CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, Ill. (WAND) – A man who used his cell phone moments before a crash that killed a child pleaded guilty.
Steven Kruse, 38, admitted to pulling out his phone to check a text message before his car crashed into the back of another on Interstate 57 southbound (mile post 237). The June 8, 2017, crash killed 10-year-old Caitlin Conner, who was sitting in the back seat of a car that was sitting behind a semi truck close to a construction zone.
Champaign County State’s Attorney Julia Rietz says Kruse admitted to using the cell phone while driving and that the phone usage was the proximate cause of the crash. He told investigators he couldn’t stop in time to avoid crashing after looking up from his phone.
Kruse's charge is for aggravated use of an electronic communication device.
Rietz says a plea deal reached between Kruse and his attorney involves 30 months of felony probation and 6 months in the Champaign County Correctional Center. Kruse will also be required to pay court costs.
Champaign County enhanced its electronic device usage laws in July 2014. Kruse’s plea was the first guilty plea under the changed law.
“This is relatively new, very untested law, particularly when it comes to the definition of ‘use’ of the electronic communication device,” Rietz said. “Our goal was to provide certainty to the Conner family and give them the opportunity to make their statement to the court and to the public, to have Mr. Kruse take responsibility for Caitlin’s entirely preventable tragic death, and to provide an avenue to educate the public on the very real danger created by distracted driving, particularly when the distraction is caused by electronic communication devices.”
Kruse could serve his sentence under electronic home detention if Judge Adam Dill approves it. A hearing about possible having Kruse serve home detention is scheduled for Aug. 24.
