HOW IT STARTED: Meet the 29-year-old mayor making Illinois history and inspiring the next generation of leaders. “Darren Bryant, 29, was sworn in as the mayor of Robbins, located just outside Chicago, on May 11, making him not only the youngest African American mayor to hold office in the Cook County village, but the entire state of Illinois.”

How it’s going: More Chicago teens released without charges after killing. “Back in February, in the town of Robbins, southwest of Chicago, three teenagers stole a KIA and took off in a high-speed chase. They wound up crashing the stolen vehicle into a car being driven by 70-year-old Donald Carter. Carter was killed in the crash. An investigation was launched (sort of) and questions were raised about how it was being handled. Now, months later, the teenagers have all been released and no charges have been filed against them. David Carter’s family is apoplectic, as you might imagine. And the more details that we learn about the entire incident, specifically the involvement of Robbins Mayor Darren Bryant, the more it smells like something is really rotten in that town.”