Sounds kinda like somebody who goes bankrupt in the casino business, right? But we're told over and over and over that Toda was "a successful businessman". Let's take a look at one of the rare examples of his supposed business savvy, which is rare because, while SGI tells us that Toda had "ten businesses" or "seventeen businesses", it only identifies TWO - the publishing company that went bankrupt and the failed credit cooperative.
Hmmm...
Anyhow, on to business! This is all from The Human Revolution, Vol. 2, First Edition 1974. First, a bit of a lead-in about the failing publishing company because that's an integral part of the narrative:

When word got out about the condition the company was in, Toda's associates in the publishing field were certain to react in different ways. Some would sympathize, others would laugh, and perhaps some would make derogatory comments about Toda's abilities in business.

Perhaps 😐

But none of this would alter him.

Why not? If you fail at something, shouldn't the thought at least cross your mind that you need to do something different to avoid that outcome again? If you were able to understand why you failed, wouldn't that knowledge help you perhaps make better decisions in the future? Ah, but that would require change, something Ikeda prides himself on never doing, so naturally, his "mentor" would never, either.

Let the publishing firm stop operations, let it go bankrupt, Josei Toda was and would remain a man with a great mission.

See, when people can't focus on their work, they don't tend to do as well. This is one of the dangerous aspects of religious zealotry.

But he would always rise to the top again. That was the kind of man he was, and Yamamoto was certain that some day the whole world would come to understand and respect this great personality. (p. 200)

Made to order in his ghostwritten fictitious novels! But the truth peeks out once in a while from under the sloppy covering of lies. Let's back up a few pages and see what led up to all this.

As one of the initial steps to implement the Dodge Line, all new loans from the Financial Bank for Reconstruction were halted. This dealt industry a crippling blow and caused a panic in financial circles that had immediate repercussions in the offices of Josei Toda's publishing firm.
Reopened after the war primarily to serve as a basis for the rebuilding of the Soka Gakkai

THERE's a big problem right there....

Toda's company, Nihon Shogakkan, had in that sense been a success, largely due to his efficient and able management. But it was already financially shaky when the Dodge Line, by stimulating a tight-money policy in local banks, seriously reduced Toda's operational funds.

Okay - let's pause here. It appears that Toda's supposed "efficient and able management" was all about restarting the Soka Gakkai. What we learn here is that Toda's company is "financially shaky" - it is only surviving thanks to infusions of other people's money in the form of bank loans. His publishing business is NOT profitable, though earlier we were told it was! If the only way you can stay open is by taking out loans on an ongoing basis, you're insolvent.

It is possible that he ought to have acted quickly to reduce business expenses by cutting back on the staff and effecting other emergency methods.

Yes, that would have been consistent with "efficient and able management" IF that "efficient and able management" had been referring to the management of his publishing business.

But he could not because he was fundamentally positive and humane in business. He could not find it in his heart to fire people who had been loyal to him, the company, and Soka Gakkai through very trying times. Perhaps he was not cold-blooded enough to succeed in modern business.

Or perhaps he simply WASN'T capable of "efficient and able management".
But that would mean he wasn't a successful businessman, and the whole rest of the narrative insists that he WAS a successful businessman! None of this is making any narrative sense.

A resourceful man, never at a loss for fresh ideas, especially in times of trouble, Toda gave much thought to his predicament. At last he decided that when money is tight the way to profit is to open a credit association. A small moneylending business would provide the operational funds so badly needed by his publishing firm. As luck would have it, something promising in this line turned up quite soon.

Sense of foreboding...rising...rising...

One morning in June, 1949, Toda received an unexpected visit from Taro Kurikawa, an old acquaintance who had been kind enough to lend office space to Toda when he first reopened the publishing business after the war.

This source stated plainly that Toda bought the whole building at the very beginning. With his own money.

The two men discussed many things, including the Dodge Line and the menacing effect it was having on Toda's business. Kurikawa, who had once been a member of the Tokyo metropolitan assembly, had many friends.

Maybe HE should be the one starting a credit cooperative!😃

When Toda told him of his idea to start a small finance company, Kurikawa listened attentively. Then slapping his thigh, he suddenly said: "I've got it. You're right that in times like these lending money is the only way to survive, and I just got wind of some news that might interest you."

Isn't that a strange way of thinking? That when people don't have any money, the best way to MAKE money is to lend THEM money? How are they going to pay it back if they don't have any money? Isn't that predatory and UGLY?? Like loan-sharking?? DEFINITELY non-Buddhist!

"It's not definite yet, but I hear that an old acquaintance of mine - Toru Oi - is trying to convert his consumers' guild into a credit cooperative. He used to be a high government offical; but he's gotten old, and it would be dangerous for him to assume management of a business."

WHY "dangerous"??

"So far, he is having difficulties changing his guild into a credit company because he can't find the right partner. That's where you come in with your great knack for business."

Ha ha ha.
There it is again.

"What do you think? I'll help too, if you need me. If you're interested, I could call on him today and check the matter out."
Toda knew too much about business to become overly enthusiastic over all offers presented. After thinking a minute he said: "It's not a bad idea, but it wouldn't be so easy to make a success of something like that. To be frank, if someone else had come to me with the plan, I'd have turned it down."

Odd...if he really "knew so much about business".

"Oi is absolutely all right, except for his age. There will be some legal problems, but since the investor will be the same person, they shouldn't amount to much. It's not as if you were starting a new company from scratch; you'll just be changing an old one."

This doesn't sound very good...

From what Kurikawa said, it appeared that the new firm could start operations immediately. Still Toda hesitated: "Are you sure this consumers' guild isn't in danger of going broke? I couldn't afford to take on anything unsound at this stage in the game."

Does anyone know what a "consumers' guild" even is?

"No. It's not making much, but I know for certain that it's not in the red, either," said Kurikawa.

Doth the lady protest too much?

"I'll talk to OI, see what he says, and call you again. Maybe you could arrange a meeting in a few days."
"All right," said Toda. "We can meet first. I'll decide whether to get involved in this after we've met."
A few days later, Toda met Mr. Oi, who explained to him the legal procedures for changing the present status to that of a credit cooperative. He then outlined the running of the company, listed the board of directors, and briefly related their duties. Toda was appalled at the inefficiency with which Oi managed things. But the very challenge of taking on such a company, which was not in fact in desperate financial straits

Methinks the lady doth protest too much!

whetted his appetite for business.

So here we've got someone who knows nothing about this type of business, who considers himself qualified to judge whether it's solvent or not - given that there were not audit provisions or reporting requirements for businesses like there are today. Why couldn't "Oi" have shown him falsified financial statements? Toda would have never known...

Toda accepted the offer of partnership that Oi made and set out immediately to take the necessary legal steps.

Notice that this credit cooperative is originally a partnership but becomes solely Toda's as the narrative goes on. Even though it originally had its own board of directors, who would have stayed in place if this had been a partnership bringing a new partner on board as described. What about them?

