A Carpentersville man is accused of befriending a 16-year-old girl on Snapchat, sexually abusing her in the parking lot of an Algonquin business and then telling her, “You earned yourself some food,” a McHenry County judge said in denying his pretrial release.

Algonquin will be getting help from the state to fund its multimillion-dollar renovations to Willoughby Farms Park.

Woodstock officials will wait until June to take up the issue of a proposed gravel pit near Lily Pond and McConnell roads.

McHenry County College and community partners held a pop-up job fair to connect laid-off Brake Parts workers with companies who have dozens of positions to fill.

McHenry sophomore Robbie Rosenbaum qualified for the championship finals in both of his events at the IHSA Boys Swimming State Championships, while Marian Central senior Antonio Aguirre also advanced to Day 2 in two events.

Richmond-Burton's Luke Robinson hit a 3-pointer in the closing seconds against Johnsburg, but the Skyhawks ran out the clock and held on to beat the Rockets 56-53 and win their first regional title since 2019.

John Morgan came off the bench to score 12 points, including two 3-pointers in the fourth quarter, and Crystal Lake South's boys basketball team rallied from 16 down to beat Cary-Grove 59-50 for its fourth regional title in a row.

Adam Anwar and Nathan Ottaway each finished in double figures for McHenry, which was unable to keep pace with Waukegan during the team's 67-36 loss to the Bulldogs in the IHSA Class 4A regional boys basketball final at Jacobs.

Seven McHenry County athletes, including four from Hampshire, qualified for the semifinal round of the IHSA girls wrestling individual state tournament. In the boys dual team state finals, Marian Central lost to Providence in the Class 2A quarterfinals.

Members of two households have been displaced after a fire damaged their homes and a detached garage Friday afternoon in Holiday Hills.

A Trout Valley man who pleaded guilty to one count of possessing images of child sex abuse was sentenced to three years of felony probation and ordered to register as a sex offender.

A Crystal Lake man has pleaded guilty to aggravated reckless driving in a head-on crash that seriously injured two people and occurred when he was 18.

After a year on Green Street, The Pieceful Project in McHenry is closing; it's next door neighbor Bumble Bread Co says it has grown in the past year.

McHenry County is facing a lawsuit over the County Board’s denial of a pair of solar farms.

Johnsburg's historic season came to an end Thursday night with a 57-38 loss to St. Edward in the Class 2A Johnsburg Sectional championship. The Skyhawks finished the season at 34-1.

Emma Peterson posted 15 points and 15 rebounds as the Geneva girls basketball team dominated on the glass, overcoming 18 points from Crystal Lake South's Laken LePage to knock off the Gators 43-33 in the IHSA Class 3A sectional final at Crystal Lake Central.

A man was charged after a search of a Lake in the Hills residence that prompted a brief shelter-in-place order Thursday.

Starting Sunday, people who use the McHenry County MCRide dial-a-ride service will have a different fare structure, and MCRide Connect subsidized rideshare service riders will pay a little more for their trip.

Jett pressed on the need for additional TIF districts and road construction his annual State of the City address, part of the McHenry Area Chamber of Commerce's annual luncheon.

Two people were hospitalized with critical injuries after their car collided with a semi tractor trailer on Interstate 90 at the Route 47 interchange early Thursday.

A beloved Crystal Lake sushi and Asian cuisine restaurant will permanently close next week, leaving Cary as its sole location.

As Shaw Media celebrates its 175th anniversary, we looked back at four front pages from February 26

Dancing Queen: An ABBA Salute will be at The Vixen in McHenry on Saturday, Feb. 28.

An arrest warrant has been issued for a former Lake in the Hills woman who is accused of threatening to harm McHenry County State’s Attorney Randi Freese, court records show.

Here is the 2025-26 All-Fox Valley Conference boys wrestling team, as voted on by FVC coaches.

A short video purporting to show President Donald Trump praising Republican congressional candidate Charlie Kim of Aurora has been removed from the Kim campaign’s Facebook page.

