Judge's brother charged in double slaying in Country Club Hills

11:30 PM CST, January 17, 2012



Judge's brother charged in double slaying in Country Club Hills

By Rosemary Sobol
Tribune reporter


The brother of a Cook County judge fatally shot his sister and her husband Friday night because he wanted full ownership of the home all three lived in, according to Country Club Hills Mayor Dwight Welch.

Kenneth Rhodes, 50, of the 19300 block of Oakwood Avenue in the south suburb, was charged with two counts of first-degree murder, Welch said tonight.

Welch said it was “highly likely,’’ that Rhodes killed them because he wanted to be the sole owner of the home on Oakwood. The siblings’ mother passed away recently and financial ownership was passed on to them, Welch said.

Rhodes’ sister, Pauline Betts-Bracy, and her husband Nathaniel Bracy were killed during the attack, which was preceded by a “disturbance,’’ Welch said.

Autopsy results revealed Saturday afternoon determined that Nathaniel Bracy, 64, and Pauline Betts-Bracy, 54, died from multiple gunshot wounds in a homicide after being found shot in their home, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

Rhodes is scheduled to appear in Cook County Criminal Court on Wednesday, the mayor said.

Welch said Rhodes has an “extensive criminal record,’’ and was arrested Saturday after a witness identified him as a person of interest in the murders.

According to a source, Rhodes’ brother is Cook County Judge James L. Rhodes, who is assigned to the Markham Courthouse.

A message left at the judge’s home was not returned immediately.
 
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