Tag Archives: Hit and Run

Driver charged with fatal pedestrian hit-and-run in Des Plaines

Feb 17, 2017 | WLSAM Staff
Henry Houston | Des Plaines police

(DES PLAINES) Bond was set at $50,000 Thursday for a man charged with striking two men with his van, killing one, then driving away Tuesday morning in northwest suburban Des Plaines.

Henry Houston, 66, faces a felony count of leaving the scene of an accident involving death, according to Des Plaines police.

Roman Polniak, 52, and a 56-year-old man were on their way to work and got off a Pace bus about 6:15 a.m., police said. They were crossing Wolf Road westbound near Jarvis Avenue when they were struck by a white work van which then drove away, police said.

Both men were taken to Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, where Polniak was pronounced dead at 7:11 a.m., according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office. He lived on Chicago’s Northwest Side.

The other man was hospitalized overnight and was expected to survive, police said.

The van sped away north on Wolf after the crash, but was found several hours later in a parking lot in the 2000 block of Clearwater Avenue, police said. The driver was identified as Houston.

Houston, a Chicago resident, was ordered held on a $50,000 bond, records show. His next court date was unknown.

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Police: Man fatally struck by hit-and-run van in Des Plaines

Feb 14, 2017 | WLSAM Staff

(DES PLAINES) Police are searching for the driver of a van that struck two men, killing one, as they were crossing the street Tuesday morning in northwest suburban Des Plaines.

The men got off a Pace bus about 6:15 a.m. and were crossing South Wolf Road westbound near Jarvis Avenue when they were struck by a “white work van,” according to Des Plaines Police Chief Bill Kushner. One of the men told investigators the pair “looked both ways” before they crossed.

The men were both taken to Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, where one was pronounced dead and the other was treated for injuries that were not though to be life-threatening, Kushner said. The Cook County medical examiner’s office did not immediately have information on the fatality.

The van sped away north on Wolf after the crash, Kushner said.

Police were canvassing the area looking for surveillance videos from businesses or residences. Wolf was closed to traffic between Howard and Touhy Avenue for more than an hour after the crash.

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Police: Man killed in hit-and-run crash in Logan Square

Nov 3, 2016 | WLSAM Staff
A man was killed in a hit-and-run crash early Thursday in the 2500 block of North Western, police said. | Network Video Productions

(CHICAGO) A man was killed in a hit-and-run crash early Thursday in the Logan Square neighborhood on the North Side, police said.

A 2005 Chrysler 300 was traveling north in the 2500 block of North Western when the driver blew through a red light and struck a 1994 Mazda, according to Chicago Police.

The driver of the Mazda, a man thought to be in his 40s, was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. He was the only occupant of the car. The Cook County medical examiner’s office did not immediately confirm the fatality.

The driver of the Chrysler left the vehicle behind and ran away after the crash.

The police Major Accidents Investigation Unit is investigating the crash.

A man was killed in a hit-and-run crash early Thursday in the 2500 block of North Western, police said. | Network Video Productions
A man was killed in a hit-and-run crash early Thursday in the 2500 block of North Western, police said. | Network Video Productions

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Man charged with DUI, reckless homicide for Garfield Ridge hit-and-run

May 3, 2016 | WLSAM Staff
Patrick J. Brazel | Chicago Police

(CHICAGO) Reckless homicide and DUI charges have been filed against the hit-and-run driver of an SUV that struck two pedestrians late Saturday in the Garfield Ridge neighborhood on the Southwest Side, leaving one of them dead.

Patrick J. Brazel, 27, has been charged with two felony counts of leaving the scene of an accident causing injuries or death; one felony count of reckless homicide; one felony count of aggravated DUI causing a fatal accident; and one misdemeanor count of DUI, according to a statement from Chicago Police. He was also cited for failure to take due care for a pedestrian in the roadway.

About 10:45 p.m., a 42-year-old woman and 39-year-old man were walking north across Archer Avenue at Lavergne when they were both struck by a red Jeep, police said.

The driver, identified as Brazel, left the scene of the crash but was arrested within several hours in the 5800 block of South Rutherford, police said.

The woman was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where she later died, authorities said. The Cook County medical examiner’s office has not released her name.

The man was taken to MacNeal Hospital in Berwyn, where his condition was stabilized, police said.

Brazel, who lives in the 5800 block of South Neva, was expected to appear in bond court Tuesday, according to police.

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Woman charged in fatal Tinley Park hit-and-run crash

Jul 23, 2015 | WLSAM Staff
Jacqueline Cummings | TInley Park police

(TINLEY PARK) A 21-year-old woman has been charged with a hit-and-run crash that killed a pedestrian early Saturday outside a south suburban concert venue.

Jacqueline Cummings of Oak Lawn was charged Wednesday with reckless homicide and failure to report an accident involving death, according to a statement from the village of Tinley Park. She is scheduled to appear in bond court Wednesday afternoon in Bridgeview.

Cummings was driving her 2005 Jeep Cherokee on Oak Park Avenue just east of Harlem Avenue at 12:16 a.m. when she struck a pedestrian, sideswiped a police car and then drove away, police said. Officers were already at the scene handling a different crash.

The pedestrian was identified as 54-year-old Luisa Domantay of Greenwood, Ill., authorities said. She was taken to Silver Cross Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

“Several officers have worked nearly non-stop since the accident to locate evidence and witnesses, which led to the arrest,” Tinley Park Police Chief Steve Neubauer said in the statement. “This case is a tragedy on many levels. It is our hope that this arrest gives the family closure.”

Cummings was also cited for failure to yield right of way to an emergency vehicle, improper lane use, failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident, failure to signal, and use of a wireless phone in an emergency zone, police said.

The crash happened after a concert at the Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre nearby, where country artist Jason Aldean had just performed Friday night.

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Woman critically hurt in NW Side hit-and-run

Feb 25, 2015 |

(CHICAGO) A woman was critically injured in a hit-and-run crash Tuesday evening in the Belmont Heights neighborhood on the Northwest Side.

The woman, 55, was crossing the street about 6:25 p.m. in the 3400 block of North Harlem when she was hit by a gold four-door car, police said.

She was taken to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge in critical condition, police said.

No suspects were in custody as of early Wednesday, police said. The Major Accidents Investigation Unit is investigating the crash.

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Crystal Lake man, ISU student, in coma after hit-and-run

Jan 27, 2015 |

(NORMAL) A 20-year-old Illinois State University student from the northwest suburbs is in a coma after he was involved in a hit-and-run crash Saturday morning near his dorm.

Benjamin Allison was in the crosswalk near College and Fell, just east of ISU’s main quadrangle, when he was struck by a vehicle driven by an intoxicated driver at 8:46 a.m., according Normal police and a statement from Illinois State University.

Allison, of Crystal Lake, was taken to Advocate Bromenn Medical Center, where police said he was still on life support Tuesday morning.

The driver was later found and identified as 21-year-old Joshua Dunn, also an ISU student and originally from Lombard, police said. He was charged Saturday with driving under the influence of drugs and failure to report an accident, police said.

Dunn also told police he was drinking several hours before the crash, but that has not yet been confirmed by lab tests, police said.

A McClean County judge ordered Dunn held on $750,000 bond Monday, police said.

Allison is a communications major at ISU and works at the school’s radio station, WZND, ISU President Larry H. Dietz said in a statement.

“Illinois State is a caring community and staff members in our Student Affairs division and the School of Communication are lending their support to Benjamin and his family during this time,” Dietz said. “There has also been an outpouring of support expressed through social media channels.”

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