On February 23, 2023, Deaundre Brooks, a 34-year-old resident of DeKalb, Illinois, was fatally shot in an incident that occurred on Interstate 88. Brooks was riding in a white Chevrolet Malibu driven by a woman, with Calvin R. Hamilton, 40, also of DeKalb, in the rear driver’s side seat and Brooks in the front passenger seat. According to court records, the two men started arguing and physically fighting while in the car. The argument escalated, and Hamilton pulled out a firearm and shot Brooks in the abdomen.
The woman driving the car reported hearing a loud noise and seeing blood on Brooks, who allegedly told Hamilton he couldn’t believe he had been shot. Brooks was initially taken to Northwestern Medicine Kishwaukee Hospital and later airlifted to OSF Saint Anthony Hospital in Rockford, where he succumbed to his life-threatening injuries and was pronounced dead around 11:47 p.m. the same night.
Calvin R. Hamilton was arrested the morning of February 24, 2023, following the shooting. Hamilton led police on a high-speed chase on I-88 and attempted to prevent police from taking samples of gunshot residue from his hands. He is also suspected of removing Brooks’ bloody clothes from the hospital scene, which prosecutors argued showed consciousness of guilt.
Hamilton was denied bond by Circuit Court Judge Marcy Buick due to his extensive criminal history, which includes previous convictions for reckless discharge of a firearm, armed habitual criminal, aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, armed robbery, and aggravated vehicular hijacking. If convicted of the first-degree murder charge, Hamilton could face up to 30 years in prison without the possibility of probation.
