Elgin man's 4th DUI conviction brings him 3 years in prison

An Elgin man has been sentenced to three years in prison for his fourth DUI conviction, the Kane County state's attorney's office said Wednesday.

Rodney A. Boyd, 35, of the 14N500 block of Bonnie Lane, pleaded guilty Tuesday to aggravated drunken driving stemming from a crash in 2008 and misdemeanor drunken driving stemming from an unrelated crash in 2007. He was sentenced in a plea deal accepted by Judge Patricia P. Golden.

Authorities said Boyd was last arrested about 8 p.m. June 21, 2008, after crashing a 1994 Chevrolet Suburban into a parked van and garage on the 39W000 block of Highland Avenue in Elgin. His blood-alcohol concentration was 0.175 percent - more than twice the legal driving threshold of 0.08 in Illinois.

Just after midnight on April 25, 2007, Boyd also was charged after crashing a 1996 Dodge Ram into a railroad crossing pole on the 38W100 block of Big Timber Road in Gilberts. That time, his blood-alcohol concentration was 0.300.

Officials said Boyd's history of drunken driving in Kane County dates back to 1995, when he was first convicted of DUI and given court supervision. He was convicted again in 1999.

According to Illinois statute for nonviolent offenses, Boyd must serve at least half of the 3-year sentence.