A judge denied pre-trial release to a Waukegan man accused of leading police on a high-speed pursuit in Lake Zurich and Hawthorn Woods, recklessly passing school buses, before fleeing on foot.
The Hawthorn Woods Police Department received a report of a reckless driver on southbound Fairfield Road around 8:15 a.m. Tuesday.
Lake County Assistant State’s Attorney Nicholas Shepherd said the car was coming from Wauconda.
An officer located the black Hyundai Sonata sedan and witnessed it commit an illegal U-turn into oncoming traffic at Fairfield Road and Old McHenry Road.
Officers attempted to stop the Hyundai but it refused to stop and continued traveling at a high rate of speed, Shepherd said.
The driver operated the vehicle in a reckless manner as the pursuit ensued.
Shepherd said the Hyundai failed to stop at the red light at Old McHenry Road and Midlothian Road and drove through a stop sign.
The car was clocked at 80 mph in a 50 mph zone at Midlothian Road and Kruger Road.
It struck lane dividers near the Hawthorn Woods Aquatic Center, Lake Zurich Deputy Police Chief Colin Gaffney said.
The Hyundai struck a curb and soon passed multiple Lake Zurich High School buses before turning onto Oakwood Road in Lake Zurich, Shepherd said.
Gaffney said the Hyundai sideswiped a vehicle while attempting to pass it.
The Hyundai continued fleeing and was last seen in a subdivision in Lake Zurich.
Shepherd said the Hyundai hit another vehicle and became disabled.
The Lake Zurich Police Department located the Hyundai near Bristol Trail Road and Stanton Court.
The suspect driver, Jerimiah Lyons, 18, of Waukegan, was standing outside the car talking to the driver of the other vehicle, Gaffney said.
Gaffney said Lyons fled on foot into residential backyards and officers pursued him. He was apprehended around 9 a.m. near Ferndale Court.
Officers learned the car was stolen out of Lake Zurich, Gaffney said.
Lyons, who does not have a driver’s license, told police he knew the car was stolen and the steering column was stripped, Shepherd said. The man also had a large screwdriver in his possession.
Sarah Adams Elementary School entered into a “hold in place” until the situation was resolved.
Lyons was charged with possession of a stolen vehicle, two counts of aggravated fleeing to elude, possession of burglary tools, obstructing a peace officer, reckless driving, unlawful possession of cannabis by a driver and speeding.
Additional charges are possible. The Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office filed a petition to detain Lyons pending trial.
The charges by themselves are non-detainable under Illinois’ cashless bail law but prosecutors said that Lyons’ actions put the public at risk of receiving great bodily harm, which they argued means that Lyons can be detained under a catch-all provision of state law.
Lake County Judge Ari Fisz granted the petition to detain Lyons pending trial during a detention hearing on Thursday afternoon.
The judge noted that although Lyons does not have a criminal history, his actions were reckless and placed others in danger.
“Lord only knows what would have happened if he hadn’t ran into that other vehicle because that was apparently the only thing that made him stop,” Fisz said, adding that he does not believe Lyons would comply with any court orders on pre-trial release.
Lyons is scheduled to appear in court again on October 29 for a preliminary hearing.