Articles Posted in Traffic Accident

Frank Caruso, of Westchester, was involved in a minor accident on the Eisenhower Expressway on Saturday at about 1 a.m.. A state trooper arrived on the scene and positioned his vehicle with his emergency lights activated to warn other motorists of the accident. Caruso sat in the back of the squad to keep warm while waiting for a tow truck to arrive. At approximately 1:20 a.m., the squad car was rear-ended by a Chevy Impala. Caruso was taken to Elmhurst hospital where he was pronounced dead. The trooper sustained a concussion.

Daniel Clark, 32, of Chicago, was behind the wheel of the Impala and was charged with aggravated DUI involving death and aggravated DUI involving great bodily harm. He was also charged with failure to yield to an emergency vehicle, driving too fast for conditions, and failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident according to the DuPage County Sheriff’s Office. Clark was taken to Alexian Brothers Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries. He was ordered to be held on a $1 million bond Sunday in DuPage County.

Man waiting in squad car dies after vehicle rear-ended, www.chicagotribune.com, February 12, 2012

Rakesh J. Baker, 23, is alleged to have driven his SUV the wrong way for over five miles on the outbound Stevenson Expressway early Friday morning. The incident ended with Baker’s vehicle crashing head-on into a small car on a ramp to Lake Shore Drive. Both drivers were seriously injured according to police. Baker, has been charged with DUI, driving the wrong way, failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident, and driving without insurance. He was placed into custody at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

A 24-year-old South Side woman was driving the other vehicle and was also taken to Northwestern with serious injuries. Police say that that luckily neither driver experienced life-threatening injuries. Illinois State Police began receiving calls around 3 a.m. reporting that an SUV was traveling the wrong way on the Stevenson. The crash occured at approximately 3:15 a.m. According to court records, Baker recieved more than a half-dozen Cook County traffic tickets over the last five years. He was released upon bond after his arrest.

DUI charges for wrong-way driver after collision on Stevenson ramp, www.chicagotribune.com, February 3, 2012

Arsenio Garcia, 24, was arrested and charged with misdemeanor DUI Saturday morning after allegedly striking a Chicago Police squad car. Police say Garcia was wearing only his underwear and socks when he was arrested.

Police were contacted by a concerned citizen around 11 a.m. when the vehicle in question was driving through an alley on the 2800 block of North Kostner Avenue on the city’s Northwest Side. The vehicle eventually drove the wrong way on a one-way street and collided with a squad car that was responding to the area.

Police officials say that after the crash, the man opened the door and fell out of the car wearing only his underwear and socks. He was transported to a hospital for minor scrapes. The Chicago officer driving the squad car was also taken to a local hospital for minor injuries.

Eric M. Barth, formerly of South Elgin, was sentenced to five years in jail and must also participate in Illinois Impact Incarceration Program for severely injuring a couple in a December 2010 DUI crash.

Barth, 22, was driving a Chevy pickup truck when his vehicle crossed into the opposite lane of traffic and struck another SUV head-on causing a sedan traveling behind the SUV to strike both vehicles. The driver and passenger of the SUV suffered serious injuries. The passengers of the other vehicles suffered minor injuries.

Barth fled the scene of the crash but returned shortly thereafter. Responding officers found two empty and two unopened beer cans on the floor of the the front driver’s seat. Barth’s blood alcohol level was more than 2 1/2 times the legal limit at .207 percent. He plead guilty to two counts of aggravated DUI.