A death investigation has been opened after a 25-year-old woman was found unresponsive overnight in a backyard and a 1-year-old was discovered deceased inside a residence on the South Side, Chicago police said.
About 3 a.m. Tuesday, officers responded to a call to assist paramedics in the 2400 block of West 80th Street in the Ashburn neighborhood after a witness saw a woman in a backyard, police said. The woman was pronounced dead at the scene.
Chicago firefighters saw an open door at the residence and when they entered they found a 1-year-old inside who also was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.
The woman was identified as Kendrea Richardson and the child was identified as Ellis R. Washington of the same block where they were pronounced dead, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office.
A neighbor, 35, who lived near the woman described the 25-year-old as a quiet and kind person. The neighbor, who declined to give her name out of respect for the grieving family, said she would see the 25-year-old either working at a convenience store in the area or walking around the neighborhood with her baby.
“I have helped her. She asked me for stuff,” the 35-year-old said. “She would see us barbecuing, she’d be like, ‘Can I get a plate for me and my baby?’ We used to always give it to her.”
Just last Friday, the 35-year-old saw her neighbor barbecuing and listening to music. She was devastated when she found out what happened.
“I just don’t know why or what happened. I never expected it,” the 35-year-old said. “This is tragic to me.”