Man, 51, charged with killing woman during '09 burglary

A 51-year-old prison inmate has been charged with murder in the killing of a 57-year-old woman during a 2009 break-in.
George Patterson, of the 1400 block of South Canal Street, faces one count of murder in the August 9, 2009 killing of Iris Ambrose in her home. Patterson was ordered held without bail in a hearing midday today before Criminal Court Judge Adam Bourgeois Jr.
Patterson, who is currently serving time for a retail theft, is accused of fatally beating and strangling Ambrose during a pre-dawn robbery in the 6800 block of South Marshfield Avenue.
Someone Ambrose knew borrowed her car the night before she was found dead. About 2:30 a.m. or 3 a.m. on Aug. 9, the witness received a phone call from Ambrose, who left a voice mail asking when the car would be returned.
When the witness returned to Ambrose's house, they found the front gate and the home's front door open, and found Ambrose on her couch, injured. The witness called 911.
Although police have said they believed the home-invasion was meant to be a burglary, Ambrose's jewelry and purse were not taken. Following an autopsy, the Cook County medical examiner's office determined Ambrose died from strangulation, but also found she also suffered head wounds, bite marks on her tongue and abrasions to her neck.
DNA evidence gathered from under Ambrose's fingernails identified Ambrose. Area South Cold Case detectives identified Patterson as the suspect in Ambrose's killing using the DNA evidence.
Patterson has nine prior felony convictions. At the time of the slaying, he was on parole in a 2009 retail theft case. He currently is serving an 18-month sentence for a 2012 retail theft case

Man dead, another wounded in Englewood

Someone walked up to a man standing outside a food mart and shot him in the head in Englewood about 8:20 p.m. Tuesday night.
Police said the shooter ran south and shot a 23-year-old man in the hip in the same block before fleeing south and firing at police who were stopped and talking to people on the street. 
 The 23-year-old was taken to St. Bernard Hospital and Healthcare Center and his condition had been stabilized.
The shootings happened on the 7100 block of South Vincennes Avenue at about 8:20 p.m.
The man was pronounced dead at the scene.

20-year-old man shot in Englewood

About 5:11 p.m., a 20-year-old man was shot in the finger in the 6000 block of South Carpenter Street in the Englewood neighborhood. The man was in good condition at St. Bernard Hospital and Healthcare Center

23-year-old man shot in Englewood

About 4:30 a.m., a 23-year-old man was shot in the buttocks as he stood on the sidewalk in the 5700 block of South Laflin Street in the Englewood neighborhood on the South Side. Police said the man was in serious condition at John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County.

Cops search for hit-and-run driver in fatal accident

Police were searching for the hit-and-run driver of a van that struck and killed a 65-year-old man in the Englewood neighborhood Thursday afternoon.
The hit-and-run accident happened at 4:40 p.m. on the 1000 block of West 59th Street.
The van was traveling eastbound on 59th Street when it struck Jeffrey Bond of the 5800 block of South Carpenter Avenue.
Bond was taken to John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County where he was pronounced dead at 5:23 p.m.
The van, which continued driving east on 59th, struck Bond as he stepped out onto the street near a bus stop. The van is described as being either maroon or brown and fled from the scene.

Dad was drunk and had pot in system in crash that killed daughter, 8

Eight-year-old Lauren Jessica Smith a 3rd grader was looking forward to opening the presents, especially a karaoke machine, as she returned from a Christmas Eve family dinner in the south suburbs. She was riding with her father, headed for her grandmother's house, when their car struck a curb and crashed into a tree in the 1000 block of West Garfield Boulevard around 11:15 p.m. Tuesday.
The car came to rest on the passenger side on the grassy median, authorities said.  Lauren was found dead inside the car and her father, 26, was taken in critical condition to Stroger Hospital, where his condition was stabilized.
Firefighters spent about 40 minutes working to free the father, then they continued to search the crushed car and found the young girl trapped inside, officials said.  Firefighters freed Lauren in 20 minutes, but their efforts to save her life were unsuccessful.

