NFL tackle offers condolences to Jennifer Hudson. Chicago Bears defensive tackle Tommie Harris says he’ll donate a jersey to singer Jennifer Hudson’s family in tribute to her murdered brother. The star’s sibling, Jason Hudson, her mother Darnell Donerson and her nephew Julian King were all recently shot to death in Chicago in unsolved, apparently pre-meditated, attacks. King’s stepfather, the estranged husband of Hudson’s sister, is the only suspect in the crimes, but he hasn’t been charged. “I would like to give them a personal jersey,” says Harris, who is a friend of Jennifer Hudson. “A lot of times you try to understand things, but you can’t fathom that, losing three loved ones within three days. It’s very difficult and my prayers are with the family. It’s hard, but you just have to try not to lose faith in God.” Get more celebrity condolences here.

“Uneven Fairways” to examine trailblazers on course. Tiger Woods isn’t the only Black athlete to cross boundaries on the golf course. The Golf Channel has announced a documentary scheduled for Black History Month 2009 that will spotlight similar trailblazers. “These are inspiring stories of golfers who overcame great odds just to create a tour where they could compete,” says Page Thompson, president of Golf Channel. “Uneven Fairways” will debut Feb. 11 on the Orlando-based network.

Pitcher could spend up to 16 years in prison. The minor league pitcher who allegedly gave a fan a concussion by hitting him with a ball could spend 16 years in prison. Julio Castillo, 21, was trying to throw the ball into the opposing team’s dugout to hit a player, but struck the fan in the head, prosecutors say. The actual July 24 game was interrupted by a 10-minute brawl that cleared the benches between Castillo’s Peoria Chiefs and home team Dayton. Castillo was indicted in Ohio this week on a count of felonious assault with a deadly weapon and a felonious assault causing serious physical harm. “There is no excuse for this type of behavior, whether it’s in a ball park or a back alley,” says prosecutor Mathias Heck Jr. “Fans should not be subjected to violence because a player is unable to control his temper.”

The young mother dialed 911 the day before her son was shot to death.
The day before Stephanie Thompson’s 4-year-old boy was shot to death, she called police to say that there was a man riding a bicycle around her Camden , N.J. , neighborhood with a machine gun. When police finally did show up, Brandon Thompson lay dead on the sidewalk in a pool of blood. He had been shot in the head. “I watched my baby get shot,” Stephanie Thompson, 21, told The Philadelphia Inquirer. “I couldn’t get to him fast enough. I called 911 and told them. He was just riding around. It wasn’t like he was hidin’ it. This could have been avoided if they had done their job. Police acknowledge that Stephanie Thompson had called police about the man with the machine gun, but they are questioning whether that was the weapon used to kill Brandon , the Inquirer reports. Police also say that the boy ran into crossfire and was killed. Stephanie says that her son was playing in the street when the alleged shooter, Donald Lindsey, showed up with his machine gun. Stephanie Thompson told authorities that she heard a series of short, staccato blasts and ran to find her son. As she rounded the corner, she saw Brandon running toward her on the sidewalk, the Inquirer reports. The man on the bicycle saw him, took aim and shot him down, according to Stephanie Thompson. “I went to go pick him up and he had blood coming from everywhere. I just held him and told him to get up,” she said. “But he wouldn’t get up. He was only 4. And he was trying to run to his mommy. I couldn’t get there in time.” Camden arrived a few minutes too late. “The cops came and took my baby to the hospital and we wasn’t even there 5 minutes and he died,” she said. “He (Lindsey) looked me dead in my face when my son got shot. He knew he shot my son and he looked at me,” she said.