...the new company, named the Toko Credit Cooperative, finally opened in the fall. The offices were on the first floor of Toda's Nihon Shogakkan

Remember, that building TODA purchased.

and most of the staff, too, came from the publishing company. (pp. 190-193)

Why would anyone think that people who had worked for a publishing company would know anything about how to run a credit cooperative? The savvy businessperson, when embarking on a new venture, hires the most qualified people that can be found in that type of business! NOT people from church, neighbors, relatives, and that guy he has drinks with at the bar most Thursday nights!

In contrast to the rising trends in Soka Gakkai affairs, the Nihon Shogakkan publishing company pursued a steady downhill course. The tight-money policy, overproduction in the publishing business, and finally, the rebirth of many of the popular magazines that had been discontinued during the war defeated small publishing houses. Toda's magazines, Ruby and Boys' Adventures, had done well at first, even when book sales were dropping.

That's because they were PORN: Take a look.
This is a page from Ruby.

But soon these two periodicals could no longer withstand competition from the big magazines. Ruby failed first, as large numbers of issues were returned unsold each month. Boys' Adventures managed somehow to stay in the black for a while. In August, 1949, Toda changed its name to The Boy of Japan in the hope of attracting buyers, but by autumn unsold copies had reached eighty percent of all issues printed.

Changing the NAME and not the CONTENT to fix a failing publication seems like a BAD business decision to me.

One chilly, cloudy fall morning, Toda assembled his employees in the main office and had Okumura, the accountant, give a full statement of the financial status of the firm. The figures that Okumura read in a dispirited voice left no room for doubt: the company was facing a severe crisis, with a deficit of millions of yen each month.

See? It was only loans from the bank that were keeping the company afloat.

Until that moment, many of these people had not opened their eyes to the true significance of the returned books, the unsold magazines, the unpaid bills, and the complaints about arrears from the printing and paper companies. For one thing, the glow of happiness they had experienced at the wonderfully successful fourth general meeting of Soka Gakkai still lingered.

This should illustrate the danger of mixing religious zealotry with business. Religious zealotry makes people addled.

But more important, no one who worked for Toda could believe that he would not somehow pull them out of any preidcament. While realizing that the company was in trouble they nevertheless continued to trust that Toda would fix it all.

Oh, where, oh where is someone who can STAND UP??

"I have thrown this open to you becasue I trust you and need your suggestions," Toda said, addressing everyone present.
"Those figures must be wrong," came a voice from the back of the room.
"Figures don't lie," retorted Toda. "And Okumura arrived at these figures after long and very careful calculations. Human beings - especially people who lack strength - interpret things the way they want them to be.

"You're weak, you worthless worms!"
Also, preaching.

"When it is convenient, they can convince themselves that black is white. But cold, hard figures can't be treated that way: you can't make a credit out of a debit.

Actually, that is very easy to do! Debits are your assets; credits are your liabilities. You can use your "debits" as a down payment for something; then all you have left are the "credits" for what you are on the hook to pay back! Sheesh. Obviously, these ghostwriters weren't accountants or even Accounting Honors Students!

"Figures do nothing but illuminate the incontrovertible facts, and recognizing them frankly for what they are takes courage. The way a person acts on the basis of these frightening figures shows what kind of stuff he is made of. Facing the facts and using them is what is meant by true human strength."

Ugh. MORE preaching.

The employees believed for a moment that this remark was another one of Toda's introductions to a splendid solution. But from his solemn look and from what he said next they saw that the situation was grave.

That ol' incompetent omniscient narrator again. SUCH terrible writing.

"I'm serious. If any of you have any ideas to offer, please speak up. These figures are not just correct, I suspect they are optimistic. They are still incomplete, for one thing. The number of returned magazines covers only the period ending three months ago. We can be fairly sure that when the rest of the figures are in the picture will be still darker. Since the situation is certain to get worse, we've got to put our minds to it now. Don't misunderstand me; I'm not blaming you. I only want your ideas and opinions."

THIS isn't "leadership". And it isn't the clerks' job to figure out how to save the company. They weren't even aware of the company's desperate situation.

Bewildered by the gloomy outlook of the company and by Toda's complete lack of his usual wit and humor, no one had anything to suggest.
"Well," said Toda, "it's not surprising that you have nothing to say on such short notice. I've been thinking about this for a long time, and I have only one idea. We must stop publishing. It may be that in the near future we can start again, but examining the pluses and minuses has convinced me that we must stop right now. If we do not, we will only be adding to our deficit, no matter how hard we work."
"Of course, I shall expect all of you to do your best in cleaning up the remaining affairs of the publishing company. We'll gradually start thinking about what future steps to take at the proper time. I hope you'll all take this bravely. Try not to be discouraged. Remember that I expect a lot from my disciples. Stopping publication is hard on us, but we won't be causing anyone else any trouble."
As they drifted aimlessly back to their desks, the employees of Nihon Shogakkan were in a state of semishock. The publishing company was going to close down. Toda's words of encouragement

THAT's what passed for "encouragement"??

had little effect. Many of the people thought most seriously about what they would do for a living if the company closed permanently. Still, all of them cared enough about Toda not to betray such feelings by so much as a look, let alone a word.

Because that's the Japanese way.

The news of the cessation of publishing activities came as a deep shock to Shin'ichi Yamamoto. Since joining Toda's firm in January, 1949, he had devoted himself to the magazine Boys' Adventures, which had gained some popularity. In May he had been appointed editor-in-chief of the magazine.

Recall that Ikeda had been employed at a different publishing company before he came to work for Toda.

... A sense of accomplishment and happiness at his promotion inspired Yamamoto to devote all his time to the magazine, of which he was proud. His work brought him into closer contact with many small children.

WHAT??

He watched them fondly as they played pranks, laughed, cried over quarrels, or chewed their pencils as they puzzled over difficult problems in their textbooks. Often he felt an impulse to hold them in his arms. He felt that he would be willing to do anything for them.

What IS this? This is so weird! And remember, once Ikeda had children of his own, he turned into the world's foremost absentee father and deadbeat dad! Is this supposed to gloss over THAT uncomfortable fact?

... Yamamoto's personality and and his ardor for his magazine won him friends among the artists and their families. From time to time, when writers or painters were out of sorts, the charm of Yamamoto's way triumphed over their bad humor and enabled them to finish on time tasks that otherwise might have been late. For the most thorny personal problems, Yamamoto called on the intercession of wives and other family members. He always made a good impression and won the affection and confidence of everyone with whom he came into contact. As he learned the many aspects of his work, day by day Yamamoto found it more interesting and worthwhile. Gradually, as he became proficient in his tasks, his self-confidence grew and fed his aspirations for the future.

Gaaah - my fingers just threw up all over the keyboard. Gimme a minute...

In the fall of 1949, he started working on ambitious plans for a special New Year issue of The Boy of Japan, as the magazine was by then called. Blah blah blah.
Because his hopes were high, the announcement of plans to halt publication came as an especially great blow to Yamamoto. It was almost as if an airplane that he had been piloting had suddenly lost power and started hurtling earthward. He saw with painful clarity that he could do nothing but resign

If only!

himself to the collapse of his beloved boys' magazine.

