Off-duty officer charged with DUI after crashing into restaurant, killing woman

CHICAGO, Ill. - Authorities in Chicago say an off-duty police officer lost control of his vehicle and crashed into a restaurant Sunday morning.

The officer was driving on 87th Street when he swerved to avoid another car. His vehicle jumped a curb and went through the front of Tony's Philly Stake restaurant killing a woman, ABC News reports. Authorities believe the officer had been drinking.

The woman, identified by friends as Marquita Reed, was eating inside the restaurant with a friend at the time of the crash. Reed was trapped under the vehicle. She was taken to an area hospital and later pronounced dead.

Authorities say the officer had a blood alcohol level of 0.083.

He was charged with driving under the influence. The officer's name hasn't been released. </s> < PREVIOUS SLIDE SLIDE 1 of 3 NEXT SLIDE > An off-duty police officer plowed into a restaurant in Chicago on Sunday, June 9, 2019. A woman inside the building was killed and the officer has been charged with DUI. © WLS

An off-duty police officer lost control of his vehicle while allegedly driving drunk and plowed into a restaurant in Chicago early Sunday, killing a woman who was dining inside.

The off-duty officer was driving on 87th Street on Chicago's South Side when he swerved to avoid another car, jumped a curb and drove through the front of Tony's Philly Steak restaurant, police said.

A 34-year-old woman who was eating inside the restaurant with a friend was trapped under the vehicle. She was taken to Christ Medical Center and later pronounced dead, according to police.

Friends identified the woman as Marquita Reed, a nurse and mother of two, according to Chicago ABC station WLS.

The officer, whose name has not been released, had a blood alcohol level 0.083 and was charged with driving under the influence, police said. The legal limit in Illinois is 0.08.

He has not yet been charged with any other offenses.

"We'll keep investigating and when the time comes, he will be held responsible for his actions," Chicago Police Department Superintendent Eddie Johnson said when asked about the incident at an unrelated press conference Sunday.

The suspect suffered a neck injury in the accident. He is 24 years old and has worked for the Chicago police for three years.

Reed's friend suffered a broken leg in the crash, according to WLS.

"Before the crash happened there were a lot of customers in the store, but at the time of the crash there were three people in the store," restaurant owner Tawfik Damra told WLS.

The police officer was driving his personal car at the time.

The other vehicle that swerved in front of the off-duty officer did not stop and has not been found, police said. </s> CHICAGO — A Chicago police officer was charged with driving under the influence after a 34-year-old woman was killed and another was injured after a car plowed into a restaurant in the Gresham neighborhood early Sunday morning.

The 24-year-old officer, whose name has not been released, was charged with DUI. His blood alcohol content was .083, just over the legal limit. He was with the department for three years.

A black Toyota Corolla, that was driven by that officer, crashed into Tony’s Philly Steak on the 1700 block of West 87th Street around 2:25 a.m. Sunday.

Police said the officer was driving east on 87th Street when another car going in the opposite direction turned in front of him, cutting him off. Police said both cars were trying to turn to go south on Wood Street, but in an effort to avoid the car, the officer ended up jumping the curb and plowing into the restaurant, which was still open at the time.

Emergency responders at the scene said that the officer told them he lost control of his vehicle.

The 34-year-old woman, who was sitting inside the restaurant, was pinned under the car and was pronounced dead later at Advocate Christ Medical Center.

Another woman, a 35-year-old, was standing when she was hit by the car. She was taken in good condition to the same hospital with a leg injury.

Police said the officer was also taken to the hospital for a neck injury where he was stabilized.

The department did not say if the officer will face any internal disciplinary action due to the deadly accident.

The second car involved in the crash fled the scene. </s> An off-duty police officer has been charged with driving under the influence of alcohol after his car crashed into a restaurant , killing one person in Gresham.

Chicago police said the off-duty officer is 24 years old and had been on the force for three years.

A woman died after she was pinned underneath the car that crashed into a restaurant in the 1700 block of west 87th Street.

