Bond set for driver of party bus that rammed into 13 vehicles in Lakeview
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The driver of a party bus that rammed into more than a dozen vehicles on Chicago's North Side Saturday is now facing charges.
Gregory Baldwin, 45, of Valparaiso, Indiana, is charged with one felony count of criminal damage to government property, one misdemeanor count of reckless driving and one misdemeanor count of leaving the scene. He was also cited with failure to reduce speed and disregarding a traffic control light, police said.
A judge set his bond at $40,000 in court on Monday. He was also ordered to have no contact with any owners of damaged vehicles. In setting the bond, the judge took into account the dollar amount of the damages which is estimated to be tens of thousands of dollars, though no specific amount was given.
Baldwin's employer claims police determined he was not impaired at the time of the crash. He has two prior felony convictions in Indiana.
Now not only are those affected looking for answers as to what could've caused that driver to take off so erratically but now so is the company that owns the party bus in question. They say they've been learning about this case through news reports and are "eager for any information regarding this situation."
It was around 3 p.m. Saturday when the driver of the party bus was seen zig zagging southbound on Broadway near Addison, sideswiping 18 cars, according to the Chicago Police Department. Those vehicles sustained scrapes, bumper damage and broken windows.
Witnesses saw the vehicle approaching and warned Baldwin to stop, but he struck an ambulance that had the lights and horn on, though no one was in the ambulance being treated at the time. He continued to drive north on Broadway and ultimately hit a total of 18 people.
The bus eventually stopped near Recreation and Lakeshore Drive where the driver was detained by police.
No one was injured in the incident, but witnesses told CBS 2 they were confused and fearful for their safety.
"We were all yelling like, watch out, because he was going so fast that he could've hit pedestrians as well," said Johnna Armstrong Watson.
Video shows the party bus with the name Black Label Limos. The company said in a statement that police have not given them much information on the case but that the driver was "not impaired, however they ddi not specify or elaborate how they made that determination."