Man Arrested In Route 53 Rolling Meadows Crash Killing Four Members Of A Family, Including 2 Children
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The driver suspected in a crash that left four family members including two children dead over the weekend was arrested and charged with four counts of aggravated DUI.
According to Illinois State Police, Lamar M. Graves of Bellwood was taken into custody on Monday.
The victims of the crash on Illinois Route 53 in Rolling Meadows were two sisters and their children. Both mothers were remembered for her going out of her way to help others – and they died doing just that.
"For all four of our loved ones to be gone tragically in one act, it's sickening," said Deandrea Dixon.
Jeremy, 17, liked to draw. Jamarrion, 6, loved Spider-Man. Their mothers, sisters Tracy and Stacy Harris, 45 and 47 respectively, were described by surviving sister Dixon as angels.
ISP said on Saturday, Feb. 20 around 11:33 p.m., troopers responded to the scene of a crash involving the four fatalities on I-53 northbound at Kirchoff Road in Rolling Meadows.
Officers learned the driver of a 2018 Black Jeep Wrangler, identified as Graves, was traveling on Illinois 53 northbound at Kirchoff Road while a 2019 Blue Ford Fiesta was stopped on the right shoulder.
"For unknown reasons, Graves veered off the roadway to the right striking the rear of the Blue Ford. The impact forced both vehicles across all lanes of traffic before coming to rest on the left shoulder of the roadway. Graves was transported to a local area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries," ISP said in a news release.
The driver and the three passengers of the Blue Ford were pronounced dead.
RELATED: 2 Sisters And Their Sons, Ages 6 And 17, Killed In Rolling Meadows Crash
Graves, 32, is at the Cook County Jail with a $450,000 bond. ISP said the investigation is open and ongoing.
"My sister Stacy, she always had a smile on her face – always," Dixon said. "My sister Tracy, always there for you no matter what."