The 34-year-old woman was sitting inside Tony’s Philly Steak restaurant when she was pinned underneath the car. She was pronounced dead at Christ Hospital from her injuries.

Another woman inside the restaurant suffered a leg injury, and the driver suffered a neck injury.

The offender told police he was trying to avoid striking a vehicle do he made a sharp turn, jumped the curb and hit the building.

Police said the officer had a blood alcohol level of .083.

Police said Sunday is his day off and he was coming from a friends house. </s> CHICAGO (WLS) -- A woman is dead and two others are injured after a car driven by an off-duty police officer crashed into Tony's Philly Steak restaurant in Chicago's Auburn Gresham neighborhood.According to police, a Toyota sedan plowed into the late-night restaurant near 87th and Wood Street around 3:00 a.m. Sunday morning. The Toyota is the officer's personal car.Authorities have now charged the 24-year-old officer with DUI. He's a three year veteran of the CPD and is assigned to the 3rd district.The officer was driving the Toyota eastbound on 87th Street, according to police. He was turning south on Wood Street when another vehicle traveling westbound on 87th Street turned in front of his vehicle, cutting him off. The officer made a sharp turn and jumped a curb causing him to strike the building.Police say the vehicle went through the building and struck two women.A 35-year-old woman was standing inside the restaurant and was struck by the car, resulting in a leg injury. She was transported to Christ Medical Center in stable condition.A second woman, 34, was sitting down inside the restaurant and was pinned underneath the vehicle. She was pronounced dead at Christ Medical Center due to her injuries.The officer suffered a neck injury but is in stable condition, according to police. He was transported to Christ Medical Center as well.Other witnesses were treated at the scene.According to police, the other vehicle involved continued driving and is currently unknown. </s> CHICAGO (WLS) -- An off-duty Chicago police officer has been charged with DUI after police said he slammed into a late-night restaurant on the South Side, killing a 34-year-old mother of two and injuring another woman.Police have not released the name of the officer, even though he has been charged. It is unclear when he will be in bond court.The 24-year-old Chicago police officer was off-duty when he told first responders early Sunday morning that he swerved to avoid an accident as a car allegedly cut him off. Police said his Toyota Corolla jumped a curb and plowed into Tony's Philly Steak in the 1700-block of West 87th Street in the Auburn Gresham neighborhood.Marquita Reed was inside the restaurant eating with friends at a table. She was pinned under the car and killed. A 35-year-old woman standing inside suffered a leg injury. She was transported to Christ Medical Center in stable condition.Sunday night, family and friends released balloons at the spot where Reed died to remember the registered nurse and mother.Meanwhile, police said the officer was driving under the influence."We will keep investigating and when the time comes, he will be held accountable," said Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson.Superintendent Johnson said the officer's blood alcohol content was 0.083, which is just over the legal limit of 0.08.The officer, who has a neck injury, is expected to be okay. Police said he has three years on the force and is assigned to the 3rd Police District in Grand Crossing.Jerrell Desmond witnessed the crash."I don't even think he had time to hit the brakes," Desmond said of the officer.The other vehicle involved in the incident continued driving, police said, and its whereabouts are currently unknown. </s> CHICAGO (WLS) -- An off-duty Chicago police officer has been arrested on suspicion of DUI after police said he slammed into a late-night restaurant on the South Side, killing a 34-year-old mother of two and injuring another woman.Police have not released the name of the officer ,who remains in custody. Police said Monday morning that the officer has not yet been charged.The 24-year-old Chicago police officer was off-duty when he told first responders early Sunday morning that he swerved to avoid an accident as a car allegedly cut him off. Police said his Toyota Corolla jumped a curb and plowed into Tony's Philly Steak in the 1700-block of West 87th Street in the Auburn Gresham neighborhood.Marquita Reed, 34, was inside the restaurant eating with friends at a table. She was pinned under the car and killed.A 35-year-old woman standing inside suffered a leg injury. She was transported to Christ Medical Center in stable condition.Jerrell Desmond witnessed the crash."I don't even think he had time to hit the brakes," Desmond said of the officer.The other vehicle involved in the incident continued driving, police said, and its whereabouts are currently unknown.Sunday night, family and friends released balloons at the spot where Reed died to remember her."I've known Marquita since she was about three years old," said Iona Bell, the victim's friend. "We were neighbors up until last year. She was a wonderful person.Bell is devastated for Reed's two children. Reed, who was a registered nurse, looked after her neighbors."If she could help anybody, she would help anybody," Bell said. "I suffer with diabetes and she would always check to see if I was alright."Meanwhile, police said the officer was driving under the influence."We will keep investigating and when the time comes, he will be held accountable," said Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson.Superintendent Johnson said the officer's blood alcohol content was 0.083, which is just over the legal limit of 0.08.The officer, who has a neck injury, is expected to be okay. Police said he has three years on the force and is assigned to the 3rd Police District in Grand Crossing.Police said the officer was on his regular day off, in his personal car and driving under the influence. </s> CHICAGO — A 34-year-old woman was killed and two others were injured after a car plowed into a restaurant in the Gresham neighborhood early Sunday morning.

