DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) — Tuesday started just like any other day on the lake for Robert Marvin and Alicia Bradley.
The two friends joined seven others on a boat on Lake Decatur over the course of Tuesday afternoon. The splashing and donuts were fun — until they say the driver began acting erratically.
"The operator of the boat suddenly zoned out and basically went full throttle into the shore," Marvin said. "We were coming a good 50 miles per hour."
Police say the driver, Jill Foster, was intoxicated when she crashed into the pier near North Lake Shore Drive. Foster is charged with reckless operation and operation of a watercraft under the influence. Conservation officers say more charges could be filed pending toxicology results.
"We did see her take a couple pills," Bradley said. "She was smoking marijuana and drinking a couple beers."
After the impact, Bradley was unconscious and Marvin was screaming for help. One of their friends was lying lifeless in water.
Bradd Stewart was nearby working on his dock and immediately sprang into action.
"She [needed] medical attention," Stewart said. "They threw a towel and that's when I went over there to put pressure on her wounds."
Stewart is a former paramedic. As he tended to the injured, his security cameras caught first responders arriving on scene. All of them were glad this hadn't been a day earlier.
"What if this would've been Memorial Day?" Stewart asked. "What if that dock would've had 15 or 20 people on it?"
Despite the speed and force of the impact, no one died. But Marvin has nine months of physical therapy. Bradley has a concussion and back issues. A friend also has a concussion. Another friend — the one who hit the dock after jumping from the boat — is still in the hospital with major injuries.
Marvin now wants justice.
"She deserves to serve the consequences," he said. "The damage is done."
