Bennett Haeberle - Reporter

AN HONOR and AN UPDATE:

I'm excited to announce that our investigative series "Lessons in Betrayal" earned a National Headliner Award.

Our reporting uncovered allegations of s*xual misconduct and boundary violations at one Chicago public high school. As a result, the nation's fourth largest school district enacted a series of policy changes to better protect students and recent graduates. One of the survivors we profiled was awarded a $17.5 million legal settlement with the district.

This was reporting that effectuated change and it wouldn't have been possible without the tremendous work of my colleagues Lisa Capitanini and Nathan Halder and the newsroom at NBC 5 Chicago.

It was important work.

And it is with mixed emotions that I announce that my time at NBC Chicago, WMAQ-TV has ended.

I'm proud of the work we accomplished and excited to explore all future opportunities.

I've been so encouraged by the conversations I've had already with so many of you. Thank you. I look forward to connecting with more of you on this platform and beyond.

And a big congrats to all the winners for your hard work:

https://www.headlinerawards.org/2026/04/27/2026-national-headliner-awards-winners-announced/

The numbers have skyrocketed: with 70,000 people in ICE custody, the number of habeas petitions filed in court challenging the arrest and indefinite detention of immigrants has reached historic levels.

It is believed to be among the largest s*x abuse settlements in Illinois history.

Tomorrow, the Chicago Board of Education is expected to vote on whether to approve a $17.5 million settlement for a former student who was s*xually abused by a former school administrator.

An NBC Chicago investigation earlier this year found the former administrator, Brian Crowder, is one of seven former educators who had been fired or resigned from Little Village Lawndale High School since 2017 while under investigation for s*xual misconduct.

He is the only one to have been criminally charged and convicted.

The former student, now in her 20s, sued Chicago Public Schools last year over the abuse. And she shared her story with NBC Chicago earlier this year as part of our "Lessons in Betrayal" series.

A link to tonight's report is in the comments: