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Chicago DUI cop freed
Home > Topics Charges thrown out against accused DUI Cop
Officer involved in fatal crash that killed two people will not face any charges Related Victims' families dealt another setback in Ardelean case Topics WGN Bars and Clubs Crimes See more topics » XDining and Drinking Car Accidents Murder River North Chicago Justice System Judges Prosecution Lawyers Death and Dying Transportation Accidents Drunk Driving PJ Randhawa, WGN News WGN News June 5, 2010 E-mail Print Share Text Size CHICAGO — A Chicago Police Officer involved in a fatal car crash that killed two people will not face any charges, according to the Cook County prosecutors office. 36-year-old John Ardelean was off-duty Thanksgiving Day 2007, when video cameras captured him drinking three beers and at least four shots at a River North bar. A short time later, his SUV broadsided a car at Damen and Oakdale Avenue and killed 21-year-old Erick Lagunas, and 22-year-old Miguel Flores. Get the Chicago Tribune delivered to your home for only $1 a week >> None of the four officers at the scene reported any sign that Ardelean was drunk, and he was not given a breathalyzer test until eight hours after the crash. Judge Thomas Gainer Jr., who ruled that Ardelean had been arrested and detained without probable cause, disputed claims that there was a possibility of conspiracy among police officers to protect one of their own. Two of the officers at the scene apparently knew Ardelean, reports the Breaking News Center. The judge's ruling comes after a police supervisor testified that Ardelean looked and smelled drunk after the accident. Ardelean, flanked by a handful of police officers, strode silently out of the courthouse without speaking. Minutes later, the relatives of Erick Lagunas, one of the two men killed in the crash, milled in front of the courthouse, their eyes wet with tears. "We are very disappointed," Mayra Lagunas, a cousin of Lagunas said, her voice shaking. "I can't say that we didn't expect it after what happened last time. It hurts that they've taken something from us and we don't matter. She said that while the family believes prosecutors did everything they could, it was not enough to overcome what they believe was a case of Ardelean's fellow officers covering up for him. "(We're) angry with the government, the police department who covered for each other," she said, stuffing her shaking hands into her pants pockets. "We all sat in that room and saw them lie through their teeth." She said that prosecutors spoke to family members before court to let them know of the decision to drop the case, saying they had pursued every legal option. Her sister, Victoria Lagunas, said she believed the family was denied justice because of racism. "I guess there's nothing more to say - it just goes to show the dispensability of people in this city," she said. "It does go to race and societal ranking." "It was difficult watching him walk out," she said. "There's no conscience, I don't believe he feels bad." Get news, sports, and entertainment alerts on your mobile phone >>
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chance favors the prepared mind 1987 944 n/a 5spd. who remembers dial phones?. 'STOP FIXING THINGS ONE STEP BEFORE YOU BREAK SOMETHING ELSE" |
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06-07-2010, 01:19 PM
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Registered
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__________________
chance favors the prepared mind 1987 944 n/a 5spd. who remembers dial phones?. 'STOP FIXING THINGS ONE STEP BEFORE YOU BREAK SOMETHING ELSE" |
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06-07-2010, 01:20 PM
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1987 Porsche 944 2.5
