Illinois State Police trooper injured while assisting motorist, Pritzker urges caution
An Illinois State Police trooper was injured when he was involved in a two-car accident early Tuesday on Interstate 57 in Jefferson County.
The officer’s name was not released. Though his injuries are not life threatening, the incident underscores the importance of Move Over laws, which requires drivers to slow down and yield lanes occupied by emergency vehicles, according to an ISP release.
The crash was the sixth in three days that involved a state trooper and a motorist being cited for disobeying the Move Over Law, also known as Scott’s Law.
“We are only six weeks into the new year and we’ve already had 10 squad cars struck because people do not obey the law,” said ISP Director Brendan Kelly, the former state’s attorney for St. Clair County. “But this about more than just obeying the law — it’s about basic decency and respect for the very lives of the brave souls on our streets simply trying to help the public.”
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker commented on the crash Tuesday, as state and local road crews also worked to clear up to a foot of snow from state highways.
“Scott’s Law is critical to keeping our first responders safe as they heroically serve us on our roadways,” said Gov. J.B. Pritzker. “Especially now, as we continue to experience extreme winter weather, it is imperative that drivers slow down and move over as they approach a vehicle with their hazard lights on.
“I’m praying for our Illinois State Police troopers who have been injured in the line of duty in recent days and imploring all Illinoisans to drive safely and follow the law.”
According to the ISP release, the injured trooper stopped just before 8:30 a.m. Tuesday to assist the driver of a vehicle that had slid off the pavement on southbound Interstate 57 and into the median near milepost 87. The trooper positioned the ISP cruiser behind the stranded vehicle, stopping at the end of the left lane with the emergency lights flashing.
At about 9:09 a.m., a silver 2006 Toyota Tundra crashed into the trooper’s car. The trooper was transported by ambulance to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, the release states.
Neither the driver of the Toyota, Chuong V. Nguyen, a 54-year-old male or his passenger, Kim N. Tran, a 49-year-old female, both of Milledgeville, Georgia were injured, said state police. Nguyen was cited for failure to reduce speed to avoid a crash and failure to yield to stationary emergency vehicle.
The driver from the original motorist assist was not involved.
All lanes of IL-57 southbound were closed for approximately 10 minutes and the passing lane remained closed for another 50 minutes for traffic crash investigation and scene clean-up, the release said.
The Illinois Move Over Law requires drivers to change lanes when approaching stationary emergency vehicles, including any with hazard lights activated.
The law also states, if changing lanes would be impossible or unsafe, drivers are required to proceed with due caution, reduce the speed of the vehicle and leave a safe distance until safely passing the stationary vehicle.
“As long as the danger to our first responders exists, and the danger is obviously apparent, we will continue to raise awareness and aggressively enforce the Move Over Law,” Kelly said.
