Man charged with fatal DUI in West Chicago

A man has been charged with killing someone in a DUI crash early Monday in West Chicago.

James H. Vaughn, 43, of the 600 block of West Forest Avenue, West Chicago, is charged with two counts of aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol ‒ causing death.

On Tuesday morning, DuPage County Judge Joshua Dieden denied the prosecutor’s request to detain Vaughn pretrial.

The crash happened around 2:30 a.m. Monday on Route 38 near Pearl Road.

The victim was Miguel Duran. He and his girlfriend were walking home from the Twin Eagles bar on Route 38. Prosecutor Bethany Jackson said Duran was crossing Route 38.

Vaughn was driving a Jeep Liberty west on Route 38. He was returning home from a barbecue in Chicago. He told police that Duran ran in front of him and that he could not stop in time to avoid hitting Duran, according to Kristen Nevdahl, the deputy chief public defender who served as Vaughn’s first-appearance attorney on Tuesday.

Nevdahl also said that Duran’s girlfriend told police that Duran suddenly grabbed her hand and tried to pull her into the roadway. Nevdahl also said there was no crosswalk and no street lighting at the intersection.

Prosecutors allege that Vaughn had a blood-alcohol level of .118, as measured by a breath-analyzing machine. The legal limit for driving under the influence of alcohol is .08.

Dieden prohibited Vaughn from consuming alcohol and ordered him to wear an alcohol-monitoring device. He also prohibited Vaughn from driving.

Vaughn’s next court date is May 13.