Karl Clermont was rushed to the hospital after a 32-inch tube television fell on him in his Arlington Heights home in the 1700-block of Portsmouth Lane. The child was reportedly watching TV in the basement when the accident happened. He died at Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights.
The Medical Examiner ruled the boy's death accidental and determined that the child died of cranio-cerebral injuries.
Police responded to the home about 8:46 p.m. after a neighbor called for help.
The boy was downstairs by himself when the TV fell. A live-in aunt came downstairs to check on him and found the TV on top of him. Unable to get it off, the woman ran outside and screamed for help. That's when a neighbor heard her cries and dialed 911, Arlington Heights police Cmdr. Mike Hernandez said.
Another neighbor, who did not want to be identified, said she heard a woman screaming for help.
"To hear a mother wailing like that and knowing that she's losing a son. It can happen so quickly, in minutes, you know. Life is lost over something silly like a TV falling, and it is just shocking," the neighbor said.
The boy's mother was at work at the time and a 3-year-old sibling was upstairs with the aunt when the accident occurred, police said. They had just moved to the area a few weeks ago.
"Our hearts are breaking for her right now, and I want her to know that," said the neighbor who wished to remain anonymous.
It's unclear how the TV fell, but police believe the boy may have tried to climb onto the set. They say the TV was on top of an 18-inch stand. Police are conducting a death investigation, but the state Dept. of Children and Family Services is not investigating the death.
Karl Clermont would have been 7 on November 16.
The Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this report.
