Crime & Safety
$350,000 Bail for Kendall County Woman Accused in Fatal Wrong-Way Crash
Sara Lopez is charged with reckless homicide and aggravated DUI in the wreck on I-294 that took an off-duty officer's life.
A 22-year-old Kendall County woman accused of driving the wrong way on I-294, causing a crash that killed an off-duty Chicago Ridge police officer, appeared in court Saturday where bail was set at $350,000.
Sara Lopez, of Bristol, is charged with reckless homicide and aggravated DUI. State Police said her actions in the early morning hours of Sept. 13 caused the death of Steven Smith, 27, who was a passenger in a car struck head on by Lopez. Smith died on the scene.
The crash took place near Hillside on I-294, near Cermak Road, at 3:45 a.m.
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Smith, an off-duty Chicago Ridge police officer, served in the Marines in Afghanistan after graduating from Richards High School in Oak Lawn in 2007. After the Marines, he became a part-time officer in 2010. He joined the Chicago Ridge police department full time in February. His funeral was Sept. 18.
Lopez was hospitalized after the accident. She was charged Friday.
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