Grisly Night On The Southwest Side

By Marcus Gilmer in News on May 18, 2010 2:00PM

A pair of crime scenes on the Southwest Side has left a body count of six for police to investigate. The first was in the city's West Elsdon neighborhood. Three people are dead in what police are calling a double murder-suicide shooting that occurred last night in the 4200 block of West 55th Street. Police suspect a woman and another man were shot dead by the woman's estranged husband who then killed himself. It's at least the city's third multiple victim domestic-related incident in the last month, coming just weeks after a domestic-related incident left five dead in Marquette Park and a murder-suicide at th Loop Old Navy store left two dead.

According to the Sun-Times, police suspect the estranged husband was angry over a potential divorce; there was no history of domestic violence. Media accounts conflict as to the relationship of the woman and man shot by the estranged husband; the Trib reports they were romantically involved while the Sun-Times said police could not confirm their relationship. Five children were in the house at the time of the shooting but according to police, none of the children were hurt in the incident. Names of the victims were not released but the Cook County Medical Examiner's office described all three as Hispanic in their 30s.

In an unrelated story, three people were found dead in the trunk of a car early this morning in the Brighton Park neighborhood. The car was found about two miles from the site of a similar crime scene in McKinley Park but police haven't said whether or not the incidents are connected.