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Wisconsin man indicted in death of Illinois trooper Christopher Lambert

Cook County prosecutors on Tuesday announced an indictment against the Wisconsin man they say caused the January accident on I-294 that claimed the life of Illinois State Police Trooper Christopher Lambert, 34.

Scott Larsen, 61 - who prosecutors say admitted "vaping" the evening before the crash and had a "cannabinoid" substance in his system at the time of the crash - was charged with reckless homicide of a police officer and with violating Scott's Law. If convicted, he faces up to 14 years in prison.

Scott's Law refers to Chicago Fire Department Lt. Scott Gillen, who was struck and killed in 2000 while assisting at a crash on a Chicago expressway. Dubbed the "move over" law, it requires drivers to slow down and yield to stopped emergency vehicles.

Larsen next appears in court on March 11 for his arraignment before Cook County Judge Michael Hood, according to a state's attorney spokeswoman.

Described by a supervisor as a "breath of fresh air," Lambert was a five-year member of Illinois State Police District 15 who was off duty and on his way home to Highland Park at the time of the crash Jan. 12 near Willow Road.

Lambert was struck and killed after he stopped to assist people involved in several crashes late that afternoon on I-294. The first occurred at 4:34 p.m. when the driver of a northbound white Ford Explorer traveling too fast for snowy conditions lost control and struck two other vehicles, which ended up on the left shoulder and left lane, prosecutors said.

A second, single-car collision followed. As the driver of a gray Toyota Corolla slowed, the car's left rear tire caught some snow and the driver lost control. Rather than hit the three disabled vehicles, the driver deliberately struck the median wall, prosecutors said. Video shows Lambert - the married father of a toddler - collecting information from the drivers involved while his vehicle, with its emergency system activated, was parked near the scene.

Meanwhile, prosecutors say another driver began to slow upon approaching the scene. At that point, authorities say Larsen, who was driving a Jeep Grand Cherokee, passed the other driver on the left shoulder "at a high rate of speed" and struck Lambert, sending the U.S. Army veteran's body airborne.

Prosecutors say I-PASS recorded Larsen's speed as 71 mph in a 60 mph zone.

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Illinois State Police Trooper Christopher Lambert
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