Woman Gets 13 Years For Hitting State Trooper In Drunken Crash
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A 61-year-old woman has been sentenced to 13 years in prison for running over an Illinois State Police trooper on the Tri-State tollway two years ago, and causing a crash that injured four other people.
On Sept. 6, 2014, Trooper Michael Cokins was conducting a traffic stop on the right shoulder of the northbound lanes of I-294 near St. Charles Road, when a maroon Honda struck him. The Honda was straddling the shoulder at the time.
After hitting Cokins, the Honda kept going north on I-294 and struck an SUV carrying a family of four, causing the SUV to roll over. The Honda then crashed into the concrete median.
Cokins suffered 15 broken bones, underwent eight surgeries, and went through 17 months of physical therapy, according to Illinois State Police.
Four of the seven people who were in the SUV were injured in the crash.
The driver, Leslie Thurow, of Mount Prospect, had a blood alcohol level more than twice the legal limit, and her license had been revoked for previous DUI convictions, police said. She was charged with aggravated DUI, leaving the scene of an accident, and aggravated reckless driving.
On Thursday, she was sentenced to 13 years in prison, police said.
Cokins returned to full duty with Illinois State Police on May 1, 2016.