Calls for speed limit come after high-speed fatal crash on the Fox River

Boaters often wave as they pass each other on the water.

Jeff Matheson, a boater on the Chain O’ Lakes, proposed a modest change in honor of the woman who was struck and killed recently by an allegedly intoxicated boater. Instead of waving, Matheson proposed flashing a peace sign to signify safer boating.

“Let’s make this tragedy mean something and attempt to make change for the future,” he wrote on Facebook.

Others have proposed a more concrete change for the Fox River: specifically, a speed limit.

Prosecutors said boater Richard Stevenson of Lisle was intoxicated and traveling about 80 mph on the river in July when his pontoon hit a boat carrying Magdalena Jablonska of Des Plaines, decapitating her, authorities said.

Stevenson is charged with murder and aggravated driving under the influence.

A Change.org petition called for “common sense” regulations like setting a speed limit and possibly engine-size limits for boats on the river, noting the accused boater had three 500-horsepower engines.

“I had safety concerns for a long time, and that tragedy was enough for me to be like, something needs to be done,” petition starter Amy Aponte said.

Many boaters say no changes are needed, saying the problem is not speed or engine size, but drunken boaters driving recklessly. They note that the collision occurred in a no-wake zone where boats should be going 5 mph.

The back and forth follows a familiar pattern of resistance to regulation despite occasional tragic collisions on the Chain and Fox River system, which has heavy traffic and more accidents than any other body of water in Illinois.

The Safe Fox River Coalition cited state records showing 45 boating accidents on the Fox River from 2016 to 2026, with six fatalities and 28 injuries.

Car and truck drivers are used to speed limits everywhere they go, along with stop signs and lights, emissions testing and the use of brakes, which boats don’t have. Boaters resist such regulation, noting that they are on open water with far less traffic.

The Fox River has a nighttime speed limit of 25 mph, but boats can go as fast as their drivers will push them during the day.

But other popular boating destinations have daytime speed limits. At nearby Bangs Lake in Wauconda, the daytime limit is 30 mph, enforced with regular marine patrols.

“It's working very well,” Wauconda police Cmdr. Heather Cognac said. “Citations are few and far between.”

Geneva Lake in Wisconsin has a 35 mph speed limit on summer weekends, and several downstate lakes, including LaSalle, Braidwood, Heidecke, Lake Bloomington and Lake Springfield, also have speed limits.

People attending a recent meeting of the Fox Waterway Agency, which helps regulate and maintain the system, called for a speed limit. Regulators said they were looking into the issue, but made no commitments.

“In addition to encouraging input from our waterway’s users and stakeholders, the agency has met with law enforcement and is actively seeking their input on safety matters, including, but not limited to, speed limits, no-wake zones and other ways to enhance enforcement on the waterway, etc.,” Fox Waterway Executive Director Joseph Keller told the Tribune.

The board would have to hold a public hearing before making any changes.

The agency’s policy states that law enforcement agencies, such as the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and the McHenry County and Lake County sheriffs’ marine units, are better positioned to address such issues, indicating that safety-related suggestions should be directed to them.

Many boaters oppose setting any limits.

Ryan Tarosas, owner of Fox 14 Marina on the river in Algonquin, said no law is going to stop the few irresponsible drivers.

“I have a big performance boat, it does mid-70 mph, but there’s a time and place to do it,” he said. “This accident happened in a no-wake zone. Someone like that (driver) doesn’t give a damn about any speed limits.”

Tarosas compared the proposal to gun regulations, saying the boat doesn’t cause the problem; operators do, but criminals don’t care. Police rarely patrol the south end of the river where the accident occurred, he said, and an increased presence might make some drivers more careful.

“It’s very sad what happened,” he said. “That could have been me and my boys; 99.9% of us respect this because it’s in our backyard. It’s something special to have.”

Nevertheless, legislators have proposed instituting some kind of limit on the river, which is only about 300 feet wide in places, often with heavy traffic passing near other boats, piers, children skiing and swimming, jet skiers, and through bridge abutments. A spokesperson for state Rep. Steve Reick, a Republican from Woodstock, said he hopes to have legislation ready in time for the fall legislative session, which starts in November.

The Marine Corps plans to hold a wreath-laying ceremony in honor of Jablonska, who served as a Marine, at the McHenry Dam at 2 p.m. Sept. 26.

rmccoppin@chicagotribune.com