Oct 30, 2008 10:15 pm US/Central
Source: Hudson's Nephew Likely Killed In SUV
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
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Police located what they believe to be the murder weapon used in the murders of actress Jennifer Hudson's family.
CBS
Chicago police detectives think the 7-year-old nephew of actress Jennifer Hudson was alive when he left the house where his uncle and grandmother were killed last week and likely was shot in the SUV where his body was later found, a police official said Thursday.
The police official, speaking on condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to discuss the case publicly, would not elaborate on when detectives think they boy might have died.
Police spokeswoman Monique Bond said she could not comment about the official's statements.
Chicago Police Superintendent Jody Weis on Thursday confirmed Jennifer Hudson's mother, brother and nephew were killed by a .45-caliber handgun -- the same type that was found Wednesday in a West Side lot -- CBS station WBBM-TV in Chicago's Derrick Blakley reports.
"We have a weapon, it's the same caliber, but there's no reason to expect that to be the real weapon," Weis said. "We have to wait until forensics are in … Unfortunately, that takes a little bit of time."
The pistol turned up just one block from where the body of Hudson's nephew, 7-year-old Julian King, was discovered Monday inside a white SUV that police had sought.
Hudson's mother and brother, Darnell Donerson and Jason Hudson, were found shot to death inside Donerson's Englewood home Friday. Police have named Hudson's brother-in-law, William Balfour, as a suspect in the murders. He's locked up in Stateville Prison on a parole violation.
Even though neighbors heard gunshots in the morning, the bodies of Donerson and Hudson remained inside the home for hours before being discovered. The white SUV with King's body inside sat for days before neighbors reported it. Weis said those delays don't seem to have hampered the probe.
"It's always frustrating when we don't get information as quickly as we can," he said. "I always ask citizens to just call. Even if it's a false alarm, we don't mind."
Funeral arrangements were announced for all three victims. A service is scheduled for 9 a.m. Monday at Apostolic Church of God at 63rd and Dorchester. It is private, for family and invited guests only. A public memorial service also was being planned.
Meanwhile, a makeshift memorial of stuffed animals, balloons and crosses outside the Donerson home grows on a daily basis and now stretches two city lots. It draws all types of people, many of whom never met family members.
"That's a kid, man -- Who'd want to kill a kid?" one visitor said.
As beautiful as the memorial is, it's also in a neighborhood coping with violence. As a series of gunshots rang out not far from the memorial site Thursday night, the crowd cleared out and police guarding the scene were forced to run and investigate the trouble elsewhere.
Also Thursday, Jennifer Hudson and her sister, Julia Hudson, the mother of the slain 7-year-old, established a foundation to benefit families of murder victims. Here is the contact information for the new charity:
Hudson-King Foundation
c/o Abrams Garfinkel Margolis Bergson, LLP
Attention: William L. Abrams, Esq.
237 W. 35th St. 4th Floor
New York, NY 10001
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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