Skokie EMT Charged in Fatal Hit-and-Run
A Skokie man has been charged with leaving the scene of an accident and failure to report an accident resulting in a death. The suspect killed a Park Ridge man in Des Plaines on Nov. 5, authorities said.
Photos
Skokie resident Kristian Hernandez, 36, of the 8200 block of Knox Avenue, has been charged with leaving the scene of an accident and failure to report an accident resulting in a death, a Class I felony, authorities said Friday.
Patch reported on Nov. 6 that 53-year-old Park Ridge resident Ronald Bougan was found dead about six feet from Touhy Avenue near Axehead Lake, just east of the I-294 expressway in Des Plaines, on Nov. 5.
A man riding his bicycle found Bougan in a grassy area and initially, in the dark, thought he was looking at a deer or other animal, authorities said. Hernandez worked as an EMT for an ambulance company in Skokie, the Sheriff's Department said.
The Cook County Sheriff’s Department gathered evidenced at the scene and canvassed local auto body shops in an attempt to locate a vehicle that had damage consistent with auto parts recovered at the scene.
Investigators eventually realized they were looking for a black Dodge Challenger and located a repair shop in Skokie that matched the description of the vehicle they were looking for. The car had damage consistent with what was found at the scene of the accident, authorities said.
According to the Cook County Sherriff’s Department, Hernandez has already provided statements admitting his involvement with the accident.
Prior to this arrest, Hernandez had been arrested seven times, including a violation of an order of protection, domestic battery with bodily harm and possession of a stolen vehicle, the Sherriff’s Department said.
Bond has been set for $100,000 and Hernandez is due in court on Dec. 4 at the Skokie Courthouse.
D
12:22 pm on Friday, November 9, 2012
Sounds like a real winner
jujuana buggs
12:41 pm on Friday, November 9, 2012
May God watch over the deceased family and the the person who hit him and didn't stop that was either heartless or the devil was at work that day for real
Shawn
6:02 am on Sunday, November 11, 2012
Maybe god could have been there for the guy who was killed.
God has such a sweet gig. You give him credit for all the good things while blaming yourselves or "the devil" for bad things.
Me thinks 2
10:17 pm on Sunday, November 11, 2012
Shawn, See you in church next Sunday??
Mary Beth
1:03 pm on Friday, November 9, 2012
I couldn't leave an animal if I hit it, let alone a human.
Mck268
1:13 pm on Friday, November 9, 2012
An EMT? Really? What a piece of garbage. How could a person who obviously has no value for human life be an EMT? Thank God he's off the streets, hope they keep him off!
Mike S.
1:16 pm on Friday, November 9, 2012
Of all people to leave the scene with serious injuries ... and Emergency Medical Technician! whose job it is to save people and help them while they're in his ambulance! And ... with his long arrest record ... how could the ambulance company hire such a lowllfe?! With emt's like this ... maybe it would be better to take a cab or a bus to the hospital in an extreme emergency!
Red Sam Rackham
1:31 pm on Friday, November 9, 2012
My guess is he was prob'ly drunk at the time and left the scene of the accident to avoid a DUI charge not unlike Ted Kennedy at Chappaquiddick.
J
5:05 pm on Friday, November 9, 2012
Oh I have so many questions about this... First of all, HOW is this guy still holding his EMT license with an arrest record that includes a felony (possession of a stolen vehicle)??? Is he even holding a valid license at all? Second, how did he manage to get a job with a private ambulance company with a record like that??? Obviously this company is not looking into people's backgrounds before they hire their EMS personnel. I guarantee this man will NEVER hold a license again and won't be allowed to care for a goldfish, let alone a human life! Just wait till IDPH gets a hold of this story. This company better get their documents in order ASAP!
Me thinks 2
8:29 pm on Friday, November 9, 2012
Exactly what I was thinking! Thank goodness they caught this total jerk; good police work. May this guy rot in H E double-hockey sticks. Thoughts & prayers to Mr. Bougan's family.
Quagmire
8:27 pm on Friday, November 9, 2012
Bond is too low for this piece of $#*! he needs to stay in for as long as possibly allowed by law. How can this guy be an EMT? I guess no-one does real backround checks these days. School bus companies are bad enough but EMTs ??!!! THis guy is a completely worthless P.O.S. is he even a citizen??
Klg
11:58 pm on Friday, November 9, 2012
Why are you guys questioning if he is a citizen? Because he is Latino? Talk about racist! You guys sure have a lot to say from only hearing the media's side. You all should know by now, people are never innocent until proven guilty, it's quite the contrary because of people like you. It's sad a life was lost but stop judging him. You all are not perfect and are no one to judge
Quagmire
5:56 am on Saturday, November 10, 2012
Not racist at all, it is what it is. The guy has a history of being a law breaking P.O.S. This is the kind of poison that is ruining America. Whether he is a citizen or not he is a piece of $#*! that should be off the street for at least 30 years
Quagmire
5:55 am on Saturday, November 10, 2012
The guy has a history of being a law breaking P.O.S. This is the kind of poison that is ruining America. Whether he is a citizen or not he is a piece of $#*! that should be off the street for at least 30 years
b garrett
7:01 am on Saturday, November 10, 2012
Well ....under the new political correct ideology ... As he is mexican....he enjoys special government protections ...company probably scared of being sued for discrimination if they didn't keep him on. Or... Had to have home to have the required racially balanced makeup of work forces....like firefighter mandates for blacks the city of chicago is borrowing 75 million to pay for discrimination against them even though they could not pass the firefighter test.....
Harry Gio
7:39 am on Saturday, November 10, 2012
PEOPLE SHOULD ALWAYS STOP AND CALL 911, REGARDLESS OF WHAT THE CIRCUMSTANCES WERE; BECAUSE NOW THAT PERSON IS FACING A GUARANTEED PRISON SENTENCE... ALWAYS CALL 911 !!!!!!!
Christine Aragon
7:52 am on Saturday, November 10, 2012
Wow, it's really sad to see how many negative assumptions are being made about the driver. I'm not defending him for leaving the scene of the accident, but any logical person could understand how shocked and scared he must have been. For all we know, he may have stopped and tried to resuscitate the biker and once he realized he was dead, panicked and sped away. We don't know all the facts.
And let's face it, its dangerous to ride your bike at night down poorly lit roads, especially if you're not wearing reflective clothing or your bike doesn't have a light or reflectors. I personally am always worried about hitting a biker when driving down Golf Road near Harms at night. I've seen some wearing all black with no reflectors on a 4 lane mini highway where motorists are driving 50mph with no street illumination other than headlights from cars traveling in the opposite direction. It's a miracle more bicyclists aren't accidentally killed. Touhy and Golf Rd need more streetlights, bicyclists need to use good sense, and motorists have to take extra caution.
Bob G
10:21 am on Saturday, November 10, 2012
I don't see anywhere the article says he is Mexican. Hernandez is not necessarily a Mexican name dummy. He may be British. He is a scumbag for not stopping to give aid no matter what his nationality is. Especially since he was an EMT. Hopefully the crooked court system will put him in jail for his crime. But to equate this with some kind of politics is kind of silly.
Shawn
6:51 pm on Saturday, November 10, 2012
Negative assumptions? Any logical person shouldn't care how shocked and scared he must have been. How shocked and scared was the guy he hit?
If he tried to help and then left because he realized the guy was dead, he's a heartless jerk who deserves no sympathy at all. How dare you try to defend him, you should be ashamed of yourself.
Your second paragