Late Cook County commissioner’s widow, son found shot dead in Chicago

A prominent Chicago family is at the center of a double-homicide investigation after Cook County Commissioner Dennis Deer’s widow and son were found shot to death in a West Side home on Tuesday.

Officers responded to the North Lawndale home just before 6 p.m. local time Tuesday, where they found Deer’s widow, Barbara Deer, 51, and her son, Kaleb Deer, 23, shot to death, FOX 32 Chicago reported. reported.

Barbara Deer suffered multiple gunshot wounds to the chest and Kaleb Deer was shot in the head, according to the report.

It’s unclear what led to the discovery of the bodies.

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Police noted a gun was found at the scene, but details have not yet been made public.

Neighbor Pastor Chris Griffin told WGN-TV Before police responded, there was suspicious activity at Deer’s home, stating that he received a call to “check on someone at Barbara’s home.”

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“We didn’t know what was going on,” Griffin told the press. “When we got here the house was locked, both doors were closed, their dog was outside barking, which is not normal. … The dog had been outside for over an hour and that was a bit of a red flag.”

According to the report, the deaths are being investigated as homicides. No arrests have been announced.

Authorities have yet to release any suspect information or arrests. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images, File)

North Lawndale native Barbara Deer married her high school sweetheart, 51-year-old Dennis Deer, who died after a double lung transplant in 2024, FOX 32 and WGN-TV reported.

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He was active in the community, volunteering and sitting on various community committees.