Yeesh, such overblown, puffy, florid prose. Yeah, we get it - reality sometimes bites. And having to FACE reality can be painful, especially when one has obviously been operating from a position of delusion. But lay off the flowery phrasing a little...

Fortunately, a messenger boy from a printing company came in with the galley proofs of the December issue of the magazine. Remembering what Toda had said about not letting the halt of publications interfere with outstanding business, Yamamoto started thumbing through the pages of proof. As the smell of fresh printer's ink filled his nostrils, Yamamoto quickly became absorbed in his task, aware all the while that perhaps this was the last work he would ever do on the magazine to which he had devoted so much love and care. When he finished his proof, he looked at his watch and saw that he had read through the lunch hour. He was hungry.

Big boy's gotta eat!
Yamamoto started chewing on the proofs.

Deciding to go out for something to eat, he rose and moved toward the front door of the office.

What, they couldn't just write, "He got up and headed out" instead??

As Yamamoto passed the reception area, he caught a glimpse of Toda laughing happily over a game of Japanese chess that he was playing with a frequent visitor to the company.

"What a man!" thought Yamamoto.

There he sat playing a game as if nothing was wrong, when only this morning he had announced that the company was about to collapse. (pp. 194-199)
While the rest of Toda's employees suffered under the paralyzing effects of the bad news, Yamamoto set briskly about his afternoon errands. First, he had to call on an artist to pay for some work. Then he had to pick up the plate for an ink drawing for the December issue of The Boy of Japan.
The artist's house was cold, bleak, and disorderly; but the man had apparently been eagerly awaiting Yamamoto's visit. ...Almost before he was aware of it, Yamamoto was talking about Nichiren Shoshu and the philosophy of Nichiren Daishonin. He did not intend to try and convert the artist.

SUUUURE he didn't...

In fact, he was still not actually talking with that aim in mind. But the painter became very interested. Though he had no knowledge of Buddhism, what Yamamoto told him fired his imagination. Before they parted, the painter said he would like to discuss the matter more fully some other time. Yamamoto, after promising to contact him again soon, went out into the twilight. (pp. 201-202)

...and that's the last we ever hear of this artist/painter! I suspect this vignette was inserted for the sole purpose of making it appear that Ikeda had ever attempted shakubuku, even inadvertently. Because Ikeda has never shakubukued ANYONE! Not ONE of those "world leaders" Ikeda has paid for a photo-op with held DIALOGUES with ever converted... SENSEIFAIL!!

The day the last issue of The Boy of Japan - the December issue - came off the press, the weather was clear and bright outside the Kanda offices of Nihon Shogakkan. Inside, a gloomy silence reigned. As Shin'ichi Yamamoto sat caressingly reading the final product of his work

eeeewwwwwwww

others in the office were whispering among themselves about where they would go to work and what they would do when the company finally collapsed, which it was certain to do within a matter of days.
As a matter of fact, on the very next day, Toda called his staff together to announce the closing of the publishing company and, on a more hopeful note, to explain the nature and policies of the new credit cooperative. All members of the publishing staff who wished to remain were automatically put on the payroll of the credit company as soon as Shogakkan was officially declared closed. Toda had sensed the dissatisfaction and insecurity of his staff members and he held this meeting of explanation in an attempt to calm fears.

Ugh. SUCH awkward writing.

While relating stories of his many years of management experience and the successes and failures he had lived through, he illustrated his points by referring to the basic principles of both communism and capitalism. He explained what a credit cooperative is

We were just told that same information only a few sentences ago...

and went on to relate why he had decided to undertake this kind of enterprise, showing wherein he saw hope for its future development and growth.

Blah blah blah. Lecture, preach, lecture. Ugh.

Yamamoto realized that much of what Toda said was not being sympathetically received by members of the organization who were already planning to quit at the earliest chance.

Why not yesterday? Or right NOW if they truly had such intent?

Nonetheless, he was deeply moved by the speech, especially when Toda concluded with: "All business enterprises are subject to rises and falls. Economics, like all other things, has its own rules, which cannot be ignored. Once those rules are understood, it is effort, enthusiasm, and patience that determine the success or failure of a company.

Wow - pretty OBLIVIOUS to be lecturing/preaching at his staff like this when his OWN company has just failed. No self-awareness at ALL, that Toda!
Meanwhile, Ikeda: "What a man!"

"Hard work is the same in all companies, big and small. As far as my experience teaches, as long as people are not afraid of hard work, even though things may sometimes seem desperate, a way will always be found."
Before adjourning the meeting, Toda instructed Okumura to divide all cash on hand equally and to distribute it among his employees as part of their salaries. None of them ever knew how valuable that money could have been to the firm itself. (p. 203-204)

Another for our #ThatHappened files. The biz is supposedly insolvent, can't pay its bills, is months behind in its bills, yet they have money to pay "an artist" and to hand out as a lovely parting gift for the staff who are just transferring directly over to the new credit cooperative. WHY would he give them the business' money when he'd already given them new jobs to slide right on over into?? Without even a day's loss of pay?? THAT's not competent management.
This is the end of 1949.

What they're also not coming right out and stating plainly is that Toda started up a lending operation, and that he lent money to desperate people as incentive to join his Soka Gakkai.

From around the spring of 1950, the performance of Toda's credit association fell into decline and its business operations were suspended. In August, Toda announced he was stepping down from his position as general director of the Soka Gakkai in order to prevent his business problems from negatively impacting the organization. Source

BOY, THAT ship went down fast! Didn't even make it out of the harbor!

Notice that Ikeda started working for Toda in early 1949. There are reports that Ikeda was involved in collections. Notice that, once Ikeda got involved, Toda became more successful, though it's typically couched in terms of how many more families they convinced to convert. One can only wonder how much of this was because these families were on the hook to Toda because they owed him money. This type of private lending was probably completely unregulated as well - along the lines of the "payday loans" businesses that charge astronomical interest rates and get people caught up in a cycle where they can never pay back their debts and must be constantly borrowing more and more and more. There's a whole "honor code" in Japanese culture that we gaijin have no way of understanding - Japanese people will often go to great lengths and do all sorts of unimaginable stuff just to avoid "losing face" and because they owe someone else. Source

Is it possible that Toda got into one of the prison gangs for a lot of money while he was incarcerated and had to quick pay off some deadly debts? I've seen "Drive" and "Shot Caller" - I know how that works. Pretty quick to drive the credit cooperative straight into the ground, given that he was just a partner AND there was supposed to be a board of directors watching over the operations! Whatever happened to the board and Oi?? See how it's suddenly ALL Toda's?

