Calumet Cty. IL, 10/19/09 [Gregory Brooks Jr.Trial-Murder of Milton/Ruby McClendon

[packy]

The bodies of a man and woman have been found in a wooded area of a forest preserve near Calumet City, officials said.

Cook County Forest Preserve Police spokesman Steve Mayberry says a woman walking in the area contacted Calumet City police at about 12:30 p.m. after she saw the bodies off Campbell Road between Pulaski and Michigan City Roads.

The man was an apparent gunshot victim and the woman apparently had been beaten, Mayberry said this evening.

yberry described the man as African-American and between 50 and 70 years old. He was dressed in a multicolored dress shirt with dark pants and suspenders, the spokesman said.

The woman was African-American and also between 50 and 70 years old, Mayberry said. She was dressed in a white shirt, dark pants but did not have shoes. Anyone with information should call the Cook County Forest Preserve Police at 708-771-1001

(More at link)

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2009/10/2-bodies-found-in-calumet-city-forest-preserve.html

[Roamer]

http://www.wgntv.com/news/wgntv-bodies-found-oct19,0,7028427.story

CLTV host's parents found dead in Calumet City forest preserve

Breaking News Center


Related links


Police searching for car belonging to victims (http://helpfindthemissing.org/news/wgntv-gml-car-tiv,0,7032734.tivideo) Video (http://helpfindthemissing.org/news/wgntv-gml-car-tiv,0,7032734.tivideo)
Send Garrard McClendon your thoughts (http://helpfindthemissing.org/news/cltv-gml-board-link,0,2322285.hyperlink)

The couple found dead in a wooded area of a forest preserve near Calumet City were the parents of CLTV television host Garrard McClendon, McClendon's producer said tonight.

Killed were Milton and Ruby McClendon, said the producer, Jerry Riles, who was with McClendon at his parents' home in Hammond this evening. According to records Milton was 78 and his wife was 76.

Police were also at the home in the 1000 block of Field Street.

The Cook County medical examiner's office did not confirm the victims' identities. They died of gunshot wounds, an autopsy showed.

The woman died of a gunshot wound to the head and the man died of multiple gunshot wounds, and the deaths were classified as homicides.

Neither victim had identification with them, Cook County Forest Preserve Police spokesman Steve Mayberry said Monday.

As of 7:45 p.m., dozens of neighbors and friends stood quietly across the street and on the sidewalk outside the McClendon home.

Neighbors were shocked that the kind, elderly couple who'd lived on Field Street for about 30 years would meet such a violent fate.

"It (doesn't) make sense," longtime neighbor Tommie Dorsey told the Tribune tonight. "It would be curious to see how all of this unravels. I just can't see them letting someone in the house," Dorsey said.

The couple had long been one of the city's prominent African-American families, promoting education and inspiring neighborhood kids while raising their own three sons, Dorsey said.

"This was a guy with a stopwatch teaching kids how to run. He was just a help and Ruby was the same way. She was a well-spoken woman; you did right ...but if you weren't right, she'd let you know. She didn't bite her tongue," Dorsey said.

In recent years, the couple was sort of neighborhood grandparents, Dorsey said, with Ruby McClendon as recently as Saturday baking a pie for Dorsey as payment for his grandson cutting the couple's grass.

"You can't say enough about people like this and you just can't imagine them dying such a tragic death," he added.

Mayberry said a woman walking in the area contacted Calumet City police about 12:30 p.m. after she saw the bodies off Campbell Road between Pulaski and Michigan City Roads.

Mayberry described the victims as African-American and between 50 and 70 years old. The man was dressed in a multicolored dress shirt with dark pants and suspenders, and the woman was dressed in a white shirt, dark pants but did not have shoes, the spokesman said.

CLTV, in a message posted on Gerrard McClendon's blog, said the station's thoughts are with McClendon and his family.

Anyone with information should call the Cook County Forest Preserve Police at 708-771-1001, Mayberry said.

