Lawsuit: Crest Hill police officer's pursuit of suspects caused fatal car crash

A wrongful death lawsuit has been filed against the City of Crest Hill and a Crest Hill police officer over the death of a 60-year-old man who was killed a car crash last year.

Som Khloth, the son of Suos Khloth, filed a lawsuit Tuesday that claimed Crest Hill Officer John McHale’s high-speed pursuit of a driver who committed several traffic violations May 26 led to a car crash that killed Suos Khloth and caused passenger Ratanak Kong to suffer a fractured collarbone.

Anthony Casterberry, 23, and Jeremiah Grubbs, 20, were both arrested in connection with the fatal car crash May 26.

Casterberry was charged with reckless homicide and aggravated reckless driving while Grubbs was charged with possession of a controlled substance, aggravated unlawful use of a weapon and possession of a firearm without an owner’s identification card.

Crest Hill Police Chief Ed Clark declined to comment on the lawsuit. Clark also declined to comment on the internal investigation police said was conducted to see if the pursuit of Casterberry and Grubbs was in compliance with the department's policies and procedures.

The lawsuit claimed McHale pursued a Mitsubishi after seeing it commit traffic violations. McHale drove up to 56 mph over posted speed limits and continued chasing the Mitsubishi even after seeing the car run through multiple red lights, the lawsuit said.

At the intersection of Jefferson Street and Redwood Drive, the Mitsubishi rear-ended Suos Khloth’s Jaguar XJ8, causing him to lose control of the vehicle and crash into a tree, according to the lawsuit.