Okay guys I made a copy of this while entering old case files to be digitized as our small town was kind of late to the digital scene, even though this case is only a few years old but still held on the laptop. As I couldn't make a copy of the actual audio recording I transcribed it, two things that were odd about this, one the date of the file created, was marked three days after the investigation was wrapped up, to see why it is strange read on. There are some other oddities as well. I am not going to give you my name and I changed the names in here because I like my job and want to keep it but still, this was too freaked not to show someone.
Entering into case file 8876543a
Enter Date 07/16/2016
So, before I get into this, my name is Marcus Davidson and I probably deserve what happened, well I know they tell you not to blame yourself but maybe I am to blame. I digress I should probably start from the beginning so you know what I'm talking about. I'm 36 years old, father, and veteran of the United States Army. I did two tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, so let me tell you I don’t frighten easily anymore, when I got home I was in a bad place, a dark place, I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to ever crawl out of that hole. I was prone to blackouts whenever I got too stressed, and ended up hurting someone pretty bad, he pressed charges and I was ordered to get counseling and pay his medical bills, not to mention the lawyer fees that kept me out of jail and off probation, so I sought help.
That’s when the support groups started, the V.A. headshrinker suggested I go to one at this little church every Sunday, was probably the only advice she ever gave that was any good. Sorry, derailed there lets get back on track. So I start going to these meetings, and that’s when I meet her, Anne Stuckey, she was a volunteer who was there helping her sister the therapist who ran the group. She served coffee and donuts, a smile and a nice word to people. She was going to college majoring in psychology I learned after a few meetings, this was actually getting her college credit during the summer. One particularly rough evening I called Tammy, her sister for some advice and Anne picked up.
"Hello, Tammy's phone." She said her voice as upbeat as ever.
"H..hey this is Marcus, Marcus Davidson from the meetings, I..is Tammy there I really need some advice and a kind voice right now." I stuttered into the phone one of my episodes having scrambled my head making talking coherently a concentrated effort.
"Oh, Hey Marcus its Anne, is" she paused seeming to be contemplating if she wanted to continue. "Tammy is in the shower, are" she pulled on the word slightly still in indecision "are you okay?"
I told her what was going on, she to my surprise kept talking to me, speaking to me softly with still a hint of that eternal optimist in her voice though. We talked for forty five minutes (you women take forever in the shower, I swear.) and by the time Tammy handed me the phone I explained what transpired and let her know I was okay, and I'd see her on Sunday. I'd love to say from there we made an instant connection and things went zooming off, but it didn’t, it would be another summer passing before I even had the courage to ask her out it was her senior year in college she was back this time to actually run the group. I missed the first few meetings, as I had since been able to quell that darkness that came back with me, until a buddy of mine let me know she was back. I showed up just at the end and stammered like a fool when I asked her out, I don’t know if she took pity on me because I was acting brain damaged trying to muster the courage to ask her or she had already wanted to but she asked me if I was hungry.
I of course nodded shocked she had actually asked me out. From there things did take off, she went back to school and I rented a small apartment close to her campus so we could still be together, and on her graduation day I got down on one knee and proposed to her and she again to my surprise said yes. Flash forward a few years she has a great career in a small personal practice with two other psychiatrists and I am making a decent salary as head of security for a local casino in town.
You see Anne was slightly bi-polar her entire reason for going to school for what she did so she can learn how to cope and help others as well, but her career came to a halt at least momentarily when we found out she was pregnant. Now we were both adults and sat down and discussed it, we decided she could take a maternity leave for as long as she needed and I would handle bills. Granted that cut into my weed budget, which was the best thing that helped me cope, if you ever go to true war you will learn, it never ever goes away completely from you. But anyhow, she wasn’t too thrilled about having to stop working but the new mother buzz slowly replaced that and she threw herself into her pregnancy, reading all the books, decorating her room, yes it was a girl, and all sorts of weird and even perplexing foods and exercises that were "good for the baby".
I on the other hand picked up extra shifts for overtime at the Casino, which the management approved readily, I was good at my job and since I was promoted, losses form theft and cheaters was down fifteen percent, though that also meant I didn’t get to see Anne as much. "Goodbye Mr. Davidson" she would say to me when I was leaving. I loved coming home to see her sleep though, that raven black hair would shine just right if the moon hit it. Then little Lisa Davidson was born, she was perfect, at least perfect to her mom and dad, her mothers shimmering green eyes, and delicate features, we both loved her from the moment we saw her. Anne decided she was going to take more time than she originally planned which her partners were understanding and told her to take all the time she needed, and I kept working long hours at the Casino.
That's probably why I didn’t notice the change at first, in hindsight I did notice them but just attributed it to different things, like lack of sleep because of the baby, or having to raise her nearly single handedly as I maintained a crazy work schedule to keep us afloat both of us agreeing before she was born that she should have the same life we do not a lesser one. Slowly she did change though, becoming more and more introverted, and less the beam of hope that I fell in love with. Post partum depression is what its called they told me later, we started fighting a lot, nothing physical just yelling at each other for no reason, which then made little Lisa cry which would set both of us off and we would go at it again. This continued for months, until I guess she finally snapped and swung at me, I was so shocked and taken aback that I just stood there dumbfounded looking at her and feeling the blood dripping on my chin from the bloody nose she just gave me.
She saw the blood her eyes widened horrified and she ran and locked herself in Lisa's room, I took a breath and then went to the downstairs bathroom to clean up, noticing the misalignment I knew it was actually broken, she could pack a punch for her tiny frame. So I went to the E.R. and had them set it correctly, giving them some B.S. story about getting in a fight with some drunk guy at the Casino, the staff already knowing me from the few other times I had been in from an unruly patron. They asked if he looked worse and should they expect another patient, I chuckled told them no he sucker punched me and was tossed by my other guys. They shook their heads and sent me on my way with a script for some pain meds. I filled the prescription and headed home, and as I turned the corner to our cul-de-sac I was greeted with two ambulances and a police cruiser in front of my house
. I was out of the car before it had time to stop. My heart sank as a stretcher came out with a body bag that looked empty, that was until I got closer and saw a tiny lump in the middle. I fell to my knees and I am not afraid to admit it, I lost it, I sobbed and keeled uncontrollably, Anne was wheeled out next she was strapped down staring blankly into the sky her lips moving I couldn’t tell what she was saying but I could read lips and I could tell it was the same thing over and over, my tear blurred vision would not let me discern what she was saying. An autopsy revealed that Lisa had been suffocated, and the now catatonic Anne refused to speak to anyone including police. I was labeled a suspect until they found my hospital records which said I was being admitted around the cause of death, the pillow they found had raven black hairs on it, that coupled with the testimony of her friends and co-workers that said she had withdrawn and been acting off lately. One headshrinker actually managed to get through to Anne once with some new age hypnotherapy stuff, he got a single sentence out of her.
"The Darkness got her, I...I couldn't stop it" she whimpered softly
That was the only words they were able to get out in her defense, and they sounded pretty damning with all the other evidence. She was indicted for murder, the trial was swift as it had become a sensation in the news, a broken mother murders her child. The trial of course was just for publicity, anyone with sense knew she was going to the asylum, but with her not speaking the lawyers wanted their fifteen minutes and pleaded insanity. She was admitted to Gilbert Hospital, which was a mental facility that specialized in these kinds of people, you know criminally insane but not needing maximum security. During and shortly after I was bombed by the press, all of them wanting nearly the same thing, it got to where I could predict most of the questions before they asked them before an interview. After she was sentenced and committed the interviews and questions slowly began to stop coming. I was finally left alone about six months after the trial, I know hell of a long time to keep beating a dead horse but apparently the macabre sells nowadays, as sick as it is.
