CHICAGO — A 42-year-old Chicago man was fatally shot Wednesday evening while broadcasting live on Facebook from inside his car in the city’s South Austin neighborhood, police said.
Kevin Watson was sitting in a vehicle in a parking lot in the 5000 block of West Madison Street around 6:14 p.m. on Aug. 13, 2025, when another vehicle approached, according to the Chicago Police Department. An occupant of that vehicle fired shots, striking Watson once in the chest. He was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 6:52 p.m., the Cook County medical examiner’s office confirmed.
In the livestream, which later drew millions of views, Watson is heard discussing an earlier parking dispute before becoming alarmed. He is recorded saying, “What’s up, bro? What’s up?” and then “Hell nah” as he exits the vehicle. A single gunshot is heard shortly afterward, followed by the sound of a vehicle driving away. The confrontation and shooting occur outside the camera’s view.
Witnesses told local outlets that Watson stepped out of the car and that a struggle took place before the shot was fired. One friend, Alvin Jackson, said a man followed Watson and produced a gun, and that Watson tried to wrestle it away when it discharged. Another friend, Lamar Spencer, recalled trying to comfort Watson afterward: “I rubbed his palm, and I squeezed his hand, and he wouldn’t squeeze back.”
Watson’s sister, Teletha Watson, told the Chicago Sun-Times that her brother had stepped out to confront the situation rather than remain in the car. Relatives said he leaves behind a 6-year-old son and was killed weeks before his birthday. A cousin who worked at a nearby liquor store Watson had visited shortly before the shooting described him as someone who helped people in the community.
The shooting took place a few blocks from a police station. Chicago police said no one was in custody in the immediate aftermath and that Area detectives were investigating. Surveillance and witness accounts referenced in police reports described a person in a ski mask leaning from a white vehicle before it left the area. As of later public reports, no arrests had been announced in the case.
The incident was the second fatal shooting on the same block in two days, according to local reporting. The livestream continued briefly after the gunshot, capturing bystanders calling for help before officers arrived.
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