Sheriff: Mom with empty bottles in car injures daughter in Elgin-area crash
A Genoa woman faces felony DUI charges after a one-car crash Friday near Elgin in which she was injured along with her 8-year-old daughter.
Authorities said three empty wine bottles were found in the vehicle belonging to Brittney A. Godenschwager, 34, of the 200 block of South Genoa Road.
According to the Kane County sheriff'soffice and court records, Godenschwager was headed west on Bowes Road about 9:30 p.m. when her 2008 Honda Civic left the road and struck a grass embankment near the intersection of Muirhead Road in Plato Township.
She and her daughter were taken to Presence St. Joseph Hospital in Elgin, where a sheriff's deputy noticed Godenschwager smelled of alcohol, had slurred speech and bloodshot, glassy eyes, according to court records.
A Kane County sheriff's report said deputies found three empty wine bottles in Godenschwager's car; sheriff's spokesman Lt. Pat Gengler could not specify the capacity of each of the bottles.
She is charged with six felonies: two counts DUI causing great bodily harm; two counts for DUI causing great bodily harm of a person younger than 16; and two felony counts for DUI with no valid driver's license.
Godenschwager also was charged with misdemeanor DUI, misdemeanor DUI with a blood-alcohol concentration greater than .08, driving with a suspended license, operating an uninsured motor vehicle and failure to reduce speed, court records show.
Godenschwager was wanted on warrant that was issued in the spring after she failed to show up for a court date for a retail theft arrest at a South Elgin SuperTarget in May 2017, records show.
She is being held on $87,500 bail at the Kane County jail, meaning she must post $8,750 to be released while the case is pending. If she does post, she is to have no drugs or alcohol or contact with her two minor children, records show.
Godenschwager is due in court on Friday and faces a punishment ranging from probation to up to 12 years in prison if convicted of the most severe charges.