[packy]

This morning, Illinois State Police said the car belonging to the McClendons has been located. Master Sgt. Anthony Hoop said the 1997 Cadillac Eldorado was seen by a female driver who told police she had seen a broadcast report about the murders and missing car and spotted the vehicle on the northbound express lanes of the Dan Ryan around 55th Street about 1:45 a.m.

Police had asked the public to look for the couple's green 1997 Cadillac El Dorado two-door, with Indiana license plate 365ZTN that expires in 2010.

Hoop said the woman said she saw two males getting out of the vehicle. One, he said, was described as carrying a backpack, the other as wearing a red hoody. He said Illinois State Police along with Hammond and Chicago police were on the scene and conducting a general search in the area for the two possible suspects.

(More at link with video)

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2009/10/couple-found-dead-in-forest-preserve-was-shot-to-death.html#

[packy]

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2009/10/mcclendon-son-thug-mentality-killed-my-parents.html#

A member of the McClendon family is blaming the "thug mentality" in the black community for the slaying of his parents and said black leaders have "to wake up" to change it and "come to grips that our pathologies run deep."

Theodore McClendon early this morning posted a 3-minute videoclip on the Facebook social networking site in which he also said that "this kind of intimidation has to stop."

(More at link)

[Jute]

McClendon family: There is 'comfort on the horizon'

The family of a couple found slain in a south suburban forest preserve thanked the public today for an "outpouring of love" and said they're confident "there is comfort on the horizon."

Milton and Ruby McClendon -- parents of CLTV host Garrard McClendon -- were found shot to death Monday afternoon in Wentworth Woods near Calumet City. Early this morning, their Cadillac was found parked on the Dan Ryan Expressway.

The car was towed back to Hammond, Ind., where the couple lived and where investigators spent today carrying out bags of potential evidence from the home.

McClendon has not publicly talked about the unsolved murders, but his family released a statement this afternoon saying it "wishes to express its appreciation for the outpouring of love we have received from well wishers all over Chicagoland and the United States.

"We are saddened by the loss of our loved ones, but we know there is comfort on the horizon. We accept your sympathy and we thank you for your love and kindness."

Hammond Police Chief Brian Miller said today his officers want to speak with anyone who saw the McClendons' 1997 Cadillac Eldorado before it was recovered.

He said detectives were "still working to determine" whether the couple was killed at their home, declining to comment further.

The McClendons' car was spotted in the northbound express lanes of the Dan Ryan around 55th Street about 1:45 a.m. by a woman who told police she had seen a news report about the killings, Illinois State Police Master Sgt. Anthony Hoop said.

Police had asked the public to look for the couple's car, which has an Indiana license plate 365ZTN that expires in 2010.

The woman told police she saw two men getting out of the car. One was carrying a backpack, the other wearing a red hoody.

The woman told police she was on her way to work when she saw the vehicle, Hoop said. Illinois State police turned the car over to Hammond police officials.

Ruby and Milton McClendon's bodies were discovered about 12:30 p.m. Monday off Campbell Road between Pulaski and Michigan City roads.

An autopsy determined that Milton McClendon died from a gunshot wound to the head and Ruby McClendon died from multiple gunshot wounds. Milton McClendon, who was identified through his heart pacemaker, was 78, and his wife was 76, records show.

Longtime neighbors, friends and acquaintances reeled in shock at the death of the elderly couple who were rarely seen apart.

"They were Hammond," said James Jackson, who grew up playing baseball with the McClendons' sons. "They were a real big piece of this neighborhood. They helped bring up all the kids on the block. I don't understand why someone would mess with the McClendons."

"It (doesn't) make sense," neighbor Tommie Dorsey said. "It would be curious to see how all of this unravels. I just can't see them letting someone in the house," Dorsey said.

The husband and wife had been one Hammond's first African-American residents and were pillars of the community, said Jeff Morrow, whose sister is married to the couple's son, Duane. "They wanted to stay in this community. They took a lot of pride in living here and being from here."

