A 22-year-old man is dead after a fatal car wreck. The deceased man was in the hatch area of an SUV, which didn’t have a formal seat. His brother, 28, has been charged with DUI after allegedly smashing the vehicle into a guardrail on an exit ramp off a major highway. There were also five people in the front seat. There were two other passengers injured.
The accused man’s brother was thrown from the vehicle on impact and died at the scene, while another man, also 22, who was in the back seat, was also thrown from the vehicle and was transported to hospital with a broken shoulder and major cuts to his back and leg. A 20-year-old woman was also ejected from the vehicle and suffered minor injuries. Two more passengers were also taken to hospital and released.
Police said the accused agreed to a blood test, which showed a blood alcohol level of .148. Witnesses told cops the accused allegedly used pot and drank several alcohol drinks prior to the crash. The man apparently told police on video that he had six beers, a couple shots of whiskey and smoked pot the night before the incident.
When an Illinois resident is charged with DUI, he or she would be well-advised to seek legal counsel to get a firm understanding of his or her rights and the road ahead. Those accused of a DUI in Illinois have the right to aggressively defend the charge. A lawyer will pore over all evidence to assess whether the accused was arrested within the letter of the law and that blood tests were administered properly.
Source: Chicago Tribune, “Man charged in fatal DUI on Southwest Side that killed his younger brother“, Deanese Williams-Harris, Feb. 15, 2018