Two years in prison for trucker who killed trooper
The truck driver who killed a state trooper from Vernon Hills in a 2013 crash on the Tri-State Tollway pleaded guilty to three charges Friday in a Skokie courtroom and was sentenced to two years in prison.
Andrew Bokelman, 28, of Wisconsin could be out in a year because of time served after the sentence from Cook County Associate Judge Jeffrey Warnick.
Bokelman was charged with driving while fatigued, making a false entry into his trucker's log book and driving beyond a 14-hour duty limit.
Bokelman was heading south in a United Van Lines semitrailer truck on the Tri-State Tollway near milepost 48.5 when he fell asleep about 11 p.m. March 28, 2013, and veered to the left, striking Illinois State Police Trooper James Sauter's vehicle from behind and killing Sauter, 28.
According to a federal investigation, Bokelman had been on duty for more than the 14 hours mandated by federal regulations, which call for 10 hours of rest after that 14-hour period.
The investigation found that Bokelman was driving for a United Van Lines client, Barrett Moving Co., from 6:31 a.m. to 6:32 p.m. and then again between 7:14 and 7:34 p.m.
At that point he had driven for more than 12 hours without rest, according to the investigation.
But Bokelman started driving again at 8:49 p.m. in Waukesha, Wisconsin, and then was stopped by the crash at 11:03 p.m.
Bokelman's attorney, David Studenroth, said Friday that during the initial period between 6:31 a.m. and 6:32 p.m., he had been acting as a supervisor on a moving truck.
"But that has to be counted as on-duty time," Studenroth said. "Then he was ordered by his dispatchers and his over-the-road company to make a run down to Louisville, and he got in a car at 8:30 and started driving. So technically, he should have stopped driving at 10:30."
His attorney said Bokelman stated at Lutheran General Hospital that he must have fallen asleep at the wheel.
"Upon impact, he actually attempted to extract Trooper Sauter from the vehicle but was unsuccessful, due to the flames," Studenroth said.
"This was a total tragedy all the way around. Mr. Bokelman did not set out that day to kill an Illinois state trooper. He was just trying to make a living and following the instructions from the dispatcher and his supervisors. Unfortunately, he fell asleep and drifted to the left lane exactly where Trooper Sauter was parked in his vehicle. What are the odds that that (would happen) at that exact location?"
Sauter's wife, Elizabeth, said in her impact statement in court Friday that her "world came crashing down" upon hearing the news of the crash, the Chicago Tribune reported. "Every day has been a challenge," she said.
The funeral for Sauter in April 2013 was packed by police officers from across the state, and he was honored at the state capitol May 24 of that year.
The Willow Road overpass near the spot of the crash was named the Trooper James Sauter Memorial Overpass.
In 2014, a judge approved a $10.9 million settlement of a lawsuit filed by Sauter's widow against Bokelman and his employees.
In 2015, Sauter's widow testified before state lawmakers that she would give back the legal settlement for more time with her husband, saying the decision "does not mean that I won the lottery in any way. I would give back every penny in order to have my James back."