CHESTER, Ill. — The family of murder victim Sheri Coleman postponed the burial Saturday of her remains, and those of her two murdered sons, so that another service for them could be held.

A funeral service for the Colemans was Saturday morning at the Grace Church Ministries here, and caskets bearing the three bodies were taken by hearses to Evergreen Cemetery.

But instead of being placed in the graves, the caskets were taken to a funeral home and then will be taken to the Chicago area for a memorial service Monday.

Members of Coleman's family, who live near Chicago, on Friday obtained a court order delaying the burial until Tuesday. A brother of Sheri Coleman, in an affidavit to the circuit court in Waterloo, said that Coleman's husband, Chris Coleman, had at first agreed to the delay, then reversed course. Through his attorneys, Coleman again agreed to the delay before a judge signed off on it Friday.

Sheri Coleman, 31, and her sons, Garett, 11, and Gavin, 9, were found slain Tuesday morning at their home in

Columbia, Ill. Chris Coleman, the husband and father, said he had been at a gym working out, and returned at 7 a.m. to find his family dead.

Twenty-five members of the St. Louis Major Case Squad are investigating the case, and no suspects have been identified. Granite City police Maj. Jeff Connor, the deputy commander of the squad, said Saturday there was no movement in the case.

In the five days since the killings, police have searched the Coleman house, scoured the roadways near the Jefferson Barracks Bridge and sent divers into the lake behind the Coleman house. Sources close to the case said investigators traveled to Florida last week to interview a woman said to be a friend of Sheri Coleman's. The woman and other mutual friends did not respond to messages seeking comment.

Chris Coleman, 32, who works security for televangelist Joyce Meyer in Jefferson County, has hired well-known Clayton criminal defense attorneys Arthur Margulis and his son, William.

William Margulis said Saturday that he had been in constant contact with the Major Case Squad, but had been provided little information about the investigation. He said he did not know whether police had a suspect or suspects.

He declined to comment on what he knew, saying, "The investigation is ongoing."

In the court petition, Sheri Coleman's brother, Mario D. Weiss of LaGrange Park, Ill., said that Chris Coleman had offered to have a memorial service in the Chicago area but later changed his mind, citing cost.

Sheri Coleman's family then agreed to pay all costs, and Chris Coleman agreed, the affidavit said.

But Weiss said in the affidavit that he returned a call about 1 p.m. Thursday from Coleman, and that Coleman again changed his mind.

"We decided we would rather only have a memorial service here in Chester and you and your family are more than welcome to come here," the affidavit quotes Chris Coleman as saying.

The affidavit also stated that the family learned of the deaths from police in LaGrange Park, where Sheri Coleman's mother, Angela DeCicco, lives. Chris Coleman did not call his Chicago in-laws until about 11 a.m. Thursday, the affidavit said.

DeCicco and Sheri Coleman's father, Donald Weiss, are divorced. He lives in the St. Petersburg, Fla., area. Sheri Coleman was born in the Chicago area but went to high school in the St. Petersburg area.

Jack Carey, a Belleville lawyer, represented Weiss and DeCicco in the court case in Waterloo.

"It's unfortunate the family had to go through the court for this," Carey said Saturday.

Enrico J. Mirabelli, a cousin of Sheri Coleman, said the goal of the court action "was to allow family members and friends who could not travel to Chester to have the opportunity to pay their last respects."

"We don't want to fight about this," Mirabelli said.

Chris Coleman grew up in Chester. His father, the Rev. Ronald Coleman, is a pastor at Grace Church, where Saturday's service was held.

About 400 people attended the private service. Donald Weiss attended the service; DeCicco did not.

At Evergreen Cemetery Saturday, the caskets bearing the remains of the Colemans arrived in three hearses.

A cluster of mourners gathered around the caskets, which rested on top of lifts above the graves.

The crowd dispersed after a short service. Chris Coleman left in the back seat of a car driven by his father, with his mother, Connie, in the front seat. After the last car left the cemetery, the three hearses returned.

Chester police officers stood by as several men reloaded the caskets into the vehicles, which returned the bodies to a funeral home.

VIGIL SET FOR TONIGHT

A candlelight vigil for the Coleman family is scheduled for 8 p.m. Sunday at Bolm-Schuhkraft Memorial City Park in Columbia near the tennis courts. The vigil is open to the public. The city asks those attending to bring their own candles.



Robert Patrick of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.