STERLING – Charges filed against a Sterling man accused of driving drunk and hitting a bicyclist on March 24 were dismissed.
Matthew R. Crandall, 31, who was free on $25,000 bond, had all three felony charges dropped Monday after a judge decided there was no probable cause to prosecute, online court records show.
In general, a finding of no probable cause at a preliminary hearing means the judge determined that the state failed to present sufficient evidence, Whiteside County State’s Attorney Trish Joyce said. She was speaking in general terms; Joyce does not discuss cases.
No further details were available in the court record.
Defense attorney Jim Mertes of Sterling said only that he is pleased with the results.
Crandall was southbound on Galt Road near U.S. Route 30 around 1 a.m. March 24 when he struck bicyclist Aaron T. Marruffo, 38, of Sterling, Whiteside County Sheriff Kelly Wilhelmi has said.
Marruffo still was at OSF St. Anthony Medical Center in Rockford on Wednesday, listed in good condition.
Crandall was arrested that day and charged with two counts of failure to report an accident, the first punishable by 3 to 7 years in prison, and the second by 1 to 3 years; and aggravated DUI, punishable by 1 to 12 years.
He also was charged with two misdemeanor counts of DUI for having a blood-alcohol content greater than .08. Those charges, too, were dropped.
Joyce, again speaking in generalities, said if prosecutors do not agree with the court’s decision, they can request a grand jury hearing to seek an indictment.
A grand jury is an advisory body that meets behind closed doors, hears evidence and returns a bill of indictment if it determines that the prosecution has enough evidence to win a case in open court. The prosecution then decides whether to proceed.
Joyce did not indicate whether she would seek a grand jury hearing in this case.
She did say that such a finding of no probable cause has happened three times since she has been in office, and each time, she secured an indictment.