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A motion to detain pretrial a West Chicago man accused of fatally striking a pedestrian with his car early Monday morning has been denied, prosecutors said.
The accused, 43, of the 600 block of West Forest Avenue, appeared in First Appearance Court on Tuesday charged with two counts of aggravated DUI causing death, according to a DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office news release.
About 2:36 a.m. April 15, West Chicago police responded to the intersection of Roosevelt and Pearl roads for a report of a car crash involving a pedestrian. Upon their arrival, officers found the victim, Miguel Duran, 36, lying face down in the roadway. He was not breathing and was bleeding from the head, according to the release. Duran was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.
After an investigation, it is alleged the offender was traveling west on Roosevelt Road in a 2011 Jeep Liberty. When the victim started to cross Roosevelt Road, the offender hit him with the vehicle, according to the release.
When the offender was speaking with police at the scene, officers allegedly detected an odor of alcohol as well as glassy and blood shot eyes. At the time of the crash, the offender’s blood-alcohol content was 0.11, according to the release. When searching the offender’s vehicle, police found a can of Monaco, a canned alcoholic cocktail, behind the front passenger seat, according to the release.
“I offer my sincerest condolences to Miguel Duran’s family and friends as they grieve their loss and wish them strength as they adjust to their lives without Miguel’s love and friendship,” DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin said in the news release.
“As I have said countless times in the past, if you have been drinking, do not drive. With ride-sharing services available with just the touch of a finger at any time of day or night, there is absolutely no reason to drive after you have been drinking, yet people still continue to get behind the wheel when they know full well they should not. Please do yourself a favor and call a cab or use a ride-sharing service if you have been drinking.”
“This is a senseless tragedy on many levels and is the reason why the city of West Chicago continues to make a concentrated effort to remove impaired drivers from our roadways,” West Chicago Chief of Police Colin Fleury said in the release. “In the blink of an eye, the lives of all parties involved in a fatal drunk driving accident are forever changed by the decision to get behind the wheel while impaired.”
The offender’s next court appearance is scheduled for May 13 for arraignment.