Milton McClendon, a retired postal worker, and his wife promoted education to neighborhood children, while raising their three sons, Garrard, Duane and Theodore.

In recent years, the couple acted in the role of neighborhood grandparents, Dorsey said, with Ruby McClendon as recently as Saturday baking a pie for Dorsey as payment for his grandson cutting the couple's grass.

"You can't say enough about people like this, and you just can't imagine them dying such a tragic death," Dorsey added.

Anyone with information is asked to call Hammond police at (219) 852-2906.

CLTV, in a message posted on Garrard McClendon's blog, said the station's thoughts are with McClendon and his family.

http://www.wgntv.com/news/wgntv-car-belonging-cltv-host-parents-found-oct21,0,2464348.story

[packy]

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2009/10/sources-2-men-seen-with-property-stolen-from-mcclendons.html#

Detectives were closing in on two men suspected of killing a Hammond couple, law enforcement sources said Thursday.

The men were seen attempting to sell property stolen from Milton and Ruby McClendon's home soon after the couple was found dead Monday, the sources said.

They were also spotted fleeing the McClendons' 1997 Cadillac Eldorado when they abandoned it Wednesday morning on the Dan Ryan Expressway, the sources said.

But law enforcement sources say the couple's home was covered in blood and had been ransacked, and that police are working on the theory that they were targeted because they were elderly and vulnerable.

Detectives are also working to link evidence recovered from the stolen Cadillac to the suspects, the sources said.

(More at link)

[lalema]

:1222423: Prayers for Mr & Mrs Mcclendon's family.:1222423:

[Jute]

:1222423: Prayers for Mr & Mrs Mcclendon's family.:1222423:

This is so sad; they did so much for others. My sincere condolences to the McClendon's family and friends.

[texanne]

What a horrible thing to do to this elderly couple. I hope the two thugs are found and prosecuted to the fullest...and I mean fullest...extent of the law. Crimes like this show a cruel selfish streak that has no regard for anyone other than themselves.

[SavannahStar]

What a sad story!! :sad0119:

[packy]

I hope they get them and prosecute them to the fullest. They took away two wonderful people from our world.

Bless Mr. and Mrs. McClendon's sweet souls.

[Roamer]

It really is sad. Two lovely people who hurt no one.

May they rest in eternal peace.

[packy]

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2009/10/source-3-held-in-slaying-of-hammond-couple.html#

Police on Saturday were questioning two teens in the slayings of a Hammond couple during an apparent home invasion gone wrong last week, Hammond Mayor Tom McDermott Jr. said.

The male suspects, ages 17 and 18, remained in custody in Illinois as part of the investigation into the shooting deaths of Milton and Ruby McClendon, two other sources said.

McDermott said he anticipates charges will be announced Monday at an afternoon news conference.

One of the suspects knew the victims before they broke into the Hammond home meaning to rob it, a source said. One suspect is from Hammond and the other is from Illinois, a source said.

Milton McClendon, 78, died of a gunshot wound to the head, while Ruby McClendon, 76, suffered multiple gunshot wounds. The McClendons were found in a Cook County forest preserve near Calumet City on Monday.

The couple's stolen Cadillac was found Wednesday along the Dan Ryan Expressway. The suspects were spotted fleeing the car when they abandoned it, sources have said.

(More at link)

[Roamer]

Two kids, probably no jobs, looking for money, took the lives of two very much loved people. What a crying shame.

[packy]

Maybe a third person involved.

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2009/10/garrard-mcclendon-cltv-milton-ruby-killing-charges-lake-county-prosecutor-hammond-cook-county-forest.html

New details are emerging about the murders of Milton and Ruby McClendon as family and friends prepare to say their goodbyes today to the popular elderly Indiana couple.

Two teens were arrested over the weekend after witnesses told police they saw them trying to sell property stolen from the couple's home at pawn shops in the days after the murders, sources have said.

