In early February, Frank Caruso had been involved in a car accident, so he called his girlfriend, Cynthia Avalos, to ask her to come pick him up. Caruso, 42, was able to wait in the rear of a squad car that was one of two cars blocking two lanes of Interstate 290, when minutes later, the car was struck by another vehicle. According to officials, the driver admitted to drinking that night.
When Avalos arrived on the scene, she was told to go to Elmhurst Memorial Hospital where she soon found out that her boyfriend of two years had been pronounced dead. The next day, DuPage County Judge Brian Diamond set a bond at one million dollars for the driver that struck the police car. Daniel C. Clark, 32, was charged with two counts of aggravated driving under the influence, according to the Chicago Tribune.
The other victim in the car with Caruso, the state trooper, suffered from a concussion due to the squad car spinning around twice. The driver, Clark, did not appear to have been hurt too badly. Clark, who had been at a work-related event at a bar, had admitted to drinking five glasses of wine. Clark’s blood-alcohol concentration was recorded to be at 0.249 percent, more than three times that the legal limit of 0.08 percent, according to prosecutors.
If you or anyone you know has been affected by a car accident or a DUI, be sure to contact a lawyer in Chicago immediately. Call an experienced Illinois Personal Injury Attorney today.