The city of Chicago has remained a safe haven for Jennifer Hudson throughout her climb to stardom – but her return to the Windy City Friday was a journey of heartache and mourning.
The Oscar-winning actress and “American Idol” contestant was trying to make sense of the ultimate nightmare – her mother and big brother gunned down by a cowardly killer.
Her 7-year-old nephew, meanwhile, remained missing in a case so baffling the FBI has been called in to help in the hunt.
“We need to find this kid,” community activist Ziff Sistrunk said today. “We need to find that child before sundown.”
Hudson, 27, spent much of the day at a Chicago police station. Her friends described the “Dreamgirls” star as “devastated.”
It was just a week ago that Hudson was in town for a film festival, and, as always, took the opportunity to visit her mom, Darnell Hudson Donerson, 57, and brother, Jason, 29.
Mom’s house was always the place that kept Hudson grounded. But at the same time, she wanted her to leave the rundown and dangerous South Side neighborhood, where gunfire is so common that neighbors said they didn’t call cops after hearing shots Friday morning.
“Jennifer always used to beg her mom to get out of that neighborhood,” a family friend said today. “But she owned that house, and she would never leave.”
Hudson’s brother-in-law, William Balfour, remained in police custody, under arrest but not charged with the murders.
Cops said he was one of several people of interest in police custody. The others have not been identified.
Upon receiving the grim news, Hudson broke off a promotional tour for her new movie, “The Secret Life of Bees,” and rushed back to Chicago from Tampa, Fla. Sources said she identified the bodies of her mother and brother Friday night.
As she kept out of the public eye today, a clearer picture emerged of her sister Julia’s troubled relationship with Balfour, a violent ex-con on parole for attempted murder and carjacking.
The couple, who married in December 2006, recently split up – prompting Donerson to throw him out of her house, Balfour’s mother, Michele, told The Post.
He has been dating other women and did not have a good relationship with his ex, Michele Balfour said.
But, she added, “he loved Julia to death and he loved that little boy like he was his own.
“My son didn’t have anything to do with this, and he’s not the only one being questioned. I know he’s not going to be charged.”
Michele said that her son had the day off from work Friday and that she spoke to him in the afternoon and he sounded as though he had just woken up. Cops said he was refusing to cooperate with them today.
An Amber alert was put out for Julian King, 7, Julia’s son and Balfour’s stepson.
today, a posse of more than 100 people was being gathered in an effort to find the child.
Hudson, whose dad died of cancer when she was 17, credited her mom for spotting her talent and encouraging her to use it – even pushing her to take part in the “American Idol” auditions in 2004.
She described her as a down-to-earth mom who hated the spotlight and made sure fame didn’t go to her daughter’s head.
“Family is everything,” she said in an interview less than a month ago.
“My family is definitely what keeps me grounded. They keep things in perspective and balanced. When I’m in Chicago, my life is normal. I have to get up and make my own breakfast, and I’m told the truth.
“I’m very normal. It’s my career that’s not.”
Every step of her rise to fame has been shared with her family, she said.
“My mom tells this story of when I was a baby in church,” she said last month. “They were teaching the choir a note and they couldn’t hit it. I was just 8 months old, but I hit the note.
“My godmother looked over to my mother and said, ‘Mark my words, this child is going to sing.’ “
A few years later, Hudson’s proud mom and brother watched her first live performance, when a 7-year-old Hudson sang at a family birthday party and later at their church.
Her rocket to fame – going from flipping burgers at a Burger King to winning an Oscar – happened in less than two years.
In 2004, her mom spotted an ad for “Idol” tryouts that would change her daughter’s life.
“She badgered Jennifer into auditioning,” said Hudson’s cousin, Shari Nichols-Sweat, in an interview two years ago.
“Darnell was so proud of her.”
When Hudson was told she was going to Hollywood after passing the first round of “Idol,” it was her mom and brother who were waiting to hug her outside the audition.
She lost the contest after failing to impress caustic judge Simon Cowell but still managed to get offered a part in the film version of “Dreamgirls,” a Broadway musical.
She upstaged co-star Beyoncé Knowles in a performance that amazed critics and launched a two-year rise to fame and fortune that she could have only dreamed of.
And when she accepted her Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her role in “Dreamgirls,” once again it was her mom and brother leading the cheers.
“If you don’t have a home, a family . . . you don’t have anything,” she said last year.
Her latest song, “Spotlight,” is No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip Hop charts and her recently released album is a top seller.
Hudson recently announced her engagement to David Otunga, best known for his stint on VH1’s reality show “I Love New York.”
Cops said today the slayings of her mom and brother were thought to have erupted from a domestic argument.
Neighbors and Julia’s MySpace page referred to a recent argument between her and Balfour over a car. Julia accused her estranged husband of stealing and selling it.
One neighbor told celebrity-news site TMZ.com that Balfour threatened to come back and “kill Julia’s family.”
Cops said the victim’s died of multiple gunshot wounds. Jason was shot in the chest and his body found by Julia in a bedroom on Friday afternoon.
His mom’s body was found on the living-room floor.
Police were continuing to look for a Chevrolet Suburban that was thought to have been taken from outside the house.
Balfour’s mother, Michele, told The Post today she didn’t believe her son, who’s a baker, had anything to do with the killings.
Balfour has known the Hudson family all his life. He met his wife in grade school and had dated her for years, his mother said.
He has a long criminal record. He served nearly seven years in prison for attempted murder after stealing a truck and driving off while its owner clung to its hood. He moved into the Hudson home when he was released in 2006.
Balfour returned to jail this year on a drug possession charge, his mother said.