December 13, 2009
By DUAA ELDEIB AND JASON FREEMAN Sun-Times Media
Tashika Smith's cell phone rang Saturday, but no one answered.
Just hours earlier -- about 3 a.m. -- the 38-year-old was strangled in her Steger home by someone police believe was her boyfriend, authorities said.
That same man shot his father in Maywood some time after 11 p.m. Friday, Maywood police Lt. Donald Mobley said.
His father survived, Mobley said, and Chicago police have the man in custody. Police are not releasing his name or any details until charges are filed.
The man suspected in Smith's killing did not break in to the home in the 300 block of West 35th Street, Steger police Chief Richard Stultz said.
Steger police are conducting a homicide investigation into Smith's death, and Maywood and Chicago police are also investigating related incidents.
"It made its way all the way to Chicago," Stultz said.
Chicago detectives involved in the case said they could not comment on an ongoing investigation.
'Unsafe' feeling
Janelle Charles, a single mother of two who lives below Smith in the Steger apartment building, said the incident hit too close to home.
"Right now, I just want to go and talk with someone in the (apartment complex) office, because now, it's like, do I really want to stay here?" she said. "This is very unsafe. I'm a single parent with two kids, and something like this, in the same building -- I didn't even hear anything."
Woman strangled
Smith was pronounced dead in her home at 4:19 a.m. Saturday, according to the Will County coroner's office.
An autopsy performed Saturday revealed Smith died of strangulation, the coroner's office said. The case is pending the police investigation and toxicology reports.
Gatling's Chapel in Chicago is handling funeral arrangements.
Second Steger murder
This was the second murder in Steger in less than a month.
Father and musician Daniel Moreno, 23, died Nov. 17 from a single gunshot wound in the head he sustained during a robbery at his family's hair salon.
Before Smith's and Moreno's deaths, there had not been a murder in Steger since 2003.
Residents shouldn't worry, Stultz said.
"Do I see a pattern?" he said. "No. One was a domestic. One was an alleged armed robbery in a business. It wasn't a random thing."
Still, Charles is concerned.
"I thought it was safe," she said. "Now, I don't want my kids to just be out here. I don't let them go to the park or anything. They just pretty much stay with me."
Neighbor Charlie Slate said Smith's death was sad but not surprising.
"It happens everywhere. What are you gonna do?" he said. "People are just crazy. I don't feel safe anywhere."
Another of Smith's neighbors, who asked not to be identified, agreed Steger isn't as safe as it once was.
"It's getting bad, the violence around here," she said. "It's terrible. That's why I'm glad I got my dog."
Although the neighbor didn't know Smith, she said it still was a shock to learn what happened.
"It's really sad," she said. "It's just terrible."
Attempts to reach Smith's family for comment were unsuccessful.
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