Illinois: Trucker gets 2 years in prison for crash that killed state trooper
The brother of an Illinois state trooper who was killed when a trucker slammed into his squad car tearfully testified Friday that was he "left with only anger" as a judge sentenced the truck driver to two years in prison. "My brother was absolutely everything to me. He was my best friend. He wore his badge with honor and pride," Matthew Sauter said of his brother James Sauter, who was killed in a 2013 crash on I-294 near Northbrook.
Matthew Sauter and the trooper's wife, Elizabeth, gave impact statements as trucker Andrew Bokelman, 25, pleaded guilty in Cook County court to three felony charges — operating a commercial vehicle while impaired or fatigued, filing a false work log to conceal hours worked and working longer than a 14-hour period allowed by law.
Bokelman "turned his semi into a deadly weapon," Matthew Sauter said. For much of the testimony, Bokelman looked down at the table in front of him and after the hearing was taken back into custody to begin his sentence. With day-for-day credit and credit for time served, Bokelman could be out of prison in less than one year for the crash that killed Sauter, 28, who lived in Vernon Hills and grew up in Chicago Ridge. Bokelman did not speak during the hearing, but his attorney, David Studenroth, said: "There's not a day that goes by that he's not sorry for what happened. He didn't set out that day to kill Trooper Sauter."
Related Links
Links provided with these articles were active and accurate as of the posting of the article to ResponderSafety.com. However, web sites change and the organization hosting the page at the link may have moved or removed it since this article was posted. Therefore, some links may no longer be active.