Man Gets Community Service For Driving 142 MPH While Drunk
WHEATON, Ill. (STMW) -- A Shorewood man who authorities said was driving drunk at 142 mph when he crashed his 2008 Dodge Charger was sentenced Monday to court supervision and community service work.
Dean Suominen, 37, avoided a possible jail term by pleading guilty to drunken driving and reckless driving charges stemming from the Jan. 10, 2012, crash in Naperville.
Suominen was driving on Ogden Avenue in the western suburb about 1 a.m. when he lost control of the car, which struck a curb, flew into the air, then rolled into the support post of a billboard.
The car virtually disintegrated around him, shedding the engine and two tires, but Suominen survived with minor injuries, authorities said.
Tests after the crash indicated Suominen had a blood-alcohol level of .20 — more than twice the .08 legal limit, Naperville prosecutor Michael DiSanto said.
A data recorder on the car recorded its speed at 142 mph seconds before the crash, Naperville police have said.
DuPage County Judge James Konetski sentenced Suominen to two years of court supervision, fined him $1,500 and ordered him to perform 100 hours of community service work. He faced a maximum sentence of one year in jail.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2013. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
