Tinley Park memorial grows, charges loom in slayings of mother, three daughters in domestic shooting (2024)

Mourners arranged flowers upright in the snow on Monday, left small stuffed animals and placed a votive candle outside the Tinley Park home where a mother and her three daughters were killed in a domestic shooting over the weekend.

“I wish you peace,” said Samah Qasmieh, a Chicago State University professor, as she paid her respects to the victims, one of whom was a student of hers.

Police said the shooting Sunday was the deadliest in the southwestern suburb since the Lane Bryant killings of 2008.

Authorities expect to file charges against a suspect in the coming days. But the suburb’s police chief declined to identify the person until charges are approved.

“We’re in the middle of a very complex investigation,” Tinley Park Police Chief Tom Tilton told reporters late Monday morning. “We expect to have a firm decision later on in the afternoon or further in the week, and we don’t want to say anything that will prejudice this.”

The tragedy unfolded 11:20 a.m. Sunday, when officers were called to a home in the 7400 block of 173rd Place after a man called 911 to report a person shot, police said.

A recording of a dispatcher’s call indicates the husband called 911 to say his wife had been shot. “We’re getting a call from a male subject that his wife was shot,” the dispatcher says in the recording. “The line disconnected. He wasn’t really cooperative. We have police en route as well.”

Tilton said police responded quickly, arriving three minutes and thirty seconds after the call was dispatched, and arrested the suspect a minute and twenty seconds after that. A weapon was recovered, he said.

Inside the home, police found three women and their mother fatally shot, police said. The women, who were pronounced dead at the scene, were identified as Majeda Kassem, 53; Halema Kassem, 25; Hanan Kassem, 24; and Zahia Kassem, 25.

Tilton on Monday would not say if the 911 caller was the same person who was arrested. He declined to describe the relationship between the suspect and the victims, but did not deny that police have classified the crime as “domestic” violence.

“We have a suspect in custody, and that’s all I can really say,” Tilton said.

Tinley Park, a suburb of 55,000 people about 30 miles southwest of Chicago’s Loop, hasn’t seen a crime this bad in over a decade, the police chief said.

“We haven’t had any crimes like this in Tinley Park in forever, really. The last large event like this would have been Lane Bryant in 2008,” Tilton said. “We had a homicide a year or so ago. But of this scale? Not since Lane Bryant,” he said.

Five women were killed and a sixth wounded in the Feb. 2, 2008 slaying at the store in the Brookfield Marketplace in Tinley Park, but the crime remains unsolved despite thousands of tips police have received.

On Monday, Tinley Park Mayor Michael Glotz said, “This is a difficult day and a stark reminder of how quickly domestic violence can escalate.”

Qasmieh said she taught Halema Kassem at Chicago State University, where Kassem was in her third year.

“I just envision her in her bedroom studying for the exam they have Tuesday, doing nothing wrong at all,” Qasmieh said.

The professor later postponed the test as she and others came to the home Monday to pay their respects.

“I love you,” she said.

Itedal Shalabi, cofounder and executive director of Arab American Family Services, told reporters that the family is of Palestinian decent and Muslim, but that religion did not have anything to do with the shooting.

“At this point, this has nothing to do with Islam or any other religion. This is about power and control. This is about gender-based violence,” Shalabi said at Monday morning news conference.

“This is a tragedy. This is a tragedy for any community,” Shalabi said. “But this is a tragedy for a community that doesn’t talk about domestic violence as much as we need to, and to address it as much as we should. And so we are hoping that we can prevent other incidents from happening if the community also reaches out and starts asking for help.”

Pam Koseki, executive director of the Crisis Center of South Suburbia, said that when a gun is involved, there’s a 500% greater chance of someone dying in a home situation involving domestic violence.

Tinley Park memorial grows, charges loom in slayings of mother, three daughters in domestic shooting (2024)

FAQs

Who killed his wife in the Tinley Park? ›

Maher Kassem, 63, was charged Tuesday with four counts of first-degree murder. At his initial court appearance this week, prosecutors said a quarrel at the family's Tinley Park home led to Kassem using two guns first to shoot his wife and then, after stepping over her body, his three daughters.

Who are the daughters of the wife in Tinley Park? ›

Maher Kassem, 63, was arrested after allegedly shooting his wife, Majeda, and their daughters, Halema, Hanan, and Zahia on Sunday morning at a home they shared in the 7400 block of W. 173rd Place. Twin sisters, Halema and Zahia, were both 25 years old. The youngest, Hanan, was 24.

Is Tinley Park, IL a good area? ›

Tinley Park is a suburb of Chicago with a population of 55,571. Tinley Park is in Cook County and is one of the best places to live in Illinois. Living in Tinley Park offers residents a dense suburban feel and most residents own their homes. In Tinley Park there are a lot of restaurants, coffee shops, and parks.

Who was the singer who killed his wife? ›

Donnell Clyde "Spade" Cooley (December 17, 1910 – November 23, 1969) was an American Western swing musician, big band leader, actor, television personality and convicted murderer. In 1961 he was tried and convicted for the murder of his second wife, Ella Mae Evans. Grand, Oklahoma, U.S.

Who was the comedian actor whose wife killed him? ›

On May 28, 1998, the comedian and actor Phil Hartman, famous for his work on Saturday Night Live and NewsRadio, is shot to death by his wife, Brynn, in a murder-suicide. He was 49.

What is the ethnicity of Tinley Park Illinois? ›

In 2022, there were 12.8 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (42.6k people) in Tinley Park, IL than any other race or ethnicity. There were 3.32k Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) and 2.72k Two+ (Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

What is the poverty rate in Tinley Park IL? ›

The average household income in Tinley Park is $124,179 with a poverty rate of 5.05%. The median age in Tinley Park is 41.6 years: 38.5 years for males, and 44.8 years for females.

Is it safe to drink water in Tinley Park? ›

(The Village carefully monitors the amount of chlorine, adding the lowest quantity necessary to protect the safety of your water without compromising taste.)

Who is Emilia who killed Heather? ›

In 2009, Emilia Carr and her boyfriend Joshua Fulgham were convicted for the first-degree murder and kidnapping of Heather Strong. Emilia discusses her experience on death row.

Who killed Emma Iain? ›

The killer of Emma Caldwell is to appeal against his conviction and the length of his sentence. Iain Packer was given a life sentence and ordered to serve a minimum of 36 years in prison. He was found guilty last week of 33 charges against a total of 22 women, including Emma's murder and 11 rapes.

Who killed Jean Marie in Virginia? ›

A jury convicted Eric Saub for the killing of Jean Marie Smith. Turkey hunters in Isle of Wight County found her body in 2015. ISLE OF WIGHT COUNTY, Va.

Who was the serial killer in Fredericksburg Virginia? ›

Richard Marc Edward Evonitz (July 29, 1963 – June 27, 2002) was an American serial killer, kidnapper, and rapist responsible for the deaths of at least three teenaged girls in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, and the abduction and rape of 15-year-old Kara Robinson in Richland County, South Carolina.

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