Driver in I-90 crash that killed Rolling Meadows family was drunk at time, coroner says
The woman who drove the wrong way on I-90, causing a July 31 crash that killed a Rolling Meadows family of six and a 13-year-old friend driving with them, was drunk at the time, according to the coroner.
McHenry County Coroner Michael Rein said Monday that Jennifer Fernandez - who also died in the crash - had a blood alcohol content of .164 percent, more than twice the legal standard for intoxication.
Fernandez, 22, of Carpentersville, did not have any other drugs in her system, Rein said.
Around 2:11 a.m. July 31, Fernandez was driving an Acura TSX sedan east in the westbound lanes of I-90 near Hampshire when she hit a Chevrolet van carrying the Dobosz family of Rolling Meadows.
The fiery crash immediately killed 31-year-old Lauren Dobosz and her four children - Emma, 13; Lucas, 7; Nicholas, 6 and Ella, 5 - plus Emma's friend Katriona Koziara, 13.
The father, 32-year-old Thomas Dobosz, died several days later at Loyola University Medical Center.
The family was traveling to Minnesota for a vacation at a family cabin.
Illinois State Police did not respond to questions such as details about Fernandez's driving that night, instead saying information would be available by filing a formal Freedom of Information Act request for the crash report.
Lauren and Thomas Dobosz were active with the Oriole Park Falcons youth travel football and cheerleading program on the Northwest Side of Chicago. Lauren had been a cheerleading coach; Thomas ran a concessions stand.
Emma was a cheerleader, and Lucas and Nicholas played football. Lauren and Thomas started dating while attending Ridgewood Community High School in Norridge. They moved to Rolling Meadows to help Lauren's grandparents.
Katriona, nicknamed "Kat," was the only child of Katarzyna Koziara and her husband, Marcin, also of Rolling Meadows. Kat had moved to the United States from Scotland when she was 8. Katriona participated in The Breaking Program, a break-dance group that meets at a dance studio in Prospect Heights. She taught an introductory class for younger students.