Wheeling teen faces DUI charges

A Wheeling teenager involved in a fatal automobile accident last December faces charges of aggravated DUI resulting in death.

A Cook County judge set bail at $10,000 for Melissa Salgado, 19, who prosecutors say was driving a car at about 6:16 p.m. Dec. 18 on the 200 block of Reef Court in Wheeling when she struck an 86-year-old pedestrian who was walking in the street, said Cook County Assistant State’s Attorney Maureen McGee.

While a Breathalyzer test registered Salgado’s blood alcohol content at zero, officers detected evidence of cannabis in the car, McGee said. Additional tests revealed cannabis in the defendant’s system, McGee said.

The judge also ordered Salgado to submit to electronic monitoring.

If convicted of the class two felony, Salgado, who was on supervision for retail theft, could face from three to 14 years in prison. In this case, probation is an option only if “extraordinary circumstances” warrant it, McGee said.

She next appears in court Feb. 14.