An off-duty Chicago police officer was arrested and charged with driving under the influence early Sunday after reportedly losing control of his vehicle, crashing into a restaurant, and killing a woman who was dining inside.
What are the details?
According to police, the unnamed officer was driving his personal vehicle down 87th street around 3:00 a.m. when he was cut off by another car. WLS-TV reported the three-year veteran of the Chicago Police Department reacted by making "a sharp turn and jumped a curb" trying to avoid the other car, causing him to plow into Tony's Philly Steak.
Registered nurse and mother of two Marquita Reed, 34, was sitting at a table inside the restaurant when it was hit and was pinned under the officer's Toyota sedan. She was rushed to Christ Medical Center, where she died of her injuries. A friend she was dining with was also hit and suffered a broken leg in the crash, but is expected to survive.
Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson addressed the incident while speaking at Navy Pier hours later during an unrelated press conference, ABC News reported. Johnson said the 24-year-old officer's blood alcohol level was 0.083 at the time of the crash — just over the Illinois legal limit of 0.08.
"We'll keep investigating and when the time comes, he will be held responsible for his actions," Johnson said of the officer.
WGN-TV reported that witnesses at the scene said the accident was not the officer's fault.
Witness Jerrell Desmond told WLS, "I don't even think he had time to hit the brakes." The outlet reported that Desmond's account lines up with what the suspect told police.
Investigators are also searching for the driver of the vehicle that allegedly cut the officer off and left the scene of the accident. Surveillance cameras from the restaurant will be reviewed to see if further details were captured in the footage.
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