Son charged in fatal McHenry crash that resulted in mother’s death

McHenry County prosecutors have charged a 19-year-old man with reckless homicide after they say he drove nearly twice the posted speed limit and ran a red light in McHenry, causing the crash that killed his mother, a passenger in the vehicle.

Emmet J. Zywiec, of Round Lake, is charged with reckless homicide and aggravated reckless driving in connection with the fatal June 17 crash. A warrant was issued for Zywiec’s arrest on Monday. He was not yet in police custody early Monday afternoon.

Zywiec’s mother Gabrielle Zywiec, 52, of Wonder Lake, was a passenger in the car that her son was driving eastbound on Elm Street at Curran Road when the crash occurred, according to court records.

It was just after 4 p.m. when Emmet Zywiec allegedly disobeyed a red light and entered the intersection in a 2006 Ford Crown Victoria, court records show. The Ford collided with a 2012 Hyundai Veloster that was attempting a left turn to travel south on Curran Road, according to a McHenry Police Department news release at the time.

Emmet Zywiec was driving 82 mph in a 45 mph zone when the crash occurred, according to a criminal complaint.

Firefighters extricated Gabrielle Zywiec from the Ford and she was flown by Lifenet McHenry to Advocate Condell Medical Center, where she later died, police have said.

Two people who were traveling in the Hyundai were treated at Northwestern Medicine McHenry Hospital for injuries that were not life-threatening.

It was not immediately clear why Emmet Zywiec might have been driving more than 80 mph at the time, McHenry Police Spokesman Michael Spohn said.

There were no indications that drugs or alcohol played a factor in the crash, police have said.

In 2019, Gabrielle Zywiec and her family were the recipients of a Wonder Lake home that was rehabilitated through Habitat for Humanity of McHenry County.

Her husband’s death about seven years earlier led Gabrielle Zywiec’s family into financial troubles that caused them to move frequently, according to prior Northwest Herald reporting.

Gabrielle Zywiec hoped the home would bring stability to their lives, she said at the time.