Probation for Aurora man who fled scene of fatal 2019 crash
Family members of an 8-year-old boy killed in an Aurora crash in 2019 sat quietly as a Kane County judge sentenced the driver who fled the scene to 48 months of probation.
But the child's father, Angelo Lopez, expressed disappointment after Thursday's sentencing.
"We're upset," he said. "We'll never know what happened."
Christopher Carrillo, who did not have a valid license, was driving a Ford Fusion south on Lake Street at 7:42 p.m. March 25, 2019. Eight-year-old Izaiah Lopez and his 5-year-old sister were walking home with their 53-year-old grandfather when Izaiah and his grandfather were struck by a car as they crossed the four-lane road near Plum Street.
Carrillo then turned off Lake, circled around, parked on Plum and walked back to the crash.
Carrillo, 31, of Aurora, pleaded guilty in June to charges that he failed to stop after the accident and did not report the accident.
On the first day of his two-day sentencing hearing, Carillo - a father of three - apologized to Lopez's family.
"I didn't mean to," Carillo said on Wednesday. "I hadn't had the right education to drive. I apologize from the bottom of my heart."
On Thursday, Kane County Judge Salvatore LoPiccolo, who called the crash a tragedy and offered his condolences to Izaiah's family, took note of Carrillo's remorse and guilty plea when pronouncing his sentence. He also noted that Carrillo did not face other charges, such as reckless driving or driving on a revoked license.
"The sentencing hearing is not about the accident itself," LoPiccolo said. "It's about what the defendant did after the accident."
After returning to the crash scene, Carrillo told a police officer that he had been walking down Lake to retrieve his car from a cousin and saw the crash. Police then interviewed him at the department for 90 minutes. A detective said that Carrillo admitted to being the driver when arrested on March 31.
According to a search warrant, a passenger in the Fusion told police Carrillo was trying to race another vehicle.
"It hurts to see pictures. It hurts to see my daughter outgrowing him," Angelo Lopez said in court Wednesday. "After losing him, it comes to me that I don't want to have any more kids because I don't want to put myself in the heartbreak of losing another child."
He called Carrillo "selfish and inconsiderate."
After Thursday's hearing, Lopez said he is hopeful others do not have to endure what his family has gone through and that drivers involved in a crash will stop and report it "instead of making it worse for the families and their loved ones."
Carrillo's attorney, Assistant Public Defender Jacqueline Leder, Thursday pointed out his statement Wednesday was the first time he was allowed to address the family and that he has been remorseful.
During Wednesday's testimony, Leder also pointed out it was dark at the time of the crash; the trio was not crossing at a traffic signal; that Carrillo was never charged with homicide; and that he spent more than a year in jail awaiting trial.
Carrillo also will have to complete 480 hours of community service and pay court fines. LoPiccolo also sentenced Carrillo to 180 days in jail but noted he received credit for 353 days served.