2 dead, 3 injured after police shooting at River Forest home

RIVER FOREST, Ill. (WLS) -- Two people were killed and three others injured in shootout in the west suburbs after police say officers were ambushed by a man with a shotgun.

Two police officers are among the injured in the shootout in River Forest.

Police continue to try and figure out why 24-year-old Matthew Watson allegedly armed himself before attacking his mother, another person and then police.

The gunfight between police and Watson took place in a usually quiet River Forest neighborhood after some sort of domestic disturbance at Watson's home.

"It sounded like fireworks but come to find out it was gunshots. There was about 20 to 25 of them," said resident Michael Hennelly.

Officers responded with paramedics to the house in the 100-block of Lathrop Avenue around 7:15 a.m. Sunday after a woman there called 911 complaining of shortness of breath.

Witnesses say the officers were then ambushed by Watson, armed with a shotgun.

"I heard a shot go off from next door to my house," said witness Danny Flannery. "Then the officer fell. He slumped behind a tree and opened fire on the house."

The two officers returned fire, killing Watson, but not before being injured themselves.

"One was reported to have been shot in the bulletproof vest, and both those officers were transported to a local hospital with what's considered non-life threatening injuries," said Deputy Chief Jim O'Shea, River Forest Police Department.

Authorities then made a gruesome discovery inside the home. William Carlson, 60, was found shot to death inside the home and a 59-year-old woman believed to be the alleged attacker's mother, had also suffered gunshot wounds and other severe trauma. Police say they were both shot by the alleged gunman.

Although detectives have yet to reveal a motive for the shootings, people who know Watson say he's been under a lot of stress lately.

"I've heard from friends around the block he's been dealing with some stuff like the girlfriend, nothing like this that I can think of," Flannery said.

While officials say residents are not in any danger, the violence has left some shaken.

"We live right here, and I was nervous," neighborhood resident Sarah Lessor said.

Police say the 59-year-old woman who was shot was taken in critical condition to the hospital, where she underwent surgery.

Police say they have recovered the shotgun that was used in the attacks.