locke

Thanks for reading the Chicago Sun-Times Afternoon Edition. Got a story you think we missed? Email us here.

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