Temperatures are expected to dip considerably overnight Wednesday and into Thursday, with a frost advisory in effect for swaths of the area.

According to the National Weather Service, that advisory will go into effect at midnight and run through mid-morning Thursday in DeKalb, LaSalle, Grundy and Kankakee counties.

Temperatures are expected to hover around the freezing mark in those counties, which could produce frost that could harm sensitive outdoor vegetation, according to the alert.

Residents are advised to cover sensitive plants, or to bring them indoors if possible.

Thursday is expected to be a mostly sunny day, but cool temperatures are still expected, with high temperatures in the low-to-mid 50s across the area, according to the NBC 5 Storm Team.

While temperatures are expected to remain above the freezing mark on Wednesday night and into Thursday in communities closer to Chicago, virtually the entire area could be at risk of frost Thursday night and into Friday, according to forecast models. Temperatures in outlying areas away from the urban heat island could even see lows in the upper-200s, which could result in a freeze, according to the National Weather Service.

Areas closer to Chicago could still see frost overnight into Friday morning before a small warming trend takes hold.

After another day in the low-to-mid 50s Friday, Saturday’s readings could be warmer, potentially approaching 60 degrees during the day. Conditions will still be on the cool side overnight, but lows will likely be in the upper-30s or low-40s, according to forecast models.

Late Sunday, a round of showers could arrive in the area and stick around until Monday morning, with the accompanying front potentially causing temps to drop back into the mid-to-upper 5s across the area. More rain could arrive Tuesday, and that system could stick around through Wednesday, producing rain and cloudy skies in the region.

While the Halloween forecast is still being evaluated, there is a chance readings could be in the upper-50s for trick-or-treaters, with partly-to-mostly cloudy skies in the forecast for the big night.

Stay tuned to the NBC 5 Storm Team for all the latest weather news and forecasts, and download the NBC Chicago app for real-time weather alerts sent directly to your phone.

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Fifteen months after Sonya Massey, a Black woman who had called 911 for help, was killed in her home, the former police officer who fired the fatal shot is set to go on trial.

Sean Grayson, 31, a former deputy for the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Department in central Illinois, has pleaded not guilty to three counts of first-degree murder.

The trial was scheduled to begin Wednesday with opening statements. If convicted of murder, Grayson faces a sentence of 45 years to life in prison. Prosecutors dismissed single counts of aggravated battery with a firearm and official misconduct.

On July 6, 2024, Massey, a 36-year-old single mother of two teenagers who struggled with mental health issues, called emergency responders over a suspected prowler. When Grayson, who is white, and another deputy entered her Springfield home to report finding no one, Grayson noticed a pan of hot water on the stove and ordered it removed.

According to body-camera video that is certain to play a key role in the trial, Grayson and Massey joked about how the deputy backed away as she moved the pan before Massey said, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.” Grayson later told sheriff’s investigators he thought Massey’s statement meant she intended to kill him, yelled at her to drop the pot and in the subsequent commotion, fired three shots, striking her just below the eye.

The incident has prompted continued questions about U.S. law enforcement shootings of Black people in their homes and generated a change in Illinois law requiring fuller transparency on the background of candidates for law enforcement jobs.

A jury of 10 women and five men, including three alternates, will hear testimony that’s predicted to end next week. The questioning of prospective jurors on Monday by Sangamon County State’s Attorney John Milhiser and defense attorney Daniel Fultz focused on attitudes toward law enforcement during a volatile time in America.

Witnesses scheduled to testify for both the state and defense are reported to be experts in police training, generally accepted police practices, use of force, body camera video, use of video in investigations and the review of incidents involving the use of force.

The national attention the case has garnered prompted Sangamon County Circuit Judge Ryan Cadagin to move the trial from Springfield to Peoria, 167 miles (269 kilometers) southwest of Chicago.

When it comes to fall colors, Illinois stretches the season longer than most states, with colors starting in northern Illinois in late September and peaking in the south well into November.

Each year, websites like SmokyMountains.com publish a fall foliage prediction map that shows stages such as patchy, partial, near-peak, peak, and past-peak across the country. While the map is focused primarily on the eastern U.S. and regions like the Smoky Mountains, it also provides a helpful nationwide context and visual timeline for seasonal leaf change.

Here’s what the fall color timeline looks like across Illinois.

Northern Illinois: Late September to mid-October

If you live near Chicago, Rockford, or the Galena area, you’ll see the first hints of color before the rest of the state. Leaves in northern Illinois usually begin to change by the third or fourth week of September.

The peak display arrives around the second or third week of October. Popular spots include Starved Rock State Park, Matthiessen State Park, Rock Cut State Park, and the Great River Road, which runs along the Mississippi.

Central Illinois: Early to Late October

In the heart of the state, from Springfield to Peoria and Champaign, trees hold their green a little longer. Color typically starts to appear in the first half of October.

By the middle to late part of the month, central Illinois hits its stride.

City parks, forest preserves, and stretches of rural highway all light up. Spots such as Allerton Park near Monticello and the Sangamon River Valley as reliable fall color destinations.