Marshals corner carjacking/murder suspect in McDonald's drive-thru

A suspect in a string of weekend carjackings, including one that ended in a crash that killed an 11-year-old boy, was arrested this morning after U.S. marshals in SUVs pinned him in at a McDonald's drive-thru in Milwaukee.
Rockie Douglas, 34, was waiting for food at the McDonald's on the northwest side of the city when deputy marshals pulled in front and back of him around 11:30 a.m., according to Ed Farrell, supervisory inspector of the task force. A woman in the car with him was not injured
We developed information that he was on the north side of (Milwaukee)," Farrell said. "We were able to pin him in the drive-thru and keep him from fleeing again."
Douglas was spotted still driving the blue Honda Accord he had carjacked on the ramp from Interstate Highway 294 to the Reagan Memorial Tollway to escape police over the weekend, authorities said. He was taken to the Milwaukee County Jail to await extradition to Chicago
Douglas had been sought since Saturday when, driving a stolen car, he barreled into a Chevrolet Suburban and killed 11-year-old Donovan Turnage on the South Side. Donovan, his brother and their father were out getting haircuts for the holiday
 Douglas embarked on a carjacking spree around 11:20 a.m. Friday on the North Side, when he forced a woman out of a green Dodge minivan at a gas station along West Irving Park Road.
About noon on Saturday, officers responded to a 911 call of a suspicious vehicle at 51st and Halsted streets in the Back of the Yards neighborhood, another police source said. When officers identified the vehicle as the one that had been carjacked the day before, they tried to approach it but the driver sped away.
Police pursued the vehicle south on Halsted until at Garfield Boulevard it crashed into the Chevrolet Suburban carrying the Turnage family.
The suspect then raced away on foot and, authorities allege, carjacked another vehicle, a Toyota SUV, at a nearby gas station. While driving the SUV, the suspect rammed into a police sergeant's squad car before heading onto Garfield in the opposite lanes of traffic.
Chicago police stopped pursuing the driver once he entered the Dan Ryan Expressway about a mile away. He again drove in the wrong direction, heading north in the southbound lanes.
But then, according to the chain of events described by authorities, the SUV broke down on a ramp from I-294 to the Reagan Memorial Tollway. A motorist driving a blue Honda Accord tried to help the man, later identified by police as Douglas. Douglas allegedly forced his way into the car and sped off west on the Reagan toll way.
Police say Douglas displayed a handgun during at least one of the carjackings. Douglas may also be linked to robberies in Oak Lawn and Burbank that occurred on Saturday

11-year-old killed in South Side crash was on his way to get a haircut

An 11-year-old boy on his way to get a haircut with his father died Saturday afternoon after a traffic crash involving a stolen vehicle in the South Side's Englewood neighborhood.
Donovan Turnage, of the 5900 block of South Artesian Avenue, was a passenger in a Chevrolet Suburban when it was struck by a stolen vehicle about 12:30 p.m. near the intersection of West Garfield Boulevard and South Halsted Street.
Shortly before the crash, police had attempted to stop a vehicle in the area that had been taken in an armed carjacking. When officers activated their police lights in an attempt to curb the stolen vehicle, the driver sped off and struck the Suburban
Donovan and another passenger inside the Suburban, a man whose age has not been released, were taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center. The boy was pronounced dead at 1:35 p.m.
Donovan was sitting in the backseat as his father drove him and his brother to get their hair cut. Donovan was ejected through a window during the crash.
After the crash, the driver of the stolen vehicle fled the scene in a second vehicle taken from a nearby location. Police were not releasing a description of the suspect or the suspect's vehicles Saturday night.
After the crash that killed Donovan, Illinois State Police believe the carjacker committed two robberies in Oak Lawn and Burbank. The carjacker then got a flat tire and flagged down an elderly couple, taking their vehicle on the ramp from Interstate 294 north to Interstate 88 west in Oak Brook.
Harris described the couple's car -- the third vehicle the carjacker is believed to have taken that day -- as a light blue 2007 Honda Accord. The carjacker was last seen heading west on Interstate 88.
State police believe the same person is responsible for another carjacking Friday on the North Side

27-year-old man shot in Englewood

About 3:25 a.m. Saturday, a 27-year-old man was shot in the 1100 block of W. 68^th Street in the Englewood neighborhood on the South Side. Police said the man was standing on a porch when a male assailant approached on foot and opened fire, striking him in the groin and leg. The man was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where his condition was stabilized.

29-year-old man shot in Englewood

About 11:55 p.m., a 29-year-old man was shot in the lower chest in the 6800 block of South Laflin Street in the Englewood neighborhood. He was taken to Christ Medical Center, where his condition was stabilized.

1 killed in South Side crash

A man believed to be in his 20s was killed in an early-morning crash in the West Englewood neighborhood.
Police responded to a crash about 1:15 a.m. in the 6900 block of South Damen Avenue.
The man, whom authorities had not identified as of 5 a.m., was pronounced dead at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn at 3:08 a.m

2 accused of shooting store clerk after leaving door open in cold

Two people were arrested Monday evening and accused of shooting a South Shore dollar store employee after he asked them not to hold open the shop door in the cold.
Joseph Butler, 23, of the 1800 block of West Marquette Road, allegedly entered a dollar store on Dec. 2 with Donisha Husband, 29, of the 7700 block of South Constance Avenue, and held the door open too long. When a 24-year-old store employee asked Butler to close the door, he allegedly asked Husband to hand him a revolver.
The store employee was shot multiple times and was brought to the Northwestern Memoral Hospital to be treated for his injuries. Butler and Husband were not arrested until a week later, according to court records, when police saw them climb into a car near Husband's home, carrying a revolver.
The police report said police saw the revolver when Butler placed it on the car floor and then exited the car to scrape snow off a window. When Butler and Husband were arrested, police found over $950 worth of heroin and crack cocaine in plastic baggies, in their pockets and in the car.
After being arrested, Butler told police the revolver, "It's mine, not my girl's," according to the report. Prosecutors said Husband was arrested while out of jail on bond for an unrelated narcotics crime

