ILLINOIS STATE POLICE TROOPER STRUCK BY DUI DRIVER WHILE CONDUCTING SEPARATE DUI INVESTIGATION
On Dec. 17, 2021, at approximately 11:49 p.m., Illinois State Police (ISP) officials investigated a traffic crash involving an ISP District 14 Trooper on Interstate 94 northbound at Garfield Boulevard in Cook County.
On the above date and time, an ISP District 14 Trooper assigned to the District Chicago Anti Violence Detail was stationary at the above location inside of a fully marked squad car with the emergency lights activated, in order to assist another trooper with a DUI investigation on the right shoulder. A Black Nissan Sentra, traveling northbound on Interstate 94, failed to yield to the stationary emergency vehicle and veered off the roadway and onto the right shoulder, where the front end of the Nissan sideswiped the front driver’s side of the squad car. The Nissan lost control, traveled across all lanes of traffic and struck the concrete median barrier on the left shoulder.
The ISP Trooper did not require hospitalization. The driver of the Nissan, Alontae L. Holliday, a 25-year-old female of Matteson, IL, was charged with a violation of Scott’s Law, Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol, Operation of Uninsured Motor Vehicle, Driving Too Fast for Conditions and Improper Lane Usage. A person who violates Scott’s Law, commits a business offense and faces a fine of no less than $250 or more than $10,000 for a first offense. If the violation results in injury to another person, the violator’s driver’s license will be suspended for a mandatory period of anywhere between six months and two years.
So far this year, there have been 22 ISP squad cars struck in relation to Scott’s Law and 13 Troopers have sustained injuries from Scott’s Law-related crashes. The ISP would like to remind the public of the requirements of Scott’s Law, otherwise known as the “Move Over” law. When approaching an emergency vehicle, or any vehicle with their emergency or hazard lights activated, drivers are required to slow down AND move over.
“Troopers from throughout the state have left their families to work in Chicago on an Anti-Violence Detail, working 24-hours a day to keep our roadways safe from violent criminals,” stated ISP Division of Patrol, Deputy Director, Colonel Margaret McGreal. “The detail is successful, as is evidenced by the 226 recovered firearms seized by our Troopers along the expressways and the seven violent criminals arrested in the past two weeks for forcibly hi-jacking cars. While we continue to fight crime with the full weight of our most valuable resources, our hard-working Troopers, we need the public to avoid putting their lives at risk by making responsible choices when behind the wheel. Always drive sober, pay attention and move over when you approach a stationary vehicle on the side of the road. We can’t seize the next gun or apprehend the next violent criminal when citizens with no regard for the safety of others drive impaired,” stated Colonel Margaret McGreal.
