Crystal Lake man who crashed SUV into Crystal Lake home arrested after release from hospital

The Crystal Lake man who police said crashed his SUV into a Crystal Lake home in July, paralysing the homeowner, turned himself in at the Crystal Lake police station Tuesday, police said.

Connor C. Kirkpatrick, 27, is charged with aggravated reckless driving and reckless conduct, Class 4 felonies, and criminal damage to property over $100,000, a Class 2 felony, Crystal Lake Deputy Police Chief Rick Neumann said in an email Monday.

Neumann said Monday that Crystal Lake police were waiting for Kirkpatrick to be released from the hospital before serving him with arrest warrants. It was unclear Tuesday when Kirkpatrick was released from the hospital.

The crash occurred about 7 p.m. July 27 when Kirkpatrick’s vehicle became airborne and hit the garage of the home located at the intersection of Ballard and Briarwood roads where homeowner Angelo Pleotis, 64, was taking a shower, the Northwest Herald reported.

His family said he faced possible permanent paralysis.

Angelo’s son, Phillip Pleotis, of Crystal Lake, said Tuesday he had a hard time describing his feelings following the news that Kirkpatrick had been released from the hospital and is up and walking around while his father is potentially paralyzed for the rest of his life.

Phillip Pleotis said he heard about a Facebook post on Kirkpatrick’s account from Oct. 18 that states “glad to have been near death and and I was given life.”

It is still so unclear what caused the crash, Phillip Pleotis said.

He said his dad, who up until the crash worked as a tool-and-dye maker, is doing OK, “just trying to go day by day.” He has been in a facility in Woodstock recently, trying to heal a wound that won’t heal because he can’t get up and walk around, his son said.

The house where Angelo Pleotis lived is still in pretty much the same state as it was the day of the crash, Phillip Pleotis said.

His uncle, Lou Pleotis, who lived with Angelo Pleotis at the time of the crash, is living with the his mother in an independent living facility in Palatine.

The family is struggling to work with Medicare and insurance adjusters to get the house habitable again and pay for his father’s medical bills, Phillip Pleotis said.

As of Tuesday, a GoFundMe seeking to raise $250,000 to help cover costs related to medical care and home repair for Pleotis raised nearly $100,000. A fundraiser was also held at the Norge Ski Club where Phillip Pleotis, 32, his younger sister, Katie Faciano, 29, used to jump and where his 11-year-old daughter currently jumps, Phillip Pleotis said.

Angelo Pleotis suffered a collapsed lungs, broken ribs, head trauma, lacerations and two spinal fractures and dislocations that have caused paralysis, his daughter-in-law, Alyssa Pleotis, said when she set up the page on his behalf.

On the site, Alyssa Pleotis described her father-in-law as “one of the kindest, most gentle-hearted people I’ve ever met.“

Angelo Pleotis was very active and helpful with Phillip Pleotis’ three young daughters, especially with picking up his 11-year-old daughter from Norge, his son said.

He said he is surprised by how well his father is handling the circumstances “but that is just my dad. He is a very happy individual to begin with.”

The Pleotis family filed a civil lawsuit against Kirkpatrick seeking more than $50,000 in damages, accusing Kirkpatrick of negligence. That case has its first court hearing scheduled for Nov. 3.

Kirkpatrick is due in the McHenry County courthouse on Nov. 1, Neumann said.