Georgia woman charged in fatal 2021 DUI crash in Marengo in custody in McHenry County jail

A 27-year-old Georgia woman accused of driving at high speeds while under the influence of cocaine and causing a crash that killed two people last year in Marengo was taken into custody Tuesday at the McHenry County jail.

Miranda A. Johnson, of the 8000 block of Estee Drive in Cummings, Georgia, appeared in rights court Wednesday morning and is being held on a $50,000 bond, of which she would need to post $5,000 to be released, according to McHenry County court documents and the jail log.

She is charged with two counts of aggravated driving under the influence, Class 2 felonies; two counts of reckless homicide, Class 3 felonies; two counts of aggravated reckless homicide, Class 4 felonies; and one count of speeding more than 35 mph (over the posted limit) according to the criminal complaint filed in the McHenry County courthouse.

The most serious charges are Class 2 felonies, which can carry sentences of three to seven years in prison.

The crash, which resulted in the deaths of Julie Greif and Carlos Valencia, occurred Sept. 29, 2021, near the intersection of West Coral Road and Route 23, according to the criminal complaint.

Charges were filed in the McHenry County Circuit Clerk’s Office on Aug. 26.

The nearly yearlong delay in pressing charges against Johnson was because of waiting on toxicology results from the Illinois State Police Crime Lab, said McHenry County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Emily Matusek and Assistant State’s Attorney Jim Newman, criminal division chief.

Johnson is due in court for a bond hearing Friday.

She is accused of being under the influence of cocaine when police said she drove 104 mph in a 55 mph zone and hit another vehicle, according to the criminal complaint.

The crash occurred as Johnson’s vehicle was westbound on West Coral Road and struck a 2011 Chevrolet Camaro traveling north on Route 23, according to court records and a news release at the time from the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office.

Valencia, 34, of Elgin, a passenger in Johnson’s vehicle, and Greif, 51, of Marengo, the only occupant of the Camaro, later died from their injuries.