Sheriff’s deputy injured in crash when driver blows stop sign

WAUKEGAN – A Lake County Sheriff’s deputy was seriously injured Feb. 26 when her squad car struck a pickup truck that failed to stop at a stop sign, police said.

About 6:10 p.m. Feb. 26, Lake County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a battery in progress, which initially occurred in the area of Green Bay and Wadsworth roads in Beach Park. The offender fled in a vehicle and the victim followed the offender to the area of Lewis Avenue and Yorkhouse Road in Waukegan, according to a news release.

Two responding sheriff’s deputies were traveling south on Lewis Avenue with their emergency lights and siren activated. As the sheriff’s deputies approached Edgewood Road in Waukegan, a Chevrolet pickup truck, driven by a 59-year-old North Chicago man, was traveling east on Edgewood Road.

The driver of the pickup truck did not stop at the stop sign and drove directly in the path of the southbound sheriff’s deputies, according to the release. The first sheriff’s deputy was able to swerve into the northbound lanes of traffic to avoid striking the pickup. The second sheriff’s deputy was unable to avoid hitting the pickup and struck the pickup’s front driver’s side.

The sheriff’s deputy was injured in the crash and taken to Advocate Condell Medical Center with injuries that were serious, but not life-threatening. The driver of the pickup truck was taken to Vista Medical Center in Waukegan with injuries that were not life-threatening.

The driver of the pickup indicated that the last thing he remembered before the crash was opening a beer, police said.

The Waukegan Police Department is investigating the traffic crash and any charges.