Police Officer Sentenced in 2009 Fatal Hit-and-Run

 Posted on December 18, 2012 in Personal Injury

A former Chicago police detective was sentenced to eight years in prison for a 2009 charge of aggravated DUI that left two young men dead, according to the Chicago Tribune. Joseph Frugoli, who at the time was a 18-year veteran of the force, was ironically working as a homicide detective at the time of the accident. After slamming his Lexus SUV into the back of the victims’ car, which was disabled near Roosevelt Road, Frugoli fled the scene. “Prosecutors said Frugoli had been drinking at a nearby tavern and his blood-alcohol level was more than three times the legal limit,” according to the Tribune.

Both Andrew Cazares, 23, and Fausto Manzera, 21, were killed on site after being hit by Frugoli, and the scene was a fiery one, according to the Tribune. “Manzera’s mother sobbed and screamed following the sentencing. She contended Frugoli didn’t get a longer sentence because he had been a Chicago police officer.” The idea that police officers can get away with murder, or lessened sentences, isn’t a new one. A 2007 special Tribune report considered the rash of Chicago police officers that shoot innocent bystanders, and found that it’s not rare that police officers receive lesser sentences or none at all.

It’s also not the first time that police officers have been charged with DUIs in the Chicago area in recent history. According to The Huffington Post, 13 Chicago Police Department officers were arrested in 2008 for driving under the influence. “Five of them were involved in auto accidents that caused two injuries.” The Huffington Post cites U.S. Department of Health and Human Services statistics that indicate for every 155 drivers nationally there’s one drunk-driving arrest.

If you or someone you know has been injured by a police officer, you may entitled to compensation through a personal injury suit. Don’t go through it alone. Contact an experienced Cook County personal injury attorney today.

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