Trucker Convicted In I-88 Collision That Killed Tollway Worker

(CBS) – A truck driver has been found guilty in connection with the January 2014 tollway chain-reaction crash that killed a state employee and severely injured an Illinois state trooper.

DuPage County Circuit Judge Robert Kleeman on Thursday found Renato Velasquez, 47, guilty of several felony offenses, the office of State's Attorney Robert B. Berlin announced.

Velasquez, of Hanover Park, was operating a semi-trailer-tractor truck on the evening of Jan. 27 last year when his rig plowed into vehicles that were parked on the shoulder along Interstate 88 near Eola Road. In the ensuing crash, tollway employee Vincent Petrella was killed.

Petrella had positioned his state vehicle on the side of the road with emergency flashers so that he could assist a disabled driver. A state trooper, Douglas Balder, had parked behind Petrella's vehicle, also activating his emergency lights, officials said. Balder was seriously injured but survived the collision.

Judge Kleeman, at the conclusion of a bench trial, found Velasquez guilty of one count of Operating a Commercial Motor Vehicle in a Fatigued State; two counts of Failure to Comply With Hours of Service Requirements; one count of Driving Too Fast For Conditions and one count of Failure to Yield to Emergency Vehicles, Berlin's office said.

Velasquez had allegedly been working 27 hours straight prior to the crash.

"Simply put, Mr. Velasquez's decision to get behind the wheel of his truck while fatigued cost Vincent Petrella his life and severely injured Trooper Balder," Berlin said in a prepared statement. "Had Mr. Velasquez gotten the proper amount of rest before driving, Mr. Petrella would be alive today and Trooper Balder would not be looking at a life of pain and suffering."

The defendant's next court appearance is scheduled for March 23. He faces a penalty of up to three years in state prison. He is out on bond, Berlin's office said.