The funeral was the worst, I literally asked most of my boys at the Casino to act as Security to run off press, they were like vultures, can you believe it here I am trying to bury my baby girl and they are snapping pictures everywhere, animals. Anyhow sorry I digress, finally they had left me alone and I came home from my parents where I had been staying, I thought it was time I go back , as I hated being a burden to my parents , even though the place was full of memories now, both the good, and the bad. As I walked through the door a familiar smell hit me and I sighed walking in I couldn’t quite place it at the time but it was so familiar. I sighed and flipped on the television to the news, currently on a commercial airing Christmas specials going on at one chain store or another. Hell of a time for all of this to be going on, the holidays were supposed to be a happy time but for me it would forever be a black mark on my soul. Walking to the fridge to grab a beer, thought about it and opened the small safe we had on top of the fridge and pulled out my weed and pipe and sat at the table breaking some up. As, I finished packing the bowl I pulled out my lighter and took a deep hit, just as I did the reporters face came on with a Breaking News tag.
"This just in, we are going now live to the scene with Tommy Dabbs where some inmates have apparently escaped, Tommy, what can you tell us about the situation." The scene changes to a smiling man, god how do they manage to always look so damn cheery even when giving you bad news.
"Thanks Jan, I'm here at Gilbert Hospital, where five inmates managed a daring escape today, authorities have apprehended four of them already but one is still on the run, the name is not being given out for security but we have a description to look out for, she is female with dark hair approxam..."
He droned on as realization suddenly came crashing down on me, the hospital making me think of Anne again and then it hit me like a Mack truck doing ninety, that smell it was Lavender Bliss some exotic shampoo Anne loved to use, I remember it because her mother asked me what she liked because she was going to take it to her at Gilberts. A shiver ran up my spine as I then heard a creak of the stairs, the wood settling as weight was being applied to it, and knowing that the only stair that creaked was the one closest to the bottom the smell of Lavender Bliss now filling my nostrils as I turned slowly to see Anne's pale visage staring back at me with hollow eyes, I saw nothing but death in those eyes as her once beautiful raven hair now sat a tangled disheveled mess, her mouth twisted into a sadistic grin.
"Hello honey, I'm home." Her entire body seemed to twitch unnaturally, as her grin got even wider giving that pale sunken face an otherworldly look.
I was stunned I couldn’t move paralyzed by fear from the small woman in front of me, she had apparently got out of her inmate garments and put on her favorite white nightgown, I had bought it for her right before we found out she was pregnant with Lisa. She seemed to glide towards me her hips swaying seductively as her eyes never left mine and that grin, god that frightening grin remained on her face. She stopped about three feet in front of me and tilted her head, regarding me for a second.
"What, you didn’t think I would forget about you did you, what you did to me, letting me be locked up in such a place, making me how I am now, it was all because of you my dearest, I am what you see now because of you." She raised a finger slowly pointing it at me.
"Anne, I.." the words were lost to me, I was genuinely frightened now the woman who had not spoke a single word after Lisa's death and since her being admitted was speaking quite freely now, and before I could even blink she was on me. Yelling and screaming scratching and clawing at my face, I snapped out of my trance and threw her off of me running for the back door. I pulled in a panic trying to get away from the monster but the door wouldn’t budge, the deadbolt holding it firmly in place, as I was trying to release the lock she was on me again leaping on my back biting me now and letting out this ear piercing scream as she did. I flung her off my back and she crashed into the counter sending the coffee cups crashing to the ground as I ran to the front door my bare feet getting cut up in the broken glass leaving bloody footprints behind.
I reached the door and pulled but it again didn’t budge the locks being firmly in place. Here's the kicker to this part of the story, I didn’t lock my front door, I only do that once I go to bed. But in my panicked state that did not dawn on me of course, I turned just in time to war off another attack. Running up the stair I b-lined for my room, knowing I had a loaded pistol in my drawer, reaching the top of the stairs she was suddenly in front of me which confused and startled me trying to stop I lost balance falling backwards down the stairs. I tumbled hard hitting the floor with a thud and I heard something crack, my vision dimmed to a narrow point and then just winked out, I felt nothing, but my final visions was of that twisted grin and dead eyes staring down at me her tangled black locks brushing my face.
"Goodbye Mr. Davidson." She whispered in my ear as my vision went black.
Now this is where I started to see that whole life flashing before your eyes, they say its your brain shutting down or CO2 levels being high causing hallucinations, but I tell you I did see it. My younger boring years, my time in the Army, meeting Anne, our marriage, and then good times after. I saw the fight that set this all off, apparently I had black out after Anne had broken my nose because I don’t remember any of this, she opened the door only moments after she shut it and I rushed he driving her back into Lisa's crib. It woke Lisa up and she began screaming, an ear piercing shriek only a child could do when scared out of slumber. In my fading synapse firings I recalled it sounded eerily similar to the shrieks Anne had given off when she attacked me. Well I turned in my fugue state stared at Lisa eyes narrowing as I grabbed a pillow and began to smother her, Anne tried to pull me off but I was too strong, too far gone to be stopped.
She screamed for me to stop as Lisa's cries began to get weaker. Anne slid down helpless in the corner as I walked out of the room, having killed our child in a red haze. That I think is when Anne had actually snapped, not before. The hospital alibi had come up to simple clerical errors, the admitting clerk accidently put the wrong time down putting 11:15 instead of 11:51, a simple typo that normally wouldn’t have mattered not caught, but this one made all the difference. Her words they got out of her in her catatonic state made sense now, during those meetings so long ago when I was deep in my PTSD, I referred to the killer that still lurked deep down, the one that came out during my blackouts, and wanted to just hurt things.
I referred to it as my Darkness, thought it was its own entity for awhile, hell it might still be. Then my final memory came to me, it was Officer Rector, an old Army buddy who had been there for me through the whole ordeal, he was one of the first officers on the scene. He came to me after Anne had been sent to Gilbert Hospital with some news. Apparently Anne, three weeks being incarcerated for a crime she did not commit but could never be proven she did not, piled on with the grief of losing her only child, had taken her own life hanging herself in her room.
Officer Rector found me three days later when my family called him, hanging from the rafters a chair knocked out from under my feet and my laptop open, a video on it playing the events that transpired that fateful night in Lisa's room on a loop. See I had camera's no one knew about not even Anne, I installed myself, and during the media circus I really didn't even think to check the footage, I probably somewhere deep down knew and kept myself from it. It was ruled a suicide from the guilt, of killing my child and letting my wife take the blame ending in her suicide. I was demonized in the media, as the case had been a sensation my apparent suicide had reignited that flame, I was even denied a military burial. Anne's revenge had been swift and complete, I died alone, and afraid probably just as she had, but most of all I died a murderer.
-End File-
Now this is where it ends, like I said the time stamp on the file I got off the laptop was dated three days after the Medical Examiner gave for Marcus’s time of Death, not to mention he also, was correct on which officer had been called to the scene as that day screaming was heard from the home, the caller said it sounded male......and female. So, either the time stamp is messed up and Mr. Davidson had one hell of a guess what would happen, or something else, I think maybe he just wanted his side of the story heard, so I’m letting it be, before my department seals these files away and it gets archived and forgotten.

