Man gets $125,000 from Elk Grove Village after he's hit by car

Elk Grove Village is paying $125,000 to a man who police officers refused to take home and who later sued the village after being seriously injured in a car crash.

The out-of-court settlement, approved this week by the village board, resolves a lawsuit Joseph Itter filed in 2012 against the village and two of its officers. That agreement comes less than two months after Itter reached a $170,000 settlement with the driver of the car that hit him on Higgins Road during the early morning hours of April 28, 2011.

It all began when Elk Grove police officers Jason Gottwald and Matt FioRito pulled over a car driven by Itter's father, Brian, on Higgins east of Brummel Avenue at 12:47 a.m. Authorities say Brian Itter was arrested and charged with driving under the influence.

Joseph Itter, meanwhile, was the passenger in his dad's car, and didn't have a ride home. He told officers he didn't have a license and couldn't drive his dad's car, and didn't have money for a taxi, so he asked them to give him a ride home to Chicago.

The officers declined, saying the police department wasn't a "taxi service," according to Itter's lawsuit against the village.

Itter began walking down Higgins, and about a block away from the spot of the traffic stop, crossed the street and was hit by a car driven by Michael Burrell. Village Attorney George Knickerbocker said Itter was texting on his phone as he was crossing the street.

The lawsuit says the area was dark and poorly lighted. Itter suffered severe injuries and had medical expenses of some $2 million, Knickerbocker said.

The village's insurance administrator, Gallagher Bassett, recommended the village settle the case after the settlement was reached between Itter and Burrell.

Were the village the only defendant going to trial, it would have been responsible for costs of taking more depositions from expert witnesses, as well as additional legal fees. And Itter's settlement with the driver may have made a jury more sympathetic to his suit, Knickerbocker said. "It would have left us naked in the courtroom."

The village has spent about $95,000 on legal fees. It will pay $105,000 toward the settlement. Insurance is picking up the remaining $20,000, Knickerbocker said.

Itter, through his attorney, didn't respond to a request for comment.