Good Samaritans help police arrest suspected drunk hit-and-run driver
Crystal Lake police are crediting the help of several Good Samaritans for the arrest Monday of a McHenry County teen accused of running down a pedestrian while driving drunk and then fleeing the scene.
Brian K. Koester, 17, of Harvard, faces charges of driving under the influence, leaving the scene of a personal injury accident and consumption of alcohol by a minor in connection with the 10 p.m. crash Monday that hospitalized a teenage Crystal Lake boy.
Crystal Lake Deputy Police Chief Gene Lowery said the boy was crossing Route 14 at McHenry Avenue when Koester's 2000 Chevy pickup struck him in the crosswalk and the driver sped away without offering assistance.
Several witnesses stopped to help the boy and call for help, Lowery said, while another followed the hit-and-run vehicle, leading police to it just a few minutes later near Route 14 and Federal Drive.
Court documents state that when officers stopped Koester he had glassy, bloodshot eyes and smelled of alcohol. He failed field sobriety tests and a breath test later showed he had a blood-alcohol level of .09 percent, just above the .08 legal limit, documents state.
"Alcohol clearly was a factor in this incident," Lowery said. "Based on witness statements from those in the pickup truck and the offender, it was evident (to them) he had struck something."
Koester was arrested and taken to the McHenry County jail. He appeared in court Tuesday morning and was released on $1,050 bond. He is scheduled to return to court Aug. 18.
If convicted of leaving the scene, Koester could face a sentence ranging from nonreporting probation to three years in prison. The DUI and consumption of alcohol charges are misdemeanors punishable by up to a year in jail.
His passengers, Patrick S. Towne, 17, and Austin J. Bielski, 17, both of Harvard, also were charged with one count each of underage consumption of alcohol.
The pedestrian, who was conscious at the scene, was taken to Northern Illinois Medical Center in McHenry, where he was treated and released.