By guest-writer
The tragic death of a law student at Northwestern University has led to drunk driving charges for a 21-year-old Illinois man who allegedly struck the student with his vehicle at a Chicago street corner.
Last week, the Chicago Tribune reported that Bianca Garcia struck 32-year-old Jesse Bradley while he was walking in Chicago’s Old Town neighborhood, apparently in an effort to seek a late-night snack.
Sources say that Bradley was walking across a crosswalk on LaSalle Street when Garcia’s Jeep Liberty ran directly into him at about 2:30 a.m. on a Sunday morning. Doctors at Northwestern Memorial Hospital declared Bradley dead at 2:54 a.m.
After the accident, Garcia reportedly fled the scene of the accident by driving the wrong way down a one-way street, but police officers pulled her Jeep over a few minutes after the collision.
Police officers were suspicious of the car because it had serious damage to its front end, including a missing headlight, and there was a significant amount of smoke coming from the engine compartment, according to the police report.
After police pulled her over, Garcia refused to submit to a field sobriety test or a breathalyzer test, but this did not prevent Chicago prosecutors from bringing DUI charges against her.
Sources indicate that Garcia has been charged with felony aggravated DUI, misdemeanor DUI, and misdemeanor reckless driving. Police also cited her for driving the wrong way on a one-way street, and for driving with a license.
After the accident, Garcia decline medical attention, but sources say that she eventually was treated for injuries, along with a 20-year-old woman who was riding in the backseat of the Jeep, at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.
Sadly, Bradley was beyond the point where treatment would help. According to the Chicago Tribune, Bradley had taken a semester off from law school, but was planning to complete his degree this summer before pursuing a career in corporate law.
As he awaited the completion of his degree, Bradley had taken a part-time job at a local Starbucks, which was partially due to his self-admitted addiction to coffee. Bradley had lived in Chicago for about five years.
In a recent interview, Bradley’s sister expressed feelings that were shared by the rest of his family. In her words, “it’s just bizarre. It really shows you how life can change in an instant. He was healthy. He was living. And he died. He should not have died at 32.”
