Barricade Situation At VA Hospital On West Side (UPDATED)

By Marcus Gilmer in News on Sep 23, 2009 2:00PM

A man suspected of shooting his parents last night has barricaded himself inside the Jesse Brown VA Medical Center's emergency room. According to CBS 2:

Bobby Freeman, an admission clerk at the Jesse Brown VA Medical Center at 820 S. Damen Ave., said a man walked into the facility about 1:20 a.m. and stood behind a patient he was admitting into the hospital.

The man -- described as a 40- to 50-year old bald black man with no facial hair in a white T-shirt, blue jeans and white gym shoes -- asked for the location of the washroom and told Freeman he wanted to see a doctor, Freeman said.

The man went into the washroom, came out and walked into the emergency room, where he fired a shot into the ceiling and pointed a gun to his head, Freeman said.

Police suspect the man may be linked to the shooting deaths of Joe Washington, 79, and Johnnie Washington, 77, who lived in the 2200 block of South Kildare Ave. A medical technician in the hospital alleged the man said he had killed his parents. Authorities say the man is holding no one captive and that in spite of the fact that there had been no evacuations as of earlier this morning, no one was in danger. The man has been in contact with police by phone and was last reported to be "holed up" in a treatment room and police say the man may be suicidal. SWAT Team members are on the scene and in the hospital. Harrison Area Deputy Chief Wayne Gulliford said, we're working toward a peaceful surrender."

The situation has closed Damen Avenue between Ogden and Taylor.

Update: According to witnesses (and now the Tribune confirms), the suspect was led out of the hospital in cuffs, ending the barricade situation.

Additional info: Chicago Breaking News, Sun-Times