DUI Crash Prompts Demand From Residents: 'Time For Village Of Shorewood To Take Action'

SHOREWOOD, IL — A recent crash in the middle of a Shorewood subdivision has resulted in DUI charges for a young woman from Plainfield and some residents of Shorewood are imploring their village leaders to take more drastic measures in order to prevent speeding between Route 59 and River Road.

According to the Shorewood police reports, 24-year-old Melissa Zander of Pin Oak Court in Plainfield was arrested on charges of DUI, DUI-0.08 or more and failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident.

Zander's crash happened in the 1000 block of Vertin Boulevard around 9 p.m. June 27.

The police summary shows that Shorewood officers were sent to Vertin Boulevard, where they saw a car blocking both lanes of traffic. The car had come to a rest on the driver's side and the driver was sitting upright. The Troy Fire Protection District responded to the scene and broke out the sunroof to remove the Plainfield motorist.

Zander told officers that she was driving intoxicated, the police report notes. She was taken to an ambulance for an evaluation and officers found a bottle of wine on the passenger's seat, according to the report. Zander was placed under arrest and the preliminary breath test results showed a BAC of 0.20, police revealed.

In the wake of the crash, some of the homeowners in the subdivision along Vertin Boulevard created fliers urging people to attend Tuesday night's regular Shorewood Village Board meeting.

"At 9 p.m. on Friday evening, a heavily intoxicated driver going well above the posted speed limit in a school zone slammed into the rear of a parked Ford Ranger utility vehicle pushing it 50 feet forward and flipping their car onto its driver's side," the neighborhood bulletin declared. "It is a miracle no one was seriously injured. But what about next time?

"It is time for the village of Shorewood to take action to support their residents and their safety."