North Riverside police charged a 26-year-old Wood Dale man with driving under the influence of alcohol and cited him for leaving the scene of an accident and other offenses after his maroon Honda Accord allegedly violently crashed into a 2007 Hyundai driven by a 20-year-old Oak Park man in the intersection of First Avenue and Cermak Road on Nov. 11 at about 7:35 p.m.
The victim told police he was turning left on a green arrow from Cermak Road onto northbound First Avenue when the northbound Honda struck the rear of his vehicle at a high rate of speed, sending it spinning over the curb. The Honda continued northbound, but a witness followed the Honda, which made a U-turn and went back southbound on First Avenue.
The Honda tuned right on to Cermak Road and then left onto 2nd Avenue, where the driver parked it in a handicapped space, exited and went into Sliccily Pizza Pub.
When police arrived the driver of the Honda reportedly told them someone had struck his vehicle while it was parked. Police stated that the driver appeared intoxicate and witnesses did not corroborate the driver’s story. He also reportedly told police he believed he was in Norridge, about 10 miles north of North Riverside.
Child endangerment
Brookfield police charged a 31-year-old woman with two counts of child endangerment after learning that her two children, ages 5 and 9, were left alone for nearly five hours after a babysitter failed to show up to care for them as promised on Nov. 15 because she was running late from work.
The mother of the children was out of town until the flowing day, and the kids had called their father, who does not live at the residence, because they were hungry and alone, police reported.
Police arranged for the kids to spend the night with their father and contacted the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services about the incident.
A 38-year-old Chicago woman faces drunken driving and child endangerment charges after North Riverside police reported that she was passed out at the wheel of 2011 black Ford Escape on southbound Harlem Avenue at 26th Street at about 3:20 a.m. on Nov. 10.
An officer on patrol observed the vehicle stopped on the roadway at a solid green light. The officer noted that the driver was hunched forward, asleep, with her head on the steering wheel. Two children, ages 8 and 10, were also inside the vehicle, police reported.
The driver woke up after an officer knocked on the window of the vehicle for about 30 seconds and then started to drive south on Harlem Avenue before police were able get in front of her vehicle and stop her.
After reportedly failing field sobriety tests, the driver was arrested and the children were taken into protective custody and later released to an uncle. Police also notified DCFS.
Bathroom battery
A 44-year-old Chicago woman called police on Nov. 10 at about 3:45 p.m. to report that another woman had punched her and threw her to the ground inside the women’s bathroom of the movie theater at the North Riverside Park Mall, 7501 Cermak Road.
The victim told police she accidentally bumped into another woman, who became confrontational, inside the bathroom. The victim told police she sought to avoid arguing with the other woman and tried to leave, but the other woman blocked the exit and then threw the victim to the ground before punching her the face and head.
The offender reportedly left after the victim was able to kick her away. The offender was last seen leaving the mall with two children in a silver vehicle.
Paramedics took the victim to LaGrange Memorial Hospital for treatment of a bump on the head and blurred vision.
Pound of pot
A 26-year-old Westchester man faces felony drug charges after police reported finding a pound of cannabis inside his vehicle during a routine traffic stop on Nov. 16 at about 4:20 p.m. on Forest Avenue near Kimbark Road in Riverside.
A police officer pulled over the man, who was using his cellphone while driving on Woodside Road in a school zone near Hauser Junior High School. The officer reported noticing a strong smell of cannabis coming from inside the car.
When asked about the odor, the driver reportedly admitted he was transporting more than a pound of medical-grade cannabis, which police say was packaged for delivery.
In addition to the felony drug charge, the man was cited for using a hand-held cellphone in a school zone.
These items were obtained from police reports filed by the Riverside, North Riverside and Brookfield police departments, Nov. 10-18, and represent a portion of the incidents to which police responded. Unless otherwise indicated, anybody named in these reports has only been charged with a crime. These cases have not been adjudicated.
— Compiled by Bob Uphues
This article has been changed to correct information related to the hit-and-run crash at First Avenue and Cermak Road.
