Lindenhurst man admits being drunk in crash

A Lindenhurst man faces up to 12 years in prison after admitting he was driving drunk when he caused a car crash that injured two women.

Michael Barbee, 20, will also be eligible for probation when he returns to face Lake County Circuit Judge John Phillips for sentencing on June 26.

Assistant State’s Attorney Steven Derue said Barbee, of the first block of Hawthorn Drive, was driving east on Grand Avenue near Deerpath Road around 6 p.m. on June 19 of last year. His car crossed the centerline and struck a westbound car driven by a 20-year-old Lake Villa woman and carrying her 54-year-old mother as a passenger.

All three people were taken to Advocate Condell Medical Center for treatment after the crash, Derue said.

The 20-year-old woman suffered a head laceration and a sprained wrist, her mother had a broken rib and back pain and Barbee had lacerations to his head.

Barbee had a blood alcohol content of .179 percent at the time of the crash, Derue said, almost twice the legal definition of intoxication of .08 percent.

Phillips allowed Barbee to remain free on the $5,000 bond he has posted until the sentencing hearing.