Sunday:
NORTH:
· 1. Two marine unit deputies injured on Petite Lake when their boat was struck by another driven by a Lindenhurst woman near Fox Lake (Chicago Tribune/Lake County News-Sun)
NORTHWEST:
· 2. Two Buffalo Grove teens born in Israel return to serve in Israeli armed forces (Daily Herald)
· 3. Spring Grove couple killed in car crash on South Solon Road near Spring Grove (Chicago Tribune)
NORTHWEST INDIANA:
· 4. Highland officials await dollar figure on renovation of 70-year-old Town Theatre (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 5. Hebron couple now fighting town over expanded pond; official who gave them permission has been fired (Northwest Indiana Times)
REGIONAL
· 6. Walgreens partners with First Ladies Health Initiative to offer health screenings across Chicago area on Sunday, Sept. 11, including 10 churches in the suburbs (ABC 7)
Monday:
NORTH:
· 7. Round Lake woman arrested for attempting to rob Grayslake credit union (Daily Herald)
· 8. Service dog from Great Lakes Naval Station in North Chicago is finalist in American Hero Dog competition (ABC 7)
· 9. Illinois General Assembly trying to pass bill to deny pension to survivors of anyone convicted of felony related to public service, prompted by Joe Gliniewicz case (Northwest Herald)
WEST:
· 10. Chicago Police: Lombard woman who died after being pulled out of Chicago River committed suicide (CBS 2)
· 11. Cab driver arrested for DUI caught urinating on his own taxi in Cicero (FOX 32)
· 12. Man shot to death, two others injured in Aurora after leaving a child's birthday party (NBC 5)
SOUTHWEST:
· 13. Texas man killed, driver critically injured in single-car crash on I-294 near Hickory Hills (Chicago Tribune)
· 14. Women's soccer star kneels during National Anthem before Chicago Red Stars game at Toyota Park in Bridgeview (WGN TV)
SOUTH:
· 15. Bicyclists shot multiple times in Harvey (Chicago Sun-Times)
· 16. Farmers see threat of damage to harvests because of heavy August rains (Chicago Tribune/Daily Southtown)
NORTHWEST INDIANA:
· 17. Girl dies as result of fire in Lake Station (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 18. Lake County Sheriff's Office's saturation patrols, checkpoint during August net 6 DUIs, 38 drug/warrant arrests, one habitual-traffic violator arrest (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 19. Valparaiso sex offender facing new charge after luring boy to his home, giving the child drugs and alcohol and performing a sex act on him while dressed as a woman (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 20. Proposed Luke Family of Brands headquarters removed from consideration in Hobart; city manager says it's because of a lack of communication (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 21. St. John to apply for matching funds to repave streets; Town Council also agrees to work with Lake County on repaving Calumet Avenue (Northwest Indiana Times)
Tuesday:
NORTH:
· 22. Grayslake puts together $350,000 tax incentive to lure Goose Island pub to its downtown (Daily Herald)
· 23. Granddaughter of Long Grove businesswoman opens branch of her own business across the street from grandmother's former shop (Daily Herald)
· 24. Two Waukegan cell-phone stores robbed over Labor Day weekend, like by same man (Chicago Sun-Times)
· 25. U.S. Rep. Bob Dold (R-Illinois), Democrat Brad Schneider to debate at eight candidate forums across 10th Congressional District (Daily Herald)
NORTHWEST:
· 26. Elgin store robbed at gunpoint (CBS 2)
· 27. Elgin Area Unit School District U-46 puts transgender policy into place, allowing middle-schooler access to locker room of student's identifying gender (Daily Herald)
· 28. Man fleeing from multi-vehicle accident struck and killed on Lake Street in Bartlett (Chicago Tribune/Elgin Courier-News)
· 29. Gunfire reported outside restaurant on Mannheim Road in Des Plaines (Daily Herald)
WEST:
· 30. Elk Grove Village police officer resigns, faced disciplinary action for writing 13 warning tickets between January and April 2016 for stops that never occurred (Daily Herald)
· 31. St. Charles' Arcada Theatre celebrates 90th anniversary (Daily Herald)
· 32. Oak Brook to hire consultant that worked on 2007 Commercial Areas Revitalization Plan to help redevelop McDonald's Corp. headquarters property (Chicago Tribune/The Doings)
· 33. Oak Park middle-school teacher a finalist for Illinois Teacher of the Year (Chicago Tribune/Oak Leaves)
· 34. Kane County coroner, DuKane A.B.A.T.E. team up to figure out why there have been so many motorcycle-related deaths in 2016, come up with preventive measure (Chicago Tribune)
· 35. Bensenville motorcyclist killed in Chicago crash (Chicago Sun-Times)
· 36. Volkswagen subsidiary buys $256 million stake in Lisle-based Navistar (Chicago Sun-Times)
· 37. Fitch Ratings downgrades DuPage County's debt to AA+, citing 'limited revenue flexibility and slow revenue growth prospects' (Crain's Chicago Business)
· 38. Pitbulls euthanized following two separate attacks in Riverside (WBBM AM 780)
SOUTHWEST:
· 39. Millbrook man charged with failure to register his address as a sex offender (Chicago Sun-Times)
· 40. Dallas-based Hillwood real-estate development company starts construction of warehouse in Joliet, even though there no leases have been signed (Crain's Chicago Business)
SOUTH:
· 41. Metra Electric and South Shore Line trains delayed after power problems (ABC 7)
· 42. Indiana-based Franciscan Alliance to remove saints from their names; Chicago Heights facility to be named Franciscan Health Chicago Heights (Chicago Tribune)
· 43. Motorcyclist killed after being struck by pickup truck in Harvey (Chicago Sun-Times)
NORTHWEST INDIANA:
· 44. Valparaiso police investigate armed bank robbery (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 45. Valparaiso-based Bulk Mail Services profiled in book The Disney Way: Harnessing the Management Secrets of Disney in Your Company (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 46. Uncertainty surrounds future of Aéropostale store at Hobart's Southlake Mall (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 47. Munster High graduate Joe Mansueto to step down as CEO of Morningstar investment firm in January (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 48. LaPorte man charged with strangling, beating teen who allegedly provided illegal drugs to his daughter (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 49. Fire at Gary apartment building forces evacuation of 24 units (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 50. Lowell man charged with attempted armed robbery after trying to mug acquaintance (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 51. Lowell woman accused of attempted murder for shooting her husband during domestic spat (Northwest Indiana Times)
REGIONAL