The Post-Tribune of Northwest Indiana identifies the suspects as Reo Jonta Thompson, 17, of the 900 block of Morris Street in Hammond, and Gregory Brooks Jr., 18, of the 800 block of East Highland Street in Hammond. Both suspects lived within half a mile of the slain couple's home.

The Post-Tribune, citing court records, said several witnesses saw Brooks allegedly driving the couple's green Cadillac and saw him with a rifle, a .38-special and a small-caliber pistol.

Brooks also sold jewelry stolen from the couple's home at a Hammond pawn shop for $70. That transaction was caught on surveillance video, according to court documents, the paper reported.

(More at link)

[Roamer]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-mcclendon-investigation-27-oct27,0,1585839.story

Hammond police and court records detailed Monday how two teenagers allegedly robbed a popular couple from Hammond, stole their 1997 Cadillac Eldorado and returned to "finish them."

Yet no murder charges were filed in the slayings of Ruby McClendon, 76, and Milton McClendon, 78. Police said they were seeking more witnesses to solidify the case.

"We're in the first quarter of a four-quarter investigation," Hammond Police Chief Brian Miller said. "We have a ton of physical evidence to go through. We have more statements to take."

The husband and wife were remembered Monday at a funeral in Munster (http://helpfindthemissing.org/topic/us/indiana/lake-county-%28indiana%29/munster-PLGEO100100501990000.topic), Ind., that drew about 1,000 people. The McClendons are the parents of CLTV (http://helpfindthemissing.org/topic/economy-business-finance/media/television-industry/cltv-ORCRP0000017125.topic) host Garrard McClendon.

Police were looking for more people whowere riding in the McClendons' stolen Cadillac, Miller said. A third person the suspects told police was involved likely doesn't exist, the chief said.

The bodies of the McClendons were found Oct. 19 fatally shot in a Cook County (http://helpfindthemissing.org/topic/us/illinois/cook-county-PLGEO100100501000000.topic) forest preserve near Calumet City (http://helpfindthemissing.org/topic/us/illinois/cook-county/calumet-city-PLGEO100100501190000.topic). The husband and wife both suffered gunshot wounds in the head.

Their car was found abandoned on the Dan Ryan Expressway two days later. Police said they found the McClendons' home in the 1000 block of Field Street ransacked and covered in blood.

Mayor Thomas McDermott said police found DNA inside the Cadillac that led them to the suspects.

Reo Thompson, 17, and Gregory Brooks Jr., 18, who live within blocks of the McClendons' home, each have been charged with auto theft, robbery, burglary and confinement. They were arrested in Illinois and are being held without bail in Chicago (http://helpfindthemissing.org/topic/us/illinois/cook-county/chicago-PLGEO0100100501250000.topic), where Monday they waived extradition to Indiana.

According to court records, Brooks told police that he, Thompson and a third man went to the McClendons' house to rob it. They planned to trick the McClendons into thinking the men had car trouble and needed to use a phone.

When the door opened, Brooks told police, the third man put the gun through the door, and all three tried to barge in. Once they were inside, Ruby McClendon told them she had $50 in her purse, but the third man wasn't satisfied with that amount, Brooks told police.

After searching the home and finding nothing, they forced Milton McClendon to crawl to an upstairs bedroom, and the third man hit Milton McClendon over the head with a vase, and Thompson kicked him in the abdomen, Brooks told police. They eventually tied up the couple, put them in a closet, left the home and returned shortly to "finish them," Brooks allegedly told police.

Thompson admitted stealing jewelry and a power drill, court records show. A surveillance camera later captured Brooks selling jewelry at a pawnshop in Hammond, records show.

At the McClendons' funeral, their three sons -- Garrard, Theodore and Duane -- spoke of a family that ate dinner together every night, followed by an hour of fierce debate. "Look it up" was their father's favorite phrase, they said, as he and Ruby McClendon encouraged a strong education for their boys. Theodore McClendon recalled how his father, with a quiet integrity and determination, chased down gangbangers on his bicycle.

