Prosecutors say a woman was driving drunk and high at nearly 100 mph when she caused a rollover crash that left her 34-year-old passenger ejected from the car and dead on Route 41 in Highland Park.
The Highland Park Police Department and Highland Park Fire Department responded around 3:25 a.m. on November 24, 2024, to the 2300 block of Skokie Valley Road in Highland Park, which is between Half Day Road and Park Avenue West, for a report of a vehicle crash with injuries.
Lake County Assistant State’s Attorney Francis DeRosa said the crash involved a single-vehicle, a 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee, which had sustained heavy damage.
The Jeep was traveling southbound on Route 41 when the driver, Alexis Reynolds, 28, of Chicago, lost control of the car and ran off the roadway.
The Jeep struck a utility pole and rolled over multiple times before coming to rest in an upright position on the west shoulder of the southbound lanes, DeRosa said.
The Jeep was occupied by four people. One of them, Cameron Faulkner, 34, of Chicago, was in the rear passenger seat and was ejected from the vehicle.
Faulkner was unconscious and not breathing. Faulkner was found 20 feet from the vehicle heavily bleeding, DeRosa said.
CPR and other lifesaving measures were initiated and Faulkner was transported to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville where he died.
The second passenger involved suffered minor injuries and Reynolds was also injured. Both of them were transported to the hospital.
Technicians from ComEd were called to tend to the damaged utility pole and hanging wires.
The Lake County Major Crash Assistance Team (MCAT) responded and southbound Route 41 between Half Day Road and Park Avenue West was shut down for the crash investigation.
Reynolds told police she drove from her home in Chicago and picked up someone else in Oak Park before driving the two of them to celebrate a birthday in Mundelein at a sports bar, DeRosa said.
Reynolds, who smelled of alcohol and burnt cannabis, admitted to consuming alcohol and driving to Antioch before driving herself, her friend and Faulker to Faulker’s home when the crash occurred, DeRosa said.
Reynolds said she merged onto Route 41 when another vehicle cut her off and she swerved right to avoid a collision. She said she was traveling at 70 mph and tried to brake and struck what she thought was the median barrier.
The speed limit in the area is 50 mph and the car’s data recorder showed Reynolds was traveling at 94 mph five seconds before the crash, which occurred on a dry roadway, DeRosa said.
An independent witness said he did not see any other vehicles near Reynolds’ car when the crash occurred.
The MCAT investigation recently concluded and the case was presented to a Lake County grand jury in late July.
The jury returned a 13-count indictment charging Reynolds with five counts of aggravated driving under the influence causing a crash involving death, three counts of reckless homicide and five counts of driving under the influence.
“The defendant was driving from Antioch to Chicago with two passengers with intoxicating amounts of both alcohol and THC in her system. The 3:26 a.m. dark night conditions provided an added layer of danger to this lengthy trip back to the city,” DeRosa said.
“The roadway was dry, yet the defendant managed to travel 94 miles per hour in a 50 miles per hour zone, combined with her level of impairment, which led to her striking a pole, rolling over by one witness account, four times, and then come to a stop completely facing the opposite direction of travel in the westernmost shoulder,” DeRosa said.
“The end result was the victim, Mr. Faulkner, being ejected approximately 20 feet from the vehicle, being found in a lifeless state with CPR started on scene, and ultimately succumbing to his injuries,” he added.
An arrest warrant was issued for Reynolds after the indictment was returned. Reynolds was taken into custody on the warrant on August 25.
She was released from custody following a detention hearing after Lake County Judge Michael Nerheim denied a petition to detain filed by prosecutors.
The judge noted that the crash happened approximately eight months prior to charges being brought. He said there have been no further arrests or traffic citations that would indicate dangerousness since the incident.
Nerheim also said that Reynolds remained at the scene and cooperated with investigators.
Reynolds is scheduled to appear in court again on October 20 for a case management conference.