Chicago Illinois Car Accident Lawyer Blog

There was another accident caused by a wrong-way driver early this morning; this accident happened on Chicago's Kennedy Expressway.

According to the Illinois State Police, Vanessa M. Castillo, 25, of Chicago, got onto the Kennedy Expressway at Armitage and headed inbound in the outbound lanes. After hitting a semi truck as well as a black Mazda, she crashed head-on into a black Nissan Maxima at about 4:20 a.m. near Division Street. Castillo was driving a silver Chrysler Sebring.

In the course of the head-on collision, Castillo and the other driver were seriously injured and were pinned in their cars. Castillo was said to be unconscious and smelled heavily of alcohol. She was taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center. The other driver, said to be a 34-year-old woman, was said to be conscious, and she was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

According to the Illinois State Police, DUI charges have been filed against Castillo, and she has also been cited for driving without a driver's license and driving the wrong way.

Additional details and possible updates can be seen in the February 22 CBS Chicago article titled "2 Injured On Kennedy Expressway In Another Wrong-Way Crash" as well as the February 22 Chicago Tribune article titled "Woman charged with DUI in wrong-way crash on Kennedy."

-

This is the latest incident of wrong-way driving on Chicago-area expressways. Other recent wrong-way driving incidents have been seen in the blog post of February 11 titled "'Wrong-Way Driver' Collides With Car On Chicago's Eisenhower Expressway" as well as the February 9 blog post titled "Recent 'Wrong-Way' Driver Incidents In The Chicago Area."

_____

Elman Law Group LLC concentrates in Personal Injury and Wrongful Death cases involving car accidents as well as other types of vehicle accidents (bike, bus, motorcycle, pedestrian, truck, etc.) This intense focus, along with decades of experience practicing Illinois law, allows us to consistently achieve winning verdicts and settlements for our clients.

If you or a loved one have been injured or killed in an accident, call 773-392-8182 at any time for a free consultation to discuss your rights. There is no fee for this consultation.

A man, said to be in his 30s, was struck by a car and killed early this morning on the Dan Ryan Expressway (Interstate 94).

Details are limited at this time.

Continue reading "Man Dies On Chicago's Eisenhower Expressway (I94) After Walking Into Traffic" »

ABC7 News, in an article today (February 11, 2012) titled "Wrong-way driver crash is sixth in month" tells of another "wrong-way" car accident in the Chicago area, this one on the Eisenhower Expressway near Austin.

Details on the accident are limited.

As seen in the ABC7 News story :

It was Scott Davis's worst nightmare. A van was speeding the wrong way toward him as he traveled to work Saturday morning on the inbound Eisenhower near Austin. "I just said oh my God and I just turned my car," Davis said. "I thank God that I'm still alive right now."

Continue reading ""Wrong-Way" Driver Collides With Car On Chicago's Eisenhower Expressway " »

A man has been killed and a Illinois State Police officer injured in a fatal car accident on the Eisenhower Expressway (I-290) early this morning.

The Illinois State trooper had stopped to assist a man with a non-injury traffic accident on eastbound I-290 near Mill Road. The trooper used his car and lights to block the left lane in which the disabled car sat.

While waiting for a tow truck to arrive, the man sat in the back of the Illinois State Police car. At approximately 1:20 a.m., a car rear-ended the squad car.

The man killed has not yet been identified; however, he is said to be 42 years old and from Brookfield. He died after being taken to Elmhurst Hospital.

According to officials, the Illinois State Police trooper was also injured, and taken to Loyola University Medical Center with a possible concussion. He is said to be in his 20s.

Continue reading "Fatal Car Accident On The Eisenhower Expressway (I290) When Illinois State Police Car Rear-Ended " »

In the recent past there have been a variety of "wrong-way" driver incidents on Chicago area expressways.. Some of these incidents involved accidents, including fatal accidents.

