Aurora man dies after fleeing police, crashing motorcycle

A 28-year-old Aurora man died Saturday after he fled from police and slammed his motorcycle into a cement truck, his wife and children just blocks behind in a car caravanning to a family party.

Jerry Taylor, of the 1600 block of Jericho Road, was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash, which occurred around 9:30 a.m. at the intersection of North Park and Pennsylvania avenues.

Aurora Police Sgt. Chris Whitfield said that a few minutes before the crash, police attempted to pull over Taylor for a headlight violation on his Kawasaki motorcycle. Taylor didn't stop and began driving recklessly, Whitfield said.

He said police chose not to follow Taylor, who crashed several blocks away from the attempted traffic stop. Taylor was not wearing a helmet.

Taylor's wife, Trakisha Taylor, said she came upon the scene just minutes later and saw her husband's body laying in the street. She was in a car with their two children and nephew, following her husband to a family reunion.

Trakisha said she doesn't dispute that her husband tried to evade police, saying he likely took off because he didn't have a motorcyclist license.

However, she questioned why police would try to stop him since he had installed a new headlight bulb on Friday. Whitfield said he didn't know exactly what about the headlight was in violation.

Trakisha said she lost track of her husband after police tried to pull him over, but a few minutes later a fire truck pulled out of a fire station with its lights and sirens activated.

"I had a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach," Trakisha said.

Whitfield said the officer had a tough decision to make about whether to pursue.

"The officer had to make a decision whether it was worth a public safety risk to pursue him," Whitfield said, adding that the truck driver was not injured and won't be issued a citation. "(Taylor) was just wanted on a minor traffic violation."

Meanwhile, Trakisha said she'll remember Taylor as a wonderful husband and loving father to their two children, 9-year-old Shariah and 6-month-old Malachi. Taylor worked at National Tractor Parts and was passionate about assembling cars. He put his motorcycle together and painted flames on the sides.

"He was a total car head and would buy everything at the junkyard," Trakisha said. "He was so talented and creative. I can't tell you how much I'll miss him."

So far, it has been a deadly motorcycle season, with five motorcyclists dying in the Chicagoland area in May alone.