A black Toyota Corolla, that was driven by a 24-year-old off-duty Chicago police officer, crashed into Tony’s Philly Steak on the 1700 block of West 87th Street around 2:25 a.m. Sunday.

Police said the officer was driving east on 87th Street when another car going in the opposite direction turned in front of him, cutting him off. That officer made a sharp left turn to avoid the car, and ended-up jumping the curb and plowing into the restaurant, which was still open at the time.

Emergency responders at the scene said that the officer told them he lost control of his vehicle.

The 34-year-old woman, who was sitting inside the restaurant, was pinned under the car and was pronounced dead later at Advocate Christ Medical Center.

Another woman, a 35-year-old, was standing when she was hit by the car. She was taken in good condition to the same hospital with a leg injury.

Police said the officer was also taken to the hospital for a neck injury where he was stabilized.

The department did not say if the officer will face any disciplinary action due to the deadly accident.

The second car involved in the crash fled the scene. </s> Formal charges are expected against an off-duty Chicago police officer who crashed his car into a Gresham restaurant , killing a woman inside.

The officer was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol, but he has not yet been identified by the Chicago Police Department.

RELATED: Several Chicago Police Officers Involved In Crashes This Year; At Least Two Were Fatal

However, records indicate the owner of the car that smashed into Tony’s Philly Steak has a history of recent moving violations.

“It’s important that people know I expect officers to adhere to a higher standard,” said CPD Supt. Eddie Johnson. “When they don’t then they’ll be held accountable for it. I can assure you there’s no game playing, no trying to hide that information. I can assure you when the times comes for us to release that information we’ll do it.”

Investigators said the 24-year-old officer’s blood alcohol level was .083, which is just over the legal limit, when he crashed into the restaurant at the corner of 87th and Wood around 2:45 Sunday morning.

He said he was driving east on 87th Street when another car heading west turned in front of him, and he swerved to avoid the vehicle. The off-duty officer made a sharp turn, jumped the curb and hit the building.

State records show the car belongs to a Chicago man, who, according to the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board, is currently working as a police officer.

That man, according to Cook County Circuit Court traffic records, was issued two moving violations in 2018.

The first was in February for speeding more than 20 mph over the speed limit. He was driving the same 2018 Toyota that was buried in the rubble from the restaurant over the weekend.

Then in April 2018 the driver was cited for using a cell phone while driving.

In both cases the officer completed four hours of “Traffic Safety School,” and the violations were removed from his driving record.

At last check, the off-duty officer was being held at the 22nd District Police Station. He was arrested for driving for driving under the influence, but additional charges could be pending.

Chicago police have 48 hours to charge the off-duty officer in the case. Johnson said he would e identified at that time.
A woman is killed when a police officer driving under the influence crashes into a restaurant in Illinois.