22-year-old man shot dead in Englewood

A 22-year-old man was shot dead on the scene about 2:50 p.m.  The victim was walking on a sidewalk when the assailant shot him in the chest before fleeing in a gray 4-door car

Man beat, assaulted, threatened ex-girlfriend with gun

An Englewood man was ordered held without bail Sunday after he allegedly beat, sexually assaulted and threatened to kill his pregnant ex-girlfriend before going on to assault the police officers who tried to arrest him.
Artez D. Jackson, 31, of the 6600 block of South Laflin Street on the South Side, faces multiple charges in connection to Saturday’s incident, including felony aggravated criminal sexual assault, aggravated battery and misdemeanor aggravated assault to a police officer.
Jackson's 25-year-old ex-girlfriend is three months pregnant with his child and ended the relationship in October, but Jackson had refused to return the keys to her residence.
The victim awoke at about 2:30 a.m. Saturday to use the bathroom in her residence and found Jackson in her doorway holding a handgun.
Jackson struck her multiple times in the head and body "while laughing and then put the gun in her mouth.
"I came up here to kill you," Jackson said. "First, I was gonna shoot you in your sleep, but since you're awake I'm gonna fuck you up and then shoot you in the head."
Jackson then pointed the gun at the victim's head and said he would shoot her if she did not perform oral sex on him.
The victim performed oral sex on Jackson and then he fell asleep.
The victim locked herself in the bathroom and called 911 and police found Jackson asleep in the bedroom.
Jackson awoke and attempted to punch an officer. He continued to be combative with police but was eventually subdued and arrested.
Officers recovered a loaded firearm by Jackson.
Jackson is on parole for a 2007 felony armed robbery and aggravated battery with a firearm conviction.
He was also convicted of felony armed robbery in 2000 and unlawful use of a weapon by a felon in 2006

3 men shot in Englewood

Three people were hurt when gunshots were fired into a lounge in the 1100 block of West 63rd Street, in the Englewood neighborhood.
Police said a group of four people approached the lounge, and after they were denied entry at least one of them opened fire toward the doorway.
A 31-year-old man shot in the abdomen was taken by ambulance to John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County, where he was listed in serious condition.
Police also found a 30-year-old man who had been shot when they stopped a van seen leaving the scene. The man had been struck in the abdomen and foot, and was being driven by a friend to a local hospital.
He was taken from the scene of the traffic stop, near the intersection of West 64th Street and South Elizabeth Street, to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where his condition was stabilized.
A third person showed up at a local hospital after being shot during the same shooting

2 accused in Thanksgiving shooting, home invasion

Two men charged with breaking into a South Side apartment and shooting a man on Thanksgiving were ordered held on bail Saturday.
Prosecutors said Delaneo Tillman and Lester Jones were among three armed men who, shortly after 12:30 a.m. Thursday, broke into an apartment in the 6400 block of South Lowe Avenue in the Englewood neighborhood.
A man in the apartment opened the door after he heard knocking. When he tried to shut the door he was overpowered by Jones, Tillman and the third person.
The man in the apartment was knocked to the ground and assaulted by the trio,before he ran toward the door to flee. As he escaped, Jones shot him in the jaw. In the frenzy, Jones was also shot in his arm.
Police arrested Tillman, 31, outside the apartment complex. Jones, 27, went to John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County for treatment and provided false information about his injury there. Police investigated and arrested him a few hours later.
Both Jones and the victim were treated and released from hospitals.
The third person involved in the incident hasn't been charged.
Tillman, of the 6400 block of South Parnell Avenue, and Jones, of the 6200 block of South Talman Avenue, both face charges of aggravated battery, home invasion and attempted robbery.
Tillman and Jones are admitted gang members

22-year-old man shot in englewood

About 10:20 p.m., a 22-year-old man was shot while walking in a parking lot in the 6900 block of South Ashland Avenue. The man was struck in the right leg and taken to Advocate Christ, where his condition was stabilized.

37-year-old man shot in Englewood

About 12:40 a.m., a 37-year-old man was shot during an apparent home invasion in the 6400 block of South Lowe Avenue. Three male assailants forced their way into an apartment and shot the man in the neck.
The man was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center, where his condition was stabilized.

27-year-old man shot in Englewood

About 1:15 a.m., someone in a black car yelled gang slogans and opened fire at a 27-year-old man in the 100 block of West 63rd Street.
The 27-year-old was struck in the forearm and taken in good condition to St. Bernard Hospital

17-year-old boy shot in Englewood

A 17-year-old boy was dropped off at St. Bernard Hospital and Healthcare Center after someone shot him in the 700 block of West 60th Place. He was listed in critical condition.