Will McHenry County crown its first state champion? How many girls are competing at state for the first time? Which schools have the most representation? Here are key IHSA state girls wrestling storylines to watch.

The owner of a Richmond equestrian training center – detained in McHenry County jail on charges including sexual assault of a minor – is on “interim suspension” from the US Equestrian Federation, where he has been a judge.

Developers are looking to finish out a townhome development in downtown Crystal Lake that has been on pause for over 30 years.

Fox Valley Conference rivals Cary-Grove and Crystal Lake South will meet in a Class 3A regional final after both teams won their semifinal games handily Wednesday night. C-G beat Marmion 78-55 and South topped Crystal Lake Central 69-32 on its home court.

Jace Nelson converted a clutch late-game layup as Richmond-Burton outlasted Timothy Christian, while Jayce Schmitt went off for 29 points in Johnsburg's win over North Boone during the Class 2A Johnsburg Regional semifinals on Wednesday.

A deck fire was quickly extinguished before spreading to a home late Wednesday morning in Cary, and officials warn residents to regularly check outdoor electrical wiring.

A fire engulfed several high-ticket items near McHenry Wednesday that required an extra engine.

Johnsburg sophomore Summer Toussaint earned Kishwaukee River Conference Girls Basketball Player of the Year honors. Check out the full All-KRC team here, as selected by coaches.

The Northwest Herald received a Top 10 award this week at the national Associated Press Sports Editors competition for work published throughout 2025. Shaw Media’s Michal Dwojak, Joe Aguilar and Joshua Welge won the award for event coverage of the Bears game with the Packers.

A McHenry man is accused of starving and not providing medical treatment to multiple pit bulls, court records show.

Summer Toussaint scored 24 points and Johnsburg's girls basketball team kept its perfect season intact with a 57-30 win over Marshall in a semifinal of the Class 2A Johnsburg Sectional on Tuesday night.

Crystal Lake South held off Sycamore 47-41, tying the school record for wins in a season, and Geneva cruised to a 55-28 win over Boylan to keep its turnaround season going strong at the Class 3A Crystal Lake Central Sectional semifinals Tuesday.

Aubrina Adamik and Evie Freundt each finished in double figures, while Avery Suess gave Huntley a spark off the bench as the girls basketball team's season ended with a 42-37 loss to Libertyville in the IHSA Class 4A sectional semifinals at Guilford.

Cary School District 26 announced its new superintendent, who will be starting this summer after a months-long, nationwide search to replace Brandon White.

If you want to know what will be on your ballot in the March 17 primary and where to go vote in McHenry County, that information is now available online.

Three people are displaced after a fire destroyed a single-story home Monday evening in Huntley, officials report.

Hampshire freshman Stella Piazza won the 115-pound title at the Hampshire Regional and advanced to this weekend's IHSA Girls Wrestling Individual State Tournament. Piazza is the Northwest Herald Athlete of the Week.

The chair of the McHenry County College board, who also runs a community health care center in Crystal Lake, will be a guest of U.S. Rep. Bill Foster at President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address Tuesday.

The McHenry County Coroner’s Office identified a man who was found along Route 176 in the Prairie Grove area Saturday.

Eli Loeding had 22 points, including a highlight-reel dunk, and 12 rebounds, and Prairie Ridge's boys basketball team defeated Illinois Math and Science Academy 52-45 Monday night in a play-in game of the Class 3A Burlington Central Regional.

A man pleaded guilty Thursday to burglarizing a vehicle in McHenry “with intent to commit a theft” and was sentenced to six years in prison.

A winning Lucky Day Lotto ticket with a $1.15 million prize was purchased at a Harvard-area convenience store over the weekend.

The McHenry County Coroner’s Office has identified a man whose remains were pulled from Wonder Lake Saturday.

Three girls were injured and a 13-year-old boy was petitioned to juvenile court stemming from a dispute that escalated into a physical altercation in Algonquin tunnel, police said.