A car drove into Fashion Statement, a beauty supply store at 2500 South Grand Ave. E. in Springfield, around 11 a.m. Friday. The driver was having a medical episode, and police made no arrests.
The State Journal-Register reported that Springfield Police Lt. Jenkins described the crash. Owner Gee told the paper she and a customer heard a loud noise, saw a wall or shelf moving, and ran to another room in the shop.
Gee said no one was hurt besides the driver. Fashion Statement was closed as of Friday afternoon, though the store made exceptions for regular customers who stopped by to ask what had happened.
Illinois law also distinguishes a reported medical event from a legal finding about responsibility. In a 2017 case, the Illinois Supreme Court said a driver charged with aggravated DUI could raise the defense that a sudden, unforeseeable medical condition was the sole cause of a crash causing serious injury or death. But the court reinstated the conviction because the driver’s proposed evidence did not adequately support that claim. The ruling concerned a different case and does not establish what happened at Fashion Statement. The court’s opinion in People v. Way explains the limits.
A medical emergency was also considered in a much deadlier building crash in Chatham, near Springfield, in April 2025. A car struck an after-school program, killing four people; Illinois State Police said the driver’s test results were negative for drugs and alcohol, but the possible medical emergency was not conclusive and the investigation continued. The circumstances and outcome differ sharply from the Fashion Statement crash, where no one besides the driver was reported hurt. The Associated Press’ account of the Chatham investigation documents the comparison.
