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Trial Set For Man Charged With Killing Jennifer Hudson's Family

CHICAGO (CBS) -- The man charged with killing three members of singer Jennifer Hudson's family in 2008 will go on trial for the murders in April.

William Balfour, 30, is charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of Hudson's mother, brother and nephew.

At a hearing on Thursday, Judge Charles Burns scheduled jury selection to begin on April 9. Testimony is expected to begin two weeks later.

Prosecutors have said Balfour, the estranged husband of Hudson's sister Julia, shot Hudson's family members in a jealous rage after learning Julia Hudson was dating another man.

Hudson's mother, Darnell Donerson, and the singer's brother, Jason Hudson, were found dead on Oct. 24, 2008, inside their home in Englewood. Julia Hudson's 7-year-old son, Julian King, was found dead three days later in the back of Jason Hudson's car.

All three were shot to death.

Authorities have said Balfour drove to the Hudson family home on Oct. 24, 2008, and shot Donerson, 57, and Jason Hudson, 29, then grabbed Julian King and shot him inside Jason Hudson's SUV, which was found three days later, abandoned on the West Side.

(The Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this report.)

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