Here is a list, in reverse chronological order, of "wrong-way" driver incidents that have been widely reported, along with links to the relevant blog posts concerning these incidents:

February 9, 2012: "Wrong-Way Driver Collides With Car And Van On Chicago's Lake Shore Drive"

February 6, 2012: "4 Dead In Wrong-Way Car Accident On I-80 In Hazel Crest, Illinois"

February 3, 2012: "Wrong-Way Driver On Chicago's Stevenson Expressway Drives 6 Miles, Then Crashes "Head-On" Into Another Car"

January 16, 2012: "'Wrong-Way' Driver Incident On Chicago's Kennedy Expressway"

Continue reading "Recent "Wrong-Way" Driver Incidents In The Chicago Area" »

There was a car accident on Chicago's Lake Shore Drive early this morning involving a wrong-way driver.

According to police, at approximately 2:00 a.m. a red Nissan was driving northbound at a high rate of speed in Lake Shore Drive's southbound lanes, and it collided with a Toyota Corolla at Roosevelt Road.

After this collision, the Nissan also hit a van.

Continue reading "Wrong-Way Driver Collides With Car And Van On Chicago's Lake Shore Drive" »

This morning, four people died in a fatal car accident on Interstate 80 in Hazel Crest, Illinois.

There are some differences in the various news accounts with regard to details regarding the accident. However, here are various details being widely reported:

Alcohol is thought to have been a factor in the accident.

The accident involved 2 cars; one car was driving the wrong direction on the westbound lanes of I-80, near Kedzie Avenue, at the time of the accident.

The wrong-way driver was driving a beige Infiniti sedan, with three passengers, at approximately 2:30 a.m., when the accident happened.

According to a February 6 CBS Chicago article titled "4 Killed On I-80 When Wrong-Way Driver Hits Car Head-On" :

Police said the driver, Gustavo Vargas, 29, of Berwyn, had just left the Skybox gentlemen's club in Harvey with his three passengers. He wanted to turn around and go eastbound on I-80 instead of westbound, after reaching a median cut-through intended for emergency vehicles. Instead of getting into the eastbound lanes, he made a three-point turn and began heading the wrong way.

The Infiniti Vargas was driving then collided with another car. Vargas and two passengers in the car were killed during the accident. The two passengers killed were Jorge Pina, 27, of Chicago, and Armando Ruiz, 29, of Berwyn.

According to police, another passenger, Eduardo Rodriguez, 31, of Chicago, was taken in fair condition to Oak Lawn's Advocate Christ Medical Center.

Continue reading "4 Dead In Wrong-Way Car Accident On I-80 In Hazel Crest, Illinois" »

Early Friday morning, a Chicago car accident happened when a "wrong-way" driver drove 6 miles on the Stevenson Expressway before crashing head-on into a car on the ramp to Lake Shore Drive.

The "wrong-way" driver, Rakesh Baker, 23, of Chicago, has been charged with DUI.

It is unclear as to when Baker started driving the wrong way; however, motorists started reporting him driving inbound at a high rate of speed in the outbound lanes at 3:07 a.m., according to Illinois State Police.

At approximately 3:15 a.m., his 2008 Jeep Liberty, which he was driving at a high rate of speed, hit a woman, Bessie Postles, 25, "head on" on the Lake Shore Drive ramp. Postles was driving a 2005 Toyota Corolla.

Continue reading ""Wrong-Way" Driver On Chicago's Stevenson Expressway Drives 6 Miles, Then Crashes "Head-On" Into Another Car" »

A Chicago fire truck collided with a car Tuesday night, injuring 9 people.

The accident is still being investigated. However, it is being reported that the fire truck was on the way to a call, around 6:15 p.m., when it collided with a sedan at West 128th Place and South Halsted. This intersection is on Chicago's Far South Side.

According to authorities, the car reportedly had been stopped at the intersection, waiting for the fire truck - but then suddenly started moving again as the fire truck approached. The fire truck could not stop, and collided with the car.

Continue reading "9 Injured When Fire Truck Collides With Car On Chicago's Far South Side" »

A speeding car that ran a red light collided with another car, causing a multi-car accident on Chicago's Far South Side Sunday morning.

