Guilty plea in 2012 Woodstock street racing deaths
A 21-year-old Woodstock man who left the scene after two teens crashed into a pole and died while street racing last July has pleaded guilty and will be sentenced Aug. 9.
Daniel L. Huber faces up to three years in prison on the felony charges for aggravated street racing, but more serious charges of leaving the scene of a fatal crash were dropped.
Those charges carried a prison term of four to 15 years in prison.
The July 1 crash killed Alex J. Kaiser and Jacob S. Norys, both 16-year-olds from Woodstock, when the 2010 Hyundai Elantra they were riding in hit a brick pillar and a tree in the 14200 block of Davis Road.
Both teens were wearing seat belts, but died at the scene. Efforts to reach their families Thursday were unsuccessful.
Authorities said Huber, who met the teens at Davis Road where the race began, left the scene without calling 911 or coming to their aid.
Huber pleaded guilty Wednesday to aggravated street racing and obstruction of justice, both felonies, according to court records.
Huber made what is called a “cold plea,” in which a defendant admits guilt and lets a judge decide the sentence instead of agreeing with prosecutors on a sentence beforehand.
When McHenry County Judge Sharon Prather decides his sentence one factor will be Huber’s criminal history. While he doesn’t have any previous felony or misdemeanor convictions, court records show he’s been cited numerous times for truancy, failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident, failure to wear a seat belt and disobeying a stop sign.
Huber was out on bond when he was cited for possession/consumption of alcohol in a public place April 25 in Woodstock. He was fined $660 for the offense.
A message for McHenry County Assistant State’s Attorney Patrick Kenneally was not immediately returned. Efforts to reach Huber’s defense attorney were not successful.