While the funeral unfolded, the quiet neighborhood where the suspects grew up was stirring with the news that two local youths could have been responsible.

Thompson hung out at friends' homes and played pickup basketball games with kids down the street, said Arthur Turner, who lives nearby.

"Never in my wildest dreams," Turner said when asked if he ever thought Thompson was capable of the crimes. "I hope it wasn't him."

After the service, Garrard McClendon called for a "day of forgiveness."

"The pain is terrible," he said. "My parents didn't deserve this, but we forgive those that did this."

Tribune reporters Joel Hood and Matthew Walberg and freelance reporter Dennis Sullivan (http://helpfindthemissing.org/topic/religion-belief/dennis-sullivan-PERLL000255.topic) contributed.

klschorsch@tribune.com (klschorsch@tribune.com)

[packy]

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2009/10/murder-charges-filed-in-mcclendon-slayings.html

Murder charges filed in McClendon slayings

October 29, 2009 1:02 PM

Murder charges have been filed against two Hammond teens in the slayings of Milton and Ruby McClendon, prosecutors said today.

Gregory Brooks Jr., 18, and Reo Thompson, 17, are each charged with four counts of murder in the perpetration of a burglary and two counts of murder in the perpetration of a robbery.


The two teens were arrested over the weekend and had been held on charges of auto theft, robbery, burglary and confinement.


As the murder charges were announced today, a Lake County judge approved a defense request for a gag order in the case.

Both were expected to appear in court on the charges Friday morning, prosecutors said.

(More at link)

[Jute]

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/wThompson_Brooks400.jpg

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2009/10/murder-charges-filed-in-mcclendon-slayings.html

[packy]

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2009/10/trial-date-set-for-1-of-2-accused-in-mcclendon-murders.html

Trial date set for 1 of 2 accused of McClendon murders
October 30, 2009 9:20 AM

One of two teens accused of the murders of Hammond couple Milton and Ruby McClendon will stand trial in April, a magistrate ordered this morning.

Gregory Brooks Jr., 18, and Reo Thompson, 17, both made a brief appearance before Magistrate Kathleen Sullivan at the Lake County courthouse in Crown Point, Ind. -- their first since six counts of murder were added Thursday to a list of charges that already included two counts of robbery, two counts of burglary, four counts of confinement and auto theft.

Neither Brooks, wearing a red jail-issue jumpsuit, nor Thompson, wearing a blue jail-issue jumpsuit, spoke during the brief hearing.

Sullivan set Brooks' trial for April 19, with a pretrial hearing March 19. Thompson's attorney was unable to attend court, therefore, his trial date has yet to be set.

(More at Link)

[Amusedtdth]

Six counts of murder? Did I miss something...again!

[annalyzer]

Six counts of murder? Did I miss something...again!
i'm guessing different degrees or whatever of murder for each victim, like davidson just got found guilty of in his trial.

[Amusedtdth]

i'm guessing different degrees or whatever of murder for each victim, like davidson just got found guilty of in his trial.

Thanks Anna, I didn't realize they could double/triple, etc.. on the same charge, but... thinking on this :shock: I guess one could be charged w/ 1st. degree murder and manslaughter charge(s)...I think what I'm trying again...on noooooooo to say is it give the jury room to wiggle...:shrug1:

The article said 6 counts....is that a total between the two? Do the each get 6 counts and arrested as a unit so to speak?

Babbaling agin........:nonono:

TIA

[annalyzer]

Thanks Anna, I didn't realize they could double/triple, etc.. on the same charge, but... thinking on this :shock: I guess one could be charged w/ 1st. degree murder and manslaughter charge(s)...I think what I'm trying again...on noooooooo to say is it give the jury room to wiggle...:shrug1:

The article said 6 counts....is that a total between the two? Do the each get 6 counts and arrested as a unit so to speak?

