Dreamgirls star and Weight Watchers queen, Jennifer Hudson, will have to wait another few months before her family’s killer is brought to justice.
The trial for the murders of Hudson’s family members was scheduled to begin in February but has now been delayed until April of this year when jury selection will begin as announced by Cook County Judge Charles Burns.
Hudson’s mother, Darnell Donnerson, brother, Jason, and nephew, Julian King were murdered by William Balfour; Hudson’s older sister, Julia’s estranged husband in October of 2008. All three were killed with gunshot wounds in Chicago. Balfour was indicted for the murders in December of 2008 and pleaded not guilty at his first official court appearance in January of 2009.
Balfour has been indicted by a grand jury on three counts of murder, aggravated kidnapping and home invasion and has pleaded not guilty. His attorneys argue that there is no forensic evidence linking Balfour to the killings and that he was the “convenient” suspect, according to CNN reports.
It has been reported that Hudson may be asked to testify in the trial as a witness in court against her estranged brother-in-law. It has only been in recent interviews in correlation with the release of her memoir titled, “I Got This,” that Hudson has opened up about the murders.
“I felt as though I had to [perform],” Hudson told Dateline this month. “I could hear my brother’s voice in my head, like, ‘Is she ever going to sing again?’ He’d always say, ‘Knock it off, Jenny!’ if I was discouraged about something. I could either sit here and mope around, or do what I know would make them proud.”
