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Jan. 24, 2021
Attorney General William Tong joined a bipartisan coalition of 23 attorneys general led by Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden in calling on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to ban menthol cigarettes. In a letter submitted today, the coalition asserts that a ban on menthol cigarettes would benefit public health overall, decrease youth smoking, and help mitigate the harm these products bring to minority populations.
Subscribe The FDA must act immediately to ban menthol cigarettes. The scientific research shows that menthol is a starting point for youth who begin smoking and become addicted and that these products disproportionately affect communities of color, Attorney General Tong said. We are supportive of the proposals in the Connecticut General Assembly to ban the sale of these products in-state and a federal ban would save thousands of lives and improve public health outcomes across the nation.
UpdatedWed, Jan 27, 2021 at 10:48 am CT
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The Illinois Attorney General wants menthol cigarettes banned. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
CHICAGO Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and his Idaho counterpart Lawrence Wasden led a group of 23 attorneys general in calling on Monday for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to ban menthol cigarettes. The group submitted a letter to the FDA indicating a ban would improve public health, decrease youth smoking and reduce the harm the product does to minority populations. Even though cigarette use has decreased over the years, menthol-flavored cigarettes continue to attract and addict new smokers particularly youth and minority smokers, Raoul said in a statement. The FDA s own data underscores the need to ban menthol cigarettes, which could save thousands of lives and support state efforts to combat youth smoking.
ROCKFORD A portion of a more than 760-page criminal justice reform bill approved by the General Assembly would expand the powers of the state to decertify police officers for misconduct.
Until now, a police officer had to be convicted of a felony or certain misdemeanors, such as offering a bribe, prostitution or criminal sex abuse, to lose certification needed to practice law enforcement in Illinois.
If the bill is signed into law by Gov. JB Pritzker, that would change starting in 2022 by providing the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board with expanded powers to weed out bad cops if a review panel finds there was misconduct without requiring a conviction.
Despite calls for an expedited process and threats of withholding funds from the Chicago Archdiocese, Cardinal Blase Cupich says that he is committed to a full and thorough investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct made against Fr. Michael Pfleger, who remains on leave pending the outcome of that investigation. Cupich spoke to NBC 5’s Mary Ann Ahern on Monday, discussing…