Murder, Suicide Ruled for Expressway Deaths
By Kai EL’ Zabar
It was determined Monday that the two people, identified by the medical examiner’s office as Eric Taylor, 43, and Camille Cooley, 36, both of Waukegan, Ill. who were discovered by police shot to death inside an SUV early Sunday morning on the Kennedy Expressway on the Northwest Side after receiving a call about a man slumped over a wheel on the Kennedy, has been ruled as a murder, suicide.
The medical examiner determined that Eric Taylor used the weapon found in the front under the drivers’s seat to shoot Camille Cooley and then himself.
The Illinois State Police statement that this shooting may be domestic related, and just happened to occur along the expressway seems more likely than not after cause of death ruling.
This shooting makes for the 18th to occur on the expressway this year in Chicago.
According to the Illinois State police, a silver Chevrolet Tahoe stopped in the middle of the expressway, and a male driver and a female passenger were found unresponsive inside. They were deceased at the time of discovery.
Both Mr. Taylor and Ms. Cooley suffered gun shot wounds to the head however the circumstances of the shooting are not entirely clear, but state police say around 4:30 a.m. Saturday they found the pair dead inside a silver Chevy Tahoe in a lane of traffic on the northbound Kennedy expressway near Armitage Avenue.
There was damage to the passenger side window of the car where shots may have entered or exited the vehicle, but that has not be determined yet. Police say a black semi-automatic gun was found on the driver’s side floorboard.
There was also a white car found at the scene. Police have not said if that car is connected to the shooting.
Illinois State Police released an update and are now saying this shooting may be domestic related, and just happened to occur along the expressway.
There was damage to the passenger side window of the car where shots may have entered or exited the vehicle, but that has not be determined yet. Police say a black semi-automatic gun was found on the driver’s side floorboard.
There was also a white car also found at the scene that initially was questionable. Police have now since ruled out the car in association with the deaths of Taylor and Cooley.
The discovery of the vehicle containing the bodies of Eric Taylor and Camille Cooley with of gunshot wounds to the head had the Kennedy expressway northbound lanes as of 6:30 a.m., near Armitage closed as authorities investigated the incident for about 90 minutes.
An autopsy for both Taylor and Cooley is still pending, which should provide police with some answers as to how this shooting transpired.
Taylor’s family released a statement saying, “Our community has a crack in its foundation that will be eternally weakened. As the families of both victims mourn we pray for answers and closure as we trust our justice system will, with due diligence help provide that.”