Antioch chef denies fatal crash charges

The owner and chef of an Antioch restaurant pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges he struck and killed a pedestrian while driving drunk, drugged and texting.

David Maish, 40, faces up to 14 years in prison if convicted of aggravated driving under the influence and reckless homicide in the Feb. 6 death of Santiago Balderas, 40, of Round Lake.

Lake County Assistant State’s Attorney Suzanne Willett said Maish had a blood-alcohol level of .142 percent and was under the influence of prescription painkillers when his 2006 Hummer hit Balderas as Balderas walked on Route 59.

In addition, one of the counts of reckless homicide against Maish charges him with driving while he was composing or receiving an electronic message on his cellphone.

Maish was arrested April 8 after an extensive investigation by the Lake County Major Crash Assistance Team that Willett said included an accident reconstruction and subpoenas for Maish’s cellphone records.

He is an award-winning chef and owner of David’s Bistro at 883 Main St. in downtown Antioch, according to the restaurant’s website at davidsbistro.com

Maish was freed after posting $25,000 for bond, and Circuit Judge Daniel Shanes scheduled a trial of the case Wednesday for June 13.