Driver gets four years for DUI crash

A Cook County judge sentenced a 20-year-old Streamwood man to four years in prison Monday for a 2009 car crash in which the man's passenger was ejected from the vehicle.

Ronny Lopez, of the 3000 block of Linden Court, pleaded guilty to aggravated DUI and failure to report a motor vehicle accident involving a death or injury following the early-morning accident Dec. 17, when he crashed his car into a telephone pole at the intersection of Lake St. and Valley Lane in Streamwood.

Authorities say Lopez, who did not have a valid license at the time, ran from the scene to his residence several blocks away. His passenger suffered a fractured spine, fractured hand, broken jaw and damage to his lungs and hip but has recovered, prosecutors said.

Lopez's criminal background includes a 2009 court supervision for criminal damage to property and consumption of alcohol by a minor. He also received court supervision following a 2008 conviction of consumption of alcohol by a minor.

Lopez received credit for the 152 days he has been in custody since the accident.