A renowned political science professor is believed to have shot and killed his two young sons before turning the gun on himself.
Police in Winnebago County, Illinois, found the bodies of the children and a man at the home of P.S. Ruckman Jr., 58.
Cops were sent to the house after his estranged wife, Heidi, got concerned that she hadn't heard from them in a few days.
They divorced in August and have since been sharing custody of the children.
Police arrived at around 7.10am Saturday morning to perform a welfare check.
They found the man and two boys in separate bedrooms with gunshot wounds.
Bill Hintz, the county's coroner, is expected to formally release the identities of the three on Sunday after notifying the next of kin.
The two-story home is located 4600 block of Chandan Woods Drive and near the intersection of Linden and South Perryville roads (Pictured)
Winnebago County Sheriff's Department Deputy Chief Mike Schultz confirmed that Mrs Ruckman, who works as attorney in Chicago, was the person who requested the welfare check.
Cops were sent to the house after his estranged wife, Heidi, got concerned that she hadn't heard from them in a few days
'(She) hadn't heard from them for a couple days and it was her weekend for custody of the kids,' Schultz told the Standard.
Ruckman is a professor at Rock Valley College and an instructor at Northern Illinois University.
He is also an expert on presidential pardons and author of two books: 'Pardon Me, Mr. President: Adventures in Crime, Politics and Mercy' and 'The Pardon Power in the 21st Century.
Ruckman is also a much sought after source for numerous publications, including The Chicago Tribune, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, Forbes, Christian Science Monitor, USA Today and The Associated Press.
He has also appeared on major networks, including BBC, PBS and MSNBC.
Winnebago County court documents show that the Ruckmans filed for divorce in July 2017.
No prior reports of domestic violence between the estranged couple existed in police records, according to The Journal.
