A man has appealed against a seven-year prison sentence he received for a DUI crash that killed a teen back in February, 2019. The motion was filed on the behalf of Joseph Kucharski in the DuPage County Court on Thursday, August 13.
Kucharski was sentenced to seven years earlier in July. He had been found under the influence of alcohol when he caused a fatal crash in 2019. The crash resulted in the death of Elizabeth Dunlap, 17, just as she had exited the Downers Grove North High School and was crossing the street.
Have you or a loved one been involved in an accident? Speak to a lawyer for a free no obligation consultation
Or call us at (888) 699-7975
Prosecutors had sought to have Kucharski sentenced to 14 years in prison. This was because of many aggravating aspects of the case. For instance, he was driving in the wrong lane and had run a red light, which caused the fatal crash. Following the crash, investigations also uncovered that he had alcohol, cocaine and prescription drugs in his blood.
It was further revealed in the investigations that Kucharski had been using cocaine for several days before the crash. Relevant evidence recovered by the police included crack cocaine, crack pipes as well as a half-empty Vodka bottle.
Kucharski had pleaded guilty to aggravated DUI resulting in death. A new motion filed on his behalf now seeks for a less stiff penalty. The motion claims that Kucharski has demonstrated genuine rehabilitative potential and that the stiff penalty, despite such potential, was a violation of his rights. Earlier on Wednesday, Kucharski had been remanded into the custody of the state according to the Illinois Department of Corrections.
Disclaimer: The Safety Watch article you just read includes information obtained from numerous sources. These sources include, but are not limited to, websites and press releases from law enforcement, the county coroner, fire departments, and other news outlets. While we strive to provide readers with the most accurate information, sometimes the information received is not entirely accurate. For complete details, please refer to an official police report.
The articles published contain sensitive subject matter that may be hard to read by some. We understand that losing a loved one is hard and devastating. Safety Watch’s decision to share the stories is to help others who may be facing the same situations by providing appropriate resources to the general public.