Driver gets 10 years for fleeing fatal West Chicago crash
A Carpentersville man was sentenced Friday to 10 years in prison for fleeing a crash that killed a 27-year-old Schaumburg man, prosecutors said.
Alonso Huerta-Perez, 24, must serve at least half the term issued by DuPage County Judge Kathryn Creswell. He pleaded guilty in July to leaving the scene of a fatal accident in West Chicago.
“Just over one year ago, Mr. Perez caused a crash that took the life of Austin Weidner,” State’s Attorney Robert Berlin said. “What’s worse is that once faced with the realization of what he had done, Mr. Perez decided to flee the scene in an attempt to avoid responsibility.”
About 2:30 a.m. Sept. 12, 2010, Huerta-Perez was driving a Ford Escort east on Lester Street in West Chicago when he ran a stop sign at Route 59 and struck Weidner’s northbound Ford Explorer. The impact was so strong, police said at the time, that the Explorer flipped over.
Weidner, of Schaumburg, was taken to Central DuPage Hospital in Winfield, where he died of injuries from the crash. Huerta-Perez was arrested at a West Chicago home about four hours later.
Berlin credited West Chicago police for an “outstanding” investigation.
“Mr. Perez was apprehended and will now pay a significant price for the decisions he made that evening,” he said.
Huerta-Perez has already spent about a year in the county jail. Authorities said he must serve a total of five years before he’s eligible for parole.