· 52. State law bans future county board members statewide from getting public pensions; stemmed from controversy in McHenry County (Chicago Tribune)
Wednesday:
NORTH:
· 53. PBS's smash hit 'Nature Cat' the creation of Highland Park brothers (Chicago Tribune)
· 54. Driver critically injured after his SUV crosses center line, crashes into oncoming tow truck on Fairfield Road near Wauconda (Chicago Sun-Times)
· 55. Philly G's restaurant in Vernon Hills closes (Daily Herald)
· 56. Gurnee gas station robbed at gunpoint (CBS 2)
· 57. Live-in caregivers accused of defrauding elderly Highland Park man of more than $184,000 (Chicago Tribune/Highland Park News)
· 58. Bittersweet Golf Course employee hospitalized after high winds cause controlled burn to flare up (Daily Herald)
· 59. Island Lake raises fine on boats without village stickers to $50 (Daily Herald)
NORTHWEST:
· 60. Motorcyclist injured in hit-and-run in Lake in the Hills (Daily Herald)
· 61. Progress on Arlington Downs mixed-use development coming slower than Arlington Heights officials expected (Daily Herald)
· 62. O'Hare workers file 80 complaints alleging wage theft against city of Chicago, state of Illinois, various contractors as unionizing push moves ahead (Chicago Tribune)
· 63. Wheeling teen facing multiple charges after breaking into ex-girlfriend's home in Mount Prospect, choking her, threatening another man with a knife (Chicago Sun-Times)
· 64. South Elgin resident plans to fight $50 ticket for flying drone over public park; village intends to report him to the FAA (Daily Herald)
· 65. Portage resident raises concerns about city's lack of dog-impound facilities (Northwest Indiana Times)
WEST:
· 66. Villa Park police investigate reported home invasion (Chicago Sun-Times)
· 67. St. Charles City Council agrees to pay $526,500 to the Greater St. Charles Convention & Visitors Bureau to help attract visitors, money (Daily Herald)
· 68. Naperville recognizes gold-medal Olympic swimmer Kevin Cordes (Daily Herald)
· 69. Aurora man sentenced to 28 years in prison for attempted murder of suspected gang member (CBS 2)
· 70. Countryside-based Cooper's Hawk Winery & Restaurant to open near downtown Oak Park (Crain's Chicago Business)
SOUTHWEST:
· 71. Joliet man sentenced to 60 years in prison for shooting a man to death at a Joliet diner (CBS 2)
· 72. Man charged with stabbing another man during domestic dispute in Plainfield (Chicago Sun-Times)
SOUTH:
· 73. White Dyer man charged with hate crime for allegedly using racial slurs, firing his gun in incident with intoxicated black man in Flossmoor (Chicago Tribune/Daily Southtown)
· 74. Ex-Harvey comptroller found dead in southern Indiana as his connection to shady development deal persists (Chicago Tribune)
NORTHWEST INDIANA:
· 75. Woman dead, child injured as result of Gary house fire (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 76. Man handcuffed, shot in the leg during home invasion disrupted by the return of his girlfriend, four children near Kouts (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 77. Crown Lake Board of Public Works and Safety approves contracts, agreements for work on 109th Avenue (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 78. East Chicago man charged with burglarizing neighboring ice-cream shop (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 79. Lake County Board rolls back requests for pay, other raises for elected officials, voting instead to increase salaries for E-911 dispatchers, county police and jail officers (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 80. Man, woman arrested after using counterfeit $100 bills in separate incidents in Chesterton, Portage (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 81. Whiting police seek armed men who robbed bar on Aug. 31 (Northwest Indiana Times)
REGIONAL
· 82. Elgin, Old Mill Creek, Wauconda residents selected as judges for this year's Westminster Kennel Club show (Daily Herald)
· 83. Law clerk fired for posing as judge at Markham courthouse now has challenger in race to get elected judge (FOX 32)
Thursday:
NORTH:
· 84. Deerfield-based Walgreens Boots Alliance may have to give up more than 500 stores in order to acquire Rite Aid in order to avoid antitrust issues (FOX 32)
· 85. Thunderstorms leave path of destruction, power outages in Fox Lake (Chicago Tribune/Lake County News-Sun)
· 86. Truck carrying scrap steel beams tips over, rattling people and businesses near Waukegan (Chicago Tribune/Lake County News-Sun)
· 87. Palatine man arrested for running meth lab at Grayslake hotel pleads guilty to lesser charge (Daily Herald)
· 88. Pedestrian struck and killed by Metra train in Northbrook (Chicago Tribune/Northbrook Star)
· 89. Beach Park man with outstanding warrant, Kenosha woman with drugs arrested after crashing car into a Waukegan house (Chicago Sun-Times)
· 90. Man shot in Evanston following report of burglary; victim not cooperating with police (Chicago Sun-Times)
· 91. Lake Zurich trustee alleges change to village's development-review process reduces transparency (Daily Herald)
· 92. Real-estate firm places Glencoe as third-most expensive suburb of America's biggest cities (NBC 5)
NORTHWEST:
· 93. Firefighter injured while battling fire in abandoned Elgin warehouse (ABC 7)
· 94. One of the men convicted in Brown's Chicken massacre in Palatine trying to get new trial, claiming one witness implicated him for reward money (WGN TV)
· 95. Dooley's Irish Ale House in West Dundee closes (Daily Herald)
· 96. U.S. Bank forecloses on AT&T's former headquarters campus in Hoffman Estates (Daily Herald)
· 97. Des Plaines has plan to renovate, reopen shuttered Des Plaines Theatre with help from Rivers Casino and concert promoter Ron Onesti (Daily Herald)
· 98. Palatine man acquitted of shooting 15-year-old former friend, ex-friend's father in 2014 (Chicago Tribune)
· 99. Computer-store employee shot, killed would-be robber in Carpentersville (Chicago Tribune/Elgin Courier-News)
· 100. Palatine women who portrayed Wrigley Doublemint Twins in 1980s/1990s commercials to appear on Oprah's 'Where Are They Now?' show (Chicago Tribune)
· 101. Rolling Meadows second-grader left at gas station after she boarded the wrong bus (WGN TV)
WEST:
· 102. Parents angry that Indian Prairie Unit School District 204 in Naperville doesn't have air-conditioning in most of its elementary schools (Chicago Tribune/Naperville Sun)
· 103. Aurora renews liquor license for Latin American Club, where a man was shot to death on Aug. 1 (Chicago Tribune/Aurora Beacon-News)
· 104. Sponsor withdraws proposal for Elk Grove Township library district (Daily Herald)
· 105. Fast-casual chicken restaurant PDQ to open first Midwest location in former Wheaton IHOP (Daily Herald)
· 106. Chicago coffee roaster Sparrow Coffee to open café in Naperville (Crain's Chicago Business)
SOUTHWEST:
