First reported 9/22/10 5:44 PM
A 20-year-old Berwyn woman who allegedly drove through a red light and struck another vehicle and a pedestrian, seriously injuring him, was talking on her cellphone at the time, according to Riverside police.
Margaret Mary Vivanco was charged with aggravated reckless driving, a felony, and several traffic violations. According to police, Vivanco was driving a 2010 Toyota Rav 4 southbound on Harlem Avenue at about 7 p.m. on Sept. 20 when she drove through a red light at Longcommon Road. Police Chief Thomas Weitzel said that four witnesses stated that the light had been red for some time when Vivanco drove through the intersection.
“It was a steady red,” Weitzel said.
Vivanco’s vehicle struck a van, which was traveling east from Riverside into Berwyn and had driven into the middle of the intersection. The Rav 4 caromed off the front of the van and struck 52-year-old David Paradiso, of Berwyn, who had walked halfway across Harlem Avenue in the south crosswalk, sending him flying through the air before he landed in the roadway some distance away.
According to Weitzel, the man suffered multiple broken bones and was taken to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, where he remains. Weitzel said that the man was expected to survive, but that he was seriously injured.
Meanwhile, the Rav 4 ended up leaving the roadway and crashing into a storage facility on the Berwyn side of Harlem Avenue. There was no information on whether Vivanco or the driver of the van she reportedly struck, was injured.
Police say neither drugs nor alcohol were factors in the crash.
“The felony charges were due to the fact that inattentiveness and distracted driving played a major role in the crash itself,” Weitzel said.
Vivanco was charged on Sept. 21 and held by Riverside police until a bond hearing the following day at the Maybrook courthouse, where a judge set her bond at $5,000. She remains free after posting bond and awaits an Oct. 15 court date at the Maybrook courthouse.
Weitzel said that police had obtained cellphone records for Vivanco’s phone, indicating that she had been on the phone at the time of the crash.
9/22/10
A 20-year-old Berwyn woman who allegedly drove through a red light and struck another vehicle and a pedestrian, seriously injuring him, was talking on her cellphone at the time, according to Riverside police.
Margaret Mary Vivanco was charged with aggravated reckless driving, a felony, and several traffic violations. According to police, Vivanso was driving a 2010 Toyota Rav 4 southbound on Harlem Avenue when she drove through a red light at Longcommon Road. Police Chief Thomas Weitzel said that four witnesses stated that the light had been red for some time when Vivanco drove through the intersection.
“It was a steady red,” Weitzel said.
Vivanco’s vehicle struck a van, which was traveling east from Riverside into Berwyn and had driven into the middle of the intersection. The Rav 4 caromed off the front of the van and struck a 52-year-old Berwyn man who had walked halfway across Harlem Avenue in the south crosswalk, sending him flying through the air before he landed in the roadway some distance away.
According to Weitzel, the man suffered multiple broken bones and was taken to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, where he remains. Weitzel said that the man was expected to survive, but that he was serious injured and continues to undergo surgery to repair the damage.
Meanwhile, the Rav 4 ended up leaving the roadway and crashing into a storage facility on the Berwyn side of Harlem Avenue. There was no immediate information on whether Vivanco or the driver of the van she reportedly struck, was injured.
Vivanco was held by Riverside police until a bond hearing this morning at the Maybrook courthouse, where a judge set her bond at $5,000. She posted bond and is free, awaiting a Sept. 27 court date.
Weitzel said that police had obtained cellphone records for Vivanco’s phone, indicating that she had been on the phone at the time of the crash.
