
An Ingleside man was ordered detained pending trial after he was charged with his fifth DUI when he caused a head-on crash that killed a 21-year-old man in Fox Lake, at a time he was on release for another DUI.
Kevin C. Kaminski, 49, of Ingleside, was charged with two counts of aggravated driving under the influence causing death and two counts of reckless homicide.
A Lake County grand jury returned the four-count indictment charging Kaminski in early January.
Court records show two additional charges of aggravated driving under the influence fifth offense were filed last week by another grand jury.
The charges stem from a vehicle crash that occurred around 9:40 p.m. on August 24 at Route 12 between Route 59 and Route 134 in Fox Lake.
Fox Lake Police Chief Dawn DeServi said at the time that an investigation showed a black Cadillac SRX was traveling southbound on Route 12 in the northbound lanes.
The Cadillac, driven by Kaminski, struck a Ford work van, which was traveling northbound on Route 12, DeServi said.
Firefighters arrived to find the drivers of both vehicles were trapped inside and needed to be extricated.
Paramedics reported the driver of the Ford work van, later identified as Anthony Herrera, 21, of Wauconda, was unconscious.
Firefighters extricated both drivers and paramedics transported them to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville.
Herrera was critically injured and died after arriving at the hospital, DeServi said.
Kaminski suffered various lacerations and possible fractures. He was listed as stable in the hospital following the crash.
DeServi said both drivers were the sole occupants of their vehicles.
The Lake County Major Crash Assistance Team (MCAT) responded to assist the Fox Lake Police Department with the investigation.
Investigators worked for several hours at the scene reconstructing the crash.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office, Lake Villa Police Department, Round Lake Beach Police Department and Round Lake Police Department responded to the area to assist with the road closures and traffic control.
The indictment said Kaminski was driving under the combined influence of drugs and alcohol.
Toxicology testing showed Kaminski had clonazepam and alcohol in his system, which rendered him incapable of safely driving a vehicle, the indictment said.
The indictment also said Kaminski acted in a reckless manner by driving intoxicated in the opposite lane of travel and failing to reduce his speed to avoid the crash, which led to Herrera’s death.
It was Kaminski’s fifth driving under the influence violation.
At the time of the fatal crash, Kaminski was out on a personal recognizance bond for driving under the influence in Lake County on July 1.
He was only charged with misdemeanors at the time of that arrest despite it being his fourth driving under the influence violation, which is a Class 2 felony in Illinois.
The charges in the July DUI were only upgraded by the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office last week — six months after it occurred.
The charges in the fatal crash carry up to 14 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections if convicted.
Kaminski was taken into custody late last month following an arraignment hearing where he was ordered detained pending trial.
In 2016, Kaminski was spotlighted by Lake County officials when they rolled out the “A Way Out” program for drug users.