The accident happened around 7:30 at 106th and Ewing Avenue. According to witnesses, a 1992 Oldsmobile was traveling southbound on Ewing at a high rate of speed, ran the red light, and collided with a Dodge Durango that was traveling east on 106th Street.

Two other cars were also involved in the accident.

Continue reading "4 Car Accident On Chicago's Far South Side Leaves 2 People Seriously Injured" »

Three people were injured earlier this morning when their car rolled over on the Irving Park Road ramp of Chicago's Kennedy Expressway (I-94).

Details on this car accident are limited at this time. The accident happened at 1:54 a.m. According to the Illinois State Police, the car was heading northbound at the time.

Continue reading "Rollover Car Accident On Chicago's Kennedy Expressway Injures 3 People " »

A 3-car automobile accident on Friday night has left one man dead and five men injured. The accident occurred on Interstate 64 in Southern Illinois.

According to police, 21-year-old Maurice Currie, of Centralia, was the man killed. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Currie was a passenger in a car that was struck by a semi truck. Currie was in the backseat of the car; the car's driver and three other passengers were injured during the accident and sent to hospitals.

A driver of a third vehicle involved in the crash was also hurt.

Continue reading "3-Car Accident On Interstate 64 In Southern Illinois Leaves 1 Dead, 5 Injured" »

A "wrong-way" driver traveled a mile on Chicago's Kennedy Expressway this morning before being pulled over by the Illinois State Police.

The driver was driving inbound on the Kennedy's outbound lanes at around 1:45 a.m., according to Master Sgt. Joseph Stangl of the Illinois State Police.

The driver almost hit an Illinois State Police car during the incident, and was subsequently pulled over by the Illinois State Police near the Irving Park Road exit.

No one was injured during the incident. The motorist was arrested for possible DUI, as well as given citations for driving the wrong way, not having insurance, not wearing his seat belt and failure to yield, according to ISP Trooper Mark Hall.

Continue reading ""Wrong-Way" Driver Incident On Chicago's Kennedy Expressway" »

The snow that has fallen over the Chicago area both yesterday and last night has been attributed to causing a high number of traffic accidents. While the snowfall was reported at 4 to 8 inches, roads in the area were said to be slippery and icy.

This situation, in which a winter storm leads to many car accidents, has been seen earlier in the year as well. The post of January 2, titled "Numerous Car Accidents..." highlighted a variety of Chicago area car accidents, some fatal, that occurred on that day.

For those looking for advice on how to safely drive in winter conditions, AAA has published a guide concerning "Winter Driving Tips" on their website. This list includes the following recommendation, with regard to driving in snow:

Continue reading "High Number Of Car Accidents Reported In Chicago Area During Snowstorm" »

The subject of "back-over accidents" is discussed in the November 28 - December 4 Bloomberg Businessweek article titled "The Price of Preventing Back-Over Deaths."

"Back-over accidents" are those that happen when a vehicle inadvertently hits, or runs over, an unseen person as the vehicle moves in reverse (i.e. "backs up".)

Often times, these accidents occur because the person behind the vehicle is in the vehicle's blind spot, and, as such, is not visible to the driver.

The Bloomberg Businessweek article discusses the costs and benefits of implementing warning and detection systems, such as rear-view cameras, to prevent back-over accidents and deaths.

An excerpt from the article:

Each year, about 292 people die and 18,000 are injured in back-over accidents, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. By yearend the agency is expected to issue a regulation requiring rear-view cameras on all new automobiles sold in the U.S. starting in 2014. NHTSA says the cameras will cut the number of deaths by half, to 146 a year. Yet the auto industry is questioning the prospective rule, calling it an example of overregulation by the federal government. NHTSA estimates it will cost automakers as much as $2.7 billion to install the devices on 16 million cars every year, which works out to about $18.5 million per life saved.

Continue reading "Preventing "Back-Over" Deaths" »