Man pleads not guilty in fatal crash in Volo
A Wauconda man pleaded not guilty to charges he was under the influence of marijuana when the car he was driving struck and killed a pedestrian in Volo.
Brandon A. Stang, 23, of the 400 block of North Main Street, faces three counts of aggravated driving under the influence that resulted in death and one count of reckless homicide. He made his plea Thursday during an arraignment hearing in front of Judge James Booras.
If found guilty of the aggravated DUI charges, Stang could be sentenced up to 14 years in prison, Assistant State's Attorney Dan Brown said. Stang faces up to five years in prison on the reckless homicide charge.
Brown said the reckless homicide charge is due to the speed Stang was traveling before to the crash that killed Stephanie V. Kostenko, 22, of Lake Zurich. Brown did not provide more details.
Stang is free from Lake County jail after posting the required 10 percent of his $100,000 bail.
Kostenko died from multiple injuries after the crash at 2:30 a.m. May 5. Police said Kostenko was crossing Route 12, just south of Route 120, when she was hit by a 2008 Ford Mustang driven by Stang.
Authorities said Stang was driving south on Route 12 when he struck Kostenko.
Members of the Lake County Sheriff's Office Technical Crash Investigations Unit investigated the crash.
Authorities said medical records confirmed the presence of marijuana in Stang's system at the time of the crash.
Defense attorney Greg Nikitas did not comment on the case after the arraignment hearing.
Stang's trial is set for Nov. 7. He is due back in court Aug. 10.