Death of Naperville man accused in I-88 fatal ruled suicide

The death of a Naperville man charged with reckless homicide after a deadly crash on I-88 was ruled a suicide Saturday by the Cook County medical examiner’s office.

According to the autopsy, multiple injuries sustained in last month’s crash caused William A. Howe, 43, to die about 5 p.m. Friday at Loyola Medical Center in Maywood.

Howe, a licensed dentist in Aurora since 1993, suffered a broken leg and fractured hip in the Aug. 6 crash near Lisle.

DuPage County prosecutors said Howe was driving east on I-88 in his Porsche, which reportedly had cash flying out the windows. He then crossed the highway into the westbound lanes, striking another vehicle head-on and killing Elmhurst residents Sher Ali Shalwani, 75, and his daughter Farzana Ali, 38.

Saturday’s autopsy confirmed Howe had Huntington’s disease, which his attorney, John Curnyn, said “may have contributed to the cause of” the crash. Huntington’s disease causes a progressive breakdown of nerve cells in the brain.