· 107. Chicago man charged with sexually assaulting teenage boy at Cermak Woods pool in Lyons (Chicago Sun-Times)
· 108. Joliet-based tax preparer sentenced to 42 months in prison for defrauding state of Illinois of more than $400,000 (Chicago Sun-Times)
SOUTH:
· 109. Teacher at Eisenhower High School in Blue Island disciplined for trying to force student to stand for Pledge of Allegiance (WBBM AM 780)
· 110. Armed gunman robs Frankfort gas station (Chicago Tribune/Daily Southtown)
NORTHWEST INDIANA:
· 111. Valparaiso High School to use Breathalyzer test on students attending football games to make sure they haven't been drinking (Chicago Tribune/Gary Post-Tribune)
· 112. St. John native appears on Logo TV's 'Finding Prince Charming' (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 113. St. John VFW Post 717 to host Sept. 16 fundraiser to help police department raise money for dashboard cameras (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 114. Suspect in Hammond bank robbery at large, listed as armed and dangerous (Northwest Indiana Times)
REGIONAL
· 115. Third suspect in kidnapping of University of Rochester students from Aurora and Northbrook pleads guilty for her part in the plot (Chicago Tribune)
Friday:
NORTH:
· 116. Glenview man charged in Aug. 26 hit-and-run crash in Morton Grove that killed Chicago woman after police were accused of lying about his arrest and he was cleared of marijuana charge (Chicago Tribune)
· 117. Waukegan Park District to acquire Phil's Beach, which appeared in 'The Blue Brothers' and reopen it to the public (Daily Herald)
· 118. 22-year-old Waukegan man jailed after police catch him having sex with 15-year-old girlfriend in back seat of a car (Chicago Tribune/Evanston Review)
· 119. Ingleside man sentenced to 22 years in prison for 2014 vehicular rampage across central Lake County (Chicago Tribune/Lake County News-Sun)
· 120. Skokie police investigate attack on owner, secretary of business by armed intruders; owner's house keys were stolen and home ransacked (Chicago Sun-Times)
· 121. Vacant gas station property turned into newest park in Grayslake after private foundation provides funding (Daily Herald)
NORTHWEST:
· 122. State of Illinois reaches agreement to house state's most-mentally-ill inmates at Elgin Mental Health Center (Chicago Sun-Times)
WEST:
· 123. Water-main break uproots tree, causing it to fall onto westbound lanes of Biesterfield Road in Elk Grove Village (Daily Herald)
· 124. Work set to begin on bike trail between Winfield Mounds and West DuPage Woods forest preserves (Daily Herald)
· 125. Mondelez International moving Enjoy Life Foods from Schiller Park to southern Indiana (Crain's Chicago Business)
SOUTHWEST:
· 126. Oak Lawn veteran using American rose to honor families of fallen soldiers (CBS 2)
· 127. Donors to Markham mayor's campaign give more than $1 million; city has rewarded those donors with city contracts worth $72 million (Chicago Tribune/Daily Southtown)
SOUTH:
· 128. Mokena man charged in two hit-and-run accidents, one involving a pedestrian on 193rd Street in Mokena and one with another vehicle on I-80 near Joliet (Chicago Tribune/Daily Southtown)
· 129. Kankakee Area Metropolitan Enforcement Group destroys 812 cannabis plants found in wooded area near Beecher (Chicago Sun-Times)
NORTHWEST INDIANA:
· 130. Veterans share stories of frustration, heartbreak and financial ruin with U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs at Portage forum (Chicago Tribune/Gary Post-Tribune)
· 131. Expansion of Neighbors' Educational Opportunities (NEO) will mean more room for adult education (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 132. Hobart gets behind study of 73rd Avenue exit off I-65 in Merrillville (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 133. LaPorte County woman killed after pickup she was driving got stuck on tracks and was struck by a freight train in LaPorte (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 134. Michigan City establishes $150 fee for public to obtain copies of police videos (Northwest Indiana Times)
REGIONAL
· 135. Democratic nominee for Cook County State's Attorney takes on consulting job with law firm that has sued Cook County and contributed $18,500 to her campaign (Chicago Tribune)
Saturday:
NORTH:
· 136. Highland Park High graduates' anti-Trump book gets them fired from Recreational Vehicle Industry Association, fires up their Kickstarter (Chicago Tribune/Highland Park News)
· 137. Lake County reports first case of West Nile virus in humans in 2016 (Chicago Sun-Times)
· 138. Evanston alderman raises concerns about how police enforce bicycle-light requirement (WBBM AM 780)
· 139. Police Taser, arrest Vernon Hills man armed with a knife at Stevenson High School football stadium during game (ABC 7)
NORTHWEST:
· 140. Airplane-noise complaints at O'Hare International Airport rise 80 percent during first month of new nighttime flight plan (Chicago Sun-Times)
· 141. Elgin Community College, City of Elgin start off Hispanic Heritage Month with breakfast (Daily Herald)
· 142. Village of Bartlett celebrates 125th anniversary of founding (Daily Herald)
WEST:
· 143. Parents reaction mixed on St. Charles schools' bathroom 'passport' that limits visits to the washroom to three times per quarter (Chicago Tribune/Aurora Beacon-News)
· 144. Suspect in Hillside carjacking dead after jumping from Harlem Avenue overpass onto Eisenhower Expressway (Chicago Tribune)
· 145. Naperville OKs sale of alcohol at two hair salons, but they must meet a list of requirements set out by the city (Daily Herald)
SOUTHWEST:
· 146. Four Detroit men arrested after foiled smash-and-grab robbery at Orland Park jewelry store (Chicago Tribune/Daily Southtown)
· 147. Police search for suspect in Palos Hills sexual assault (CBS 2)
· 148. Channahon woman critically injured after being struck by a vehicle after getting off a party bus stopped in heavy traffic in Matteson (CBS 2)
· 149. Three people injured in head-on crash on 159th Street in Orland Park (CBS 2)
SOUTH:
· 150. OPINION: Voters will have chance to change things at Lincoln-Way High School District 210 in April election (Chicago Tribune/Daily Southtown)
· 151. Indiana man charged with kidnapping, sexual assault of woman who advertised sex for sale on website; incident occurred in Calumet City (Chicago Sun-Times)
NORTHWEST INDIANA:
· 152. Lake County Fairgrounds to play host to 12th annual Hospice Hustle charity cycling event on Sunday, Sept. 18 (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 153. Crash on I-94 near Lake Station's Ripley Street exit ties up traffic (Northwest Indiana Times)
· 154. Hobart landmark restaurant Bright Spot closes (Chicago Tribune/Gary Post-Tribune)
· 155. Painful memories awakened now that man convicted of 1990 abduction/rape/murder is set to be released (Northwest Indiana Times)