Chicago Deputy died from gunshot wound to head; death ruled suicide: ‘He wanted to become officer since he was a toddler’

An Illinois State Trooper’s death was ruled a suicide after he sustained a single gunshot wound to the head on a Chicago expressway on Friday.

The Cook County Medical Examiner determined that 35-year-old Trooper Gerald Mason committed suicide at around 2 p.m. on the inbound lanes of Dan Ryan Expressway.

“He was an amazing District Chicago trooper,” the State Police Director Brendan Kelly said of the late 11-year veteran trooper.

Mason’s mother told local news outlets that her son's dream had always been to become a police officer and that since he was just a toddler.

“He was a sweetheart, and he loved everybody. He just wanted to protect people and make this city and state better.”