Police: Round Lake Beach man driving drunk with kids in car

A Round Lake Beach man was driving with a blood alcohol level more than four times the legal limit Saturday night when police pulled him over and found three children in his car, authorities said Wednesday.

Julio Cordova, 40, of the 1600 block of Melrose Avenue, faces three counts of endangering the life of a child; three counts of driving under the influence, one of them a felony charge; driving while license suspended; and other traffic offenses.

Cordova's arrest came as Round Lake Park police were conducting a traffic enforcement initiative that led to 20 other tickets and 39 warnings being issued by officers.

Police Chief George Filenko said Cordova was pulled over about 11:30 p.m. near Washington Street and Fairlawn Drive for improper lighting.

He subsequently failed a field sobriety test, police said, and voluntarily submitted to a Breathalyzer test that showed his blood alcohol content at 0.352, according to Filenko. The legal threshold is 0.08 percent.

"He claims he was coming from a party and had a couple of beers," Filenko said. "We've had people with a 0.35 (blood alcohol content) who have been hospitalized."

The three children, a 13-year old boy and 8-year old twin girls, were taken into protective custody and turned over to a relative, police said. The state Department of Children and Family Services was notified, Filenko added.

Cordova was released March 23 from the Lake County jail after posting 10 percent of the $20,000 bail. A court date is set for March 30.