23-Year-Old Joliet Mom Shot and Killed in Front of Kids: Police

JOLIET, IL — A 23-year-old Joliet woman was shot and killed Sunday evening in front of her kids, Joliet police said.

Dinesty Tillman was shot while driving near the intersection of Washington and Richards streets, according to the Will County Coroner’s Office.

Joliet Deputy Police Chief Al Roechner said that at around 10:35 p.m. Sunday police received several calls for shots fired in the area of Washington and Richards. When officers arrived they were approached by a 21-year-old man who was covered in blood, Roechner said. The man, who is Tillman’s brother, was suffering from a gunshot wound on his left arm just above the elbow.

Officers found Tillman lying on the ground just north of Washington on the east side of Richards under the train viaduct. A 4-door Ford Fusion was up on the grass touching the concrete viaduct, Roechner said.

When officers approached Tillman they found her unresponsive and bleeding from the head, Roechner said. A 4-year-old girl and a 3-month-old girl were in the backseat of the car. The 4-year-old girl had a graze wound to her knee.

At 11:08 p.m. Sunday, Tillman was pronounced dead at Presence St. Joseph Medical Center.

The brother, who was a passenger in the vehicle, told police they were traveling northbound on Richards turning eastbound onto Washington when he heard several shots.

“He realized he had been shot and then looked over and saw she was shot. That’s when they went off the road and hit the concrete viaduct,” Roechner said. “He didn’t see any vehicles, he didn’t see anyone on foot. He didn’t know if it was from a vehicle or someone on foot. He didn’t know where the shots were coming from.”

It is unknown if the shooting was random or if Tillman and her brother were the intended targets.

“Neither her nor her brother has any gang ties that we know of,” Roechner said. “The only contacts we’ve had with either one of them is for traffic.”

The coroner’s office originally gave Tillman’s age as 20, but Roechner said she was 23 and gave her birth date as May 14, 1993. The coroner's office has since updated its original press release with Tillman's age as 23.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Joliet Police Department at 815-724-3020 or Will County Crime Stoppers.

“Anybody that might have been in the area last night at around 10:30 p.m. Anybody seeing a vehicle leaving at a high speed or someone running from there,” Roechner said. “Anything. We have nothing right now.”