Chicago Woman Charged After Fleeing Crash With Oswego Teen Bicyclist

A 15-year-old bicyclist was seriously injured Wednesday after being struck by a vehicle on Illinois Route 31 near West Washington Street in Oswego, and the driver allegedly fled the scene before being tracked down by sheriff's deputies about 20 minutes later. Oswego police arrested 36-year-old Jasmine Smith of Chicago and charged her with leaving the scene of an accident and driving while her license was suspended.

According to Shaw Local, Oswego police officers were dispatched to the intersection Wednesday after receiving a report of a bicyclist struck by a vehicle. A preliminary investigation determined that Smith was traveling north on Route 31 near West Washington Street when the crash occurred, police said. The vehicle then left the scene and was last seen heading northbound on Route 31.

A female caller reported that she had struck a person on a bicycle, according to the police release cited by the outlet. Officers later interviewed that caller as part of the investigation. Kendall County Sheriff's Office deputies located a vehicle matching witness descriptions in a parking lot off Harbor Drive roughly 20 minutes after the crash was reported.

Teen Transferred to Regional Trauma Center

The injured bicyclist was first taken to Rush Copley Medical Center in Aurora, and was later transferred to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, per the same account. The bicyclist's current condition is unknown. Rush Copley operates a state-designated Level II Trauma Center that treats nearly 70,000 emergency patients annually across the Fox Valley region, according to Rush Copley Medical Center, while Loyola is verified by the American College of Surgeons as a Level I Trauma Center, the highest level of specialized emergency trauma care available in Illinois, per Loyola Medicine. The decision to move the teen to a higher-level facility points to the potential severity of the injuries, though officials have not detailed the boy's diagnosis.

The investigation remains ongoing, and Oswego police said the case will be reviewed for additional charges. Smith has a court date scheduled for October 6.

Legal Exposure Could Grow

Leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident involving personal injury or death is classified as a Class 4 felony under Illinois Vehicle Code 625 ILCS 5/11-401, carrying potential penalties of one to three years in state prison and driver's license revocation, according to Pignatelli & Associates, P.C. Driving while a license is suspended, meanwhile, is typically charged as a Class A misdemeanor under 625 ILCS 5/6-303, punishable by up to 364 days in jail and fines up to $2,500, per The Law Office of Paul M. Marriett. If prosecutors determine the teen suffered severe bodily injury, the hit-and-run charge could potentially be elevated, though no such upgrade has been announced.

A Corridor With a History of Close Calls

This is not the first time this stretch of Route 31 has seen a bicyclist struck. Just three months earlier, on May 22, a 68-year-old bicyclist was hit by a vehicle at the same intersection of Route 31 and Washington Street, though that rider was not injured, according to Patch. In a separate incident, a bicyclist was hospitalized on July 29 after being struck by a car while turning onto Mill Road elsewhere in Oswego, as reported by Shaw Local.

Kendall County reported seven total bicycle crashes during the 2023 annual state reporting period, all resulting in injuries but no fatalities. Statewide, the Illinois Department of Transportation recorded 2,599 bicycle crash injuries and 41 bicyclist fatalities that same year, with bicyclists accounting for over 3% of non-occupant traffic deaths.

The Village of Oswego and the Illinois Department of Transportation have previously implemented traffic signal rephrasing and speed feedback signage along the Washington Street and Route 31 corridor in an effort to improve pedestrian and bicyclist safety downtown. Oswego police also take part in Operation Impact, a high school driver safety education program created after a 2007 crash on Route 31 killed five teenagers, according to the Village of Oswego.