March 29, 2024
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Local News

Yorkville man sentenced to 6 years in prison for 2017 fatal DUI crash on Route 47

YORKVILLE – A Yorkville man was sentenced to six years in prison for felony aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol related to a 2017 fatal crash, according to the Kendall County State's Attorney's office.

Kendall County State’s Attorney Eric Weis said in a Wednesday, Sept. 2 news release Bradley A. Anderson, 31, of the 0-100 block of Cotswold Drive, Yorkville, was sentenced to six years in the Illinois Department of Corrections by Kendall County Chief Judge Robert Pilmer during a contested Aug. 27 sentencing hearing.

Anderson will be required to serve no less than 85% of the six year sentence imposed. Attorney Jim Ryan represented Anderson.

The update comes after Anderson was arrested and charged after a fatal DUI crash back in December 2017. The crash resulted in the death of Tina M. Turner, 32, of the 2600 block of N. County Road 3853, Sheridan, who was pronounced dead at the scene.

According to reports, Anderson was seen by many people driving erratically on westbound Interstate 88 to the Route 56 and Route 47 interchange shortly after dark. Once on southbound Route 47, Weis wrote, Anderson – who was driving a black Cadillac – was weaving across both south and northbound lanes of traffic and driving at excessive speeds.

Concerned drivers attempted to contact police as a result of Anderson’s erratic driving, according to the state's attorney's office.

As Anderson approached a slight turn in the road approaching Galena Road, state's attorney's officials wrote, Anderson crossed into the northbound lane, directly into the path of a car being driven by the 32-year-old single mother, causing a collision. Several of the concerned drivers stopped to render assistance to both drivers. Anderson was extricated from his own car and airlifted to a nearby hospital where blood tests showed his blood-alcohol concentration to be .172, more than twice the legal limit to operate a motor vehicle, according to prosecutors.

Anderson had pleaded guilty to the charges on Feb. 20 and waived his right to a jury trial, according to court records. The sentencing hearing had been pushed back due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to state's attorney officials.

One of the concerned drivers, who spoke emotionally about attempting to stop Anderson and witnessing the fatal crash, testified during the sentencing hearing, according to the state's attorney's office. Evidence of Anderson’s prior DUI conviction from 2010 also was presented to the court, along with two victim impact statements from Turner's family members.

Pilmer, in imposing his sentence, said he considered several factors in arriving at his decision, including the impact on the victim, the cost of incarceration, Anderson’s prior 2010 DUI, the threat of harm to other drivers, and the need to deter others from committing the same crime, according to the news release.

Weis said in the news release he recognized the continuing carnage that drunk drivers cause on our roadways. While arguing for an appropriate sentence for Anderson, Weis said driving under the influence is one of the more deterrable crimes.

“Unfortunately, no matter what sentence the court gives, it will never bring back the victim of this tragedy,” Weis said in the news release.

Katie Finlon

Katie Finlon

Katie Finlon covers local government and breaking news for DeKalb County in Illinois. She has covered local government news for Shaw Media since 2018 and has had bylines in Daily Chronicle, Kendall County Record newspapers, Northwest Herald and in public radio over the years.