Babbaling agin........:nonono:

TIA


this will give you an idea of the differing accounts of murder (and other charges that could be related to this case). these are the counts that davidson was found guilty of. like in this case there were two people murdered.

http://media.graytvinc.com/documents/Davidson+verdicts+watermarked.pdf

[Roamer]

http://www.wgntv.com/news/wgntv-murder-charges-filed-mcclendon-slayings-oct2,0,3775135.story

(http://helpfindthemissing.org/)


http://www.wgntv.com/media/photo/2009-05/23768054443460-07152356.jpg (http://www.wgntv.com/news/)



Murder charges in the McClendon deaths

Gregory Brooks Jr., 18, and Reo Thompson, 17, were each charged with four counts of murder in the perpetration of a burglary and two counts of murder in the perpetration of a robbery.




http://www.wgntv.com/media/thumbnails/graffitiboard/2009-10/49969582-21080012-187105.jpg






Murder charges have been filed against two Hammond teens in the slayings of Milton and Ruby McClendon, prosecutors said today.

Gregory Brooks Jr., 18, and Reo Thompson, 17, are each charged with four counts of murder in the perpetration of a burglary and two counts of murder in the perpetration of a robbery.

The two teens were arrested over the weekend and had been held on charges of auto theft, robbery, burglary and confinement.

As the murder charges were announced today, a Lake County judge approved a defense request for a gag order in the case.

The protective order prohibits lawyers, law enforcement officials and court personnel "from disseminating information or releasing any extra judicial statements by means of public communication."

Thompson and Brooks are accused of robbing the popular couple from Hammond, stealing their 1997 Cadillac Eldorado and returning to "finish them."

The bodies of Ruby McClendon, 76, and Milton McClendon, 78 were found Oct. 19 fatally shot in a Cook County forest preserve near Calumet City. The husband and wife -- parents of CLTV host Garrard McClendon -- both suffered gunshot wounds in the head.

Their Cadillac was found abandoned on the Dan Ryan Expressway two days later. Police said they found the McClendons' home in the 1000 block of Field Street ransacked and covered in blood.

Mayor Thomas McDermott said police found DNA inside the car that led them to the suspects.

According to court records, Brooks told police that he, Thompson and a third man went to the McClendons' house to rob it. They planned to trick the McClendons into thinking the men had car trouble and needed to use a phone.

When the door opened, Brooks told police, the third man put the gun through the door, and all three tried to barge in. Once they were inside, Ruby McClendon told them she had $50 in her purse, but the third man wasn't satisfied with that amount, Brooks told police.

After searching the home and finding nothing, they forced Milton McClendon to crawl to an upstairs bedroom, and the third man hit Milton McClendon over the head with a vase, and Thompson kicked him in the abdomen, Brooks told police. They eventually tied up the couple, put them in a closet, left the home and returned shortly to "finish them," Brooks allegedly told police.

Thompson admitted stealing jewelry and a power drill, court records show. A surveillance camera later captured Brooks selling jewelry at a pawnshop in Hammond, records show.

Both were expected to appear in court on the charges Friday morning, prosecutors said.

[packy]

Man says he was attacked by pair held in McClendon slayings

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2009/11/man-says-he-was-attacked-by-pair-held-in-mcclendon-slayings.html

November 13, 2009 10:48 PM

An Indiana man believes he was attacked in his home by two teens who later were charged with slaying Ruby McClendon, 76, and Milton McClendon, 78.

Speaking Friday to WGN-TV but asking that his identity be withheld, a man named "Dave" said he was robbed and beaten four days before the attack on the McClendons, and he wishes he could have done something to prevent their deaths.

"Dave" said police had shown him photographs, including one of the teens, but he was not absolutely certain of his identifications at that time. When he later saw videos showing the suspects after their arrests in the McClendon case, he said he knew it was the same teens -- and one of them was still wearing the same jacket.

(More at link)