Driver imprisoned for fatal DUI crash arrested again
A Naperville man who went to prison for a fatal alcohol-related crash was back in court Tuesday -- accused of driving drunk again.
Police arrested Steven J. Sutch about 2 a.m. Aug. 26 in Naperville, nearly nine years after the crash that killed two men. Prosecutors may upgrade the latest charge to a felony based on his record.
DuPage Associate Judge Bruce Kelsey granted a six-month suspension of Sutch's license for his refusal to submit to a breath test.
Seven years ago, Sutch pleaded guilty to felony reckless homicide for a Sept. 1, 1998, crash that killed the two men. Prosecutors charged him then under his birth name, Steven J. Szucs, formerly of Glen Ellyn.
He admitted to being intoxicated when his Pontiac Trans Am turned left in front of a Ford Mustang at a Wheaton intersection.
The crash killed Benigno Heredia, 24, of Villa Park and his 26-year-old friend, Juan Camarillo of Lisle. Both drivers were drunk. Blood tests showed Sutch had .16 percent alcohol in his blood while Heredia's was .12 percent. The legal limit in Illinois is .08 percent.
The tragic court case shed light on how easily drivers were sent back on the road despite myriad violations.
Sutch racked up at least 20 tickets from 1993 to 1998 for speeding, drag racing, driving with a suspended license and open alcohol in his car. Still, judges almost always granted him court supervision -- a probationary period in which a driver escapes conviction by not getting another ticket.
The law was changed limiting court supervision to no more than two in any 12-month period after the Daily Herald's examination of Sutch's record, dubbed "Fatal Flaw," as well as other chronic violators.
Sutch received a 6½-year prison term for the reckless homicide. He was paroled Dec. 5, 2001, after serving half the term. Afterward, secretary-of-state officials granted him three restricted driving permits and, April 30, 2004, reinstated his license.
On Tuesday, prosecutors Debora Brewer and Kristin Sullivan argued Sutch is a danger to society and should be required to abstain from alcohol. The judge declined to impose the restriction.
Sutch hired prominent DUI defense attorney Don Ramsell, who for more than one hour Tuesday grilled a Naperville police officer. The officer said Sutch was driving erratically and, after stopped, failed some sobriety tests, smelled of alcohol and had glassy eyes.
Ramsell, though, argued the officer lacked enough evidence to arrest Sutch. The attorney suggests the officer was desperate to make an arrest because it was the final hour of his shift while working a special DUI enforcement program in which at least one arrest is required.
Sutch is free on bond. Back in 2000, during his plea, and after participating in about 400 hours of jail self-help programs, he pledged to talk to others about the dangers of drunken driving and counsel substance abusers, and he even invited the victims' families to join him on his crusade.
His attorney said Tuesday Sutch has a college degree and a good job and is innocent. Prosecutors, though, argue Sutch should have known better.
He is due back in court Nov. 6.