Millstadt man charged with felony DUI in fatal head-on crash near Columbia

Monroe County prosecutors have filed felony charges against a Millstadt man in connection with a head-on crash last fall near Columbia that killed a Waterloo-area woman.

Kaleb M. Hugger, 21, was charged with aggravated driving under the influence involving death, a Class 2 felony, and reckless homicide, a Class 3 felony, according to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department and State’s Attorney Ryan Webb. Hugger surrendered Tuesday, the sheriff’s department said.

The sheriff’s department said its investigation into the Oct. 22, 2025, crash on Bluff Road just south of Bottom Road in an unincorporated area near Columbia is complete. Deputies, Columbia police, firefighters and EMS were called about 5:23 p.m. and found two vehicles, each occupied by one person, authorities said.

A preliminary investigation found the driver of a northbound 2005 Buick Rendezvous attempted to pass another northbound vehicle, entered the southbound lane and struck a 2021 Honda Accord, the sheriff’s department said at the time.

Monroe County Coroner Bob Hill later said both vehicles made evasive moves toward a field on the west side of the road and collided head-on in the field. He said the Accord’s driver was wearing a seat belt.

The Accord’s driver, Kathleen M. “Kathy” Francescon, 61, who lived in the rural Waterloo area, was pronounced dead at the scene. Hugger was taken to a St. Louis-area hospital, treated for injuries and later released, authorities said in earlier updates.

Investigators worked with the Illinois State Police Traffic Crash Reconstruction Unit and presented the case to the Monroe County State’s Attorney’s Office on March 16, the sheriff’s department said. Webb filed charges March 17 accusing Hugger of aggravated driving under the influence involving death and reckless homicide.

Francescon was the chief financial officer at Friendship Village Senior Living Center in St. Louis County, according to her obituary. She was remembered as “a loving mother, a devoted wife and an incredible friend to so many,” the obituary said.