Illinois quick hits: Slain officer's gun found; positive West Nile virus case reported

Slain officer's gun found

The search continues for the man accused of murdering Chicago Police Officer Luis Huesca, but prosecutors believe they have found his gun. Twenty-year-old Cashaus Tate, a relative of the suspect, allegedly tried to throw Huesca’s gun over a fence when police showed up looking for his brother. He remains in custody on burglary charges.

Positive West Nile virus case reported

The Illinois Department of Public Health is reporting the first bird to test positive for West Nile virus in Illinois this year. The specimen was collected by the Douglas County Health Department on April 2 in Villa Grove. West Nile virus is transmitted through the bite of a mosquito that has picked up the virus by feeding on an infected bird. Last year, 67 Illinois counties reported a West Nile virus positive mosquito batch, bird, horse, and/or human case, up from 44 counties in 2022. Last year, there were 119 human cases of West Nile virus and six deaths reported in Illinois.

Best places to live

Several Illinois cities made the list of the Top 100 Best Places to Live in the U.S. The newest ranking comes from the website Livability. They used an algorithm that takes into account each city’s cost of living, housing, amenities, environment and safety. The Illinois cities that made the list were Naperville, Evanston, Bloomington, Peoria and Champaign. According to the study, the best place to live in the country is Carmel, Indiana.