A Zion woman live-streaming on TikTok ran a red light and struck a pedestrian on a November afternoon, prosecutors say. Darren Lucas, 59, of Beach Park, was leaving work and walking to the bus stop when Tynesha D. McCarty-Wroten’s vehicle hit him on Nov. 3, 2024.

McCarty-Wroten, a 43-year-old TikTok personality known as TeaTyme, has been charged with reckless homicide, a Class 3 felony, and aggravated use of an electronic communication device. Her case is among recent prosecutions using a 2021 distracted-driving law that allows Illinois prosecutors to charge motorists with felonies when phone use causes deaths — illustrating how quickly a moment of inattention can turn fatal.

According to IDOT statistics, 260 people died, and 29,458 people were injured in crashes involving distractions between 2019 and 2023. In 2023, 58 people were killed in crashes involving at least one distracted driver, accounting for 4.7% of all traffic fatalities that year.

Lake County prosecutors say McCarty-Wroten was actively streaming to 14 viewers and talking to the camera when her eyes left the road.

“The collision between Lucas and [the] defendant’s vehicle is heard on the livestream recording,” Lake County Sheriff’s Office detectives wrote in their report. “Defendant’s eyes are looking up at the phone on the mount when the vehicle strikes Lucas. Defendant is heard stating – I hit somebody.”

The case is pending, and McCarty-Wroten is due back in court on July 26. Should she be convicted on the more serious Class 3 felony, she could be sentenced to 5 years in prison. If the judge finds there are extenuating circumstances, she could face up to 10 years in prison.

McCarty-Wroten’s case is not isolated and comes at a time when traffic crash counts, the number of collisions caused by distracted driving, and the number of them that involve cell phone use continue to climb nationwide.

By the numbers

Nationally, more than 3,000 people are killed annually in crashes involving distracted driving, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

According to data released by the NHTSA, there were a total of 5,930,697 crashes logged nationwide in 2022 that led to fatalities, injuries, or property damage. Of them, 652,050 were categorized as distraction-affected.

By 2024, the last year for which figures are available, the number of total crashes had increased to 6,180,241, with 732,914 of them categorized as distracted-affected crashes.

The number of those involving cell phones also increased: with 62,479 listed as cell phones playing a role in the 2022 crash figures; that number increased to 67,518 in 2024.

Laws in Illinois – where distracted driving claimed 58 lives in 2023, according to the Illinois State Police – prohibit all drivers from reading, sending, or receiving text messages; video streaming; browsing the internet; and using handheld electronic communication devices. Drivers under 18 are prohibited from using any cellphone, even hands-free. All drivers are prohibited from using any cellphone in school speed zones, work zones, and within 500 feet of emergency scenes.

Distracted driving is any activity that diverts attention from driving, including talking or texting, eating, drinking, talking to people in your vehicle, playing with the stereo, entertainment, or navigation system, or anything else that takes the driver’s attention away from the task of safe driving.

Texting is the most alarming distraction, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Sending or reading a text takes your eyes off the road for 5 seconds. At 55 mph, that’s like driving the length of an entire football field with your eyes closed.

Recent cases in Illinois show prosecutors turning to the distracted-driving felony when cellphone use is alleged to have contributed to a fatal crash.

In La Salle County, Daniel P. Olson, a Manville man, is awaiting trial on reckless homicide and aggravated use of a communications device charges in connection with a crash north of Ottawa on the Friday after Thanksgiving 2024. Investigators determined Olson accessed a website while driving, prosecutors allege.

Olson was charged in July 2025 in La Salle County Circuit Court with four charges – two felonies and two misdemeanors – all filed after an investigation into the Nov. 29, 2024, crash north of Ottawa that killed David A. Camp.

Olson’s controlling charge is reckless homicide, a Class 3 felony carrying 2 to 5 years in prison with the possibility of probation, but it is subject to the state Truth in Sentencing Act requiring certain felons to serve at least 85% of their prison time.

Like McCarty-Wroten, Olson is also charged with aggravated use of a communications device (resulting in a death). Court records specifically allege that Olson accessed a website, calling it “a proximate cause” of the fatal crash.

Lake County authorities agree that distracted driving is a persistent threat. Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said the sheriff’s office takes the problem seriously. In April, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office joined more than 200 local agencies statewide for stepped-up enforcement measures during Distracted Driving Awareness Month. In November, Illinois State Police conducted similar patrols in Cook, DuPage, Kane, and Will counties.

The ISP says drivers can prioritize safe driving by keeping their hands on the wheel, their eyes on the road, and their focus on driving, and by following these steps:

• If you are expecting a text or need to send one, pull over and park your car in a safe location

• Do not engage in social media scrolling or messaging while driving

• Cellphone use is habit-forming. Struggling to not text and drive? Activate your phone’s “Do Not Disturb” feature

“Distracted driving, specifically using cellular phones while driving, impacts every age group,” Covelli said. “It only takes a split second for it to turn tragic, which we’ve unfortunately seen too many times.”