Woman shot to death while sleeping in Washington Park

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A woman was fatally shot while sleeping in her apartment on Chicago's South Side. Investigators said the gunman fired directly into the home, but they have not yet determined whether the victim was the intended target.

Police spent much time gathering clues from the sidewalk in the 5200-block of South King Drive where the shooter allegedly stood when he opened fire around 5:25 a.m. Tuesday.

Rhonda Hughes, 40, was sleeping on her living room sofa when a bullet came flying through the window of her garden unit. Hughes' upstairs neighbor, who identified himself as T.J., said the gunfire woke him up.

"We heard the shots and we did not know what to expect because it was right by my bedroom window," T.J. said.

Hughes was shot in her lower back. She was transported to Stroger Hospital, where she died an hour after she was shot.

"She'd always sit outside all the time. I'm like, 'Hello neighbor!' She'd was like, 'Hello! How are you, dear?' I'd say, 'I'm alright today.' That was the last time I seen her, a couple days ago," said Barbara Williams, a neighbor.

The neighborhood remained on edge Tuesday.

"I'm glad I didn't work last night because sometimes I come in about 4 or 5 o'clock. I could have probably been the wrong person in the wrong place at the wrong time," T.J. said.

No one else was hurt, police said.

Area Central detectives are handling the investigation. They're looking to see if security cameras on the building were functioning at the time and recorded video of the shooting.

No one is in custody.