On February 23, 2023, 34-year-old Deaundre Brooks of DeKalb, Illinois, was fatally shot while riding in a white Chevrolet Malibu on Interstate 88. Brooks occupied the front passenger seat; a woman was driving and Calvin R. Hamilton, 40, of DeKalb, sat in the rear driver’s side. Court records say the two men began arguing and then fighting inside the car. The dispute escalated when Hamilton produced a firearm and shot Brooks in the abdomen.

Brooks was taken first to Northwestern Medicine Kishwaukee Hospital and then airlifted to OSF Saint Anthony Hospital in Rockford, where he died around 11:47 p.m. that night. Hamilton was arrested the morning of February 24, 2023, after a high-speed chase on I-88; prosecutors say he tried to stop police from collecting gunshot residue from his hands and is suspected of removing Brooks’ bloody clothes from the hospital. He was denied bond, and his criminal history listed in filings includes 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 first-degree murder, he faces up to 30 years in prison without probation.

Anyone who witnessed the fight in the car, the shooting on I-88, or the high-speed chase is asked to come forward with information.