Actress’s mother, brother found shot to death
CHICAGO – The mother and brother of Jennifer Hudson were found shot dead Friday at a South Side home, and police were looking for a missing child who is the nephew of the singer and Oscar-winning actress.
A man suspected in the deaths was in custody Friday night, but the 7-year-old boy had not been located, according to reports.
William Balfour was being questioned, but Julian King’s whereabouts were not known, law enforcement sources told the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times. Balfour has not been charged.
Police spokeswoman Monique Bond said investigators were talking to “a number of people in custody” but she declined to elaborate.
An Amber Alert issued Friday said Balfour was a suspect in the double homicide of Darnell Donerson, 57, and Jason Hudson, 29, whose bodies were found Friday in a South Side home.
Jennifer Hudson’s personal publicist, Lisa Kasteler, confirmed the deaths.
“We can confirm that there is an ongoing investigation concerning the deaths of Jennifer Hudson’s mother, Darnell Donerson, and her brother, Jason Hudson,” Kasteler said in a statement.
The deaths appeared to be the result of domestic abuse, Bond said.
Deputy Chief Joseph Patterson said a family member entered the home around 3 p.m. Friday, found a woman shot on the living room floor and left to notify authorities. Responding officers found a man shot in the bedroom, Patterson said. There was no sign of forced entry.
Authorities issued the Amber Alert for King and sought a 1994 white Chevrolet Suburban. The child was the grandson of the female victim, officials said.
The alert said the child was possibly abducted and could be accompanied by Balfour, who was considered armed and dangerous.
Records from the Illinois Department of Corrections show Balfour, 27, is on parole and spent nearly seven years in prison for attempted murder, vehicular hijacking and possessing a stolen vehicle. Public records show one of Balfour’s addresses as the home where Donerson and Jason Hudson were shot.
Hudson won an Academy Award for best supporting actress in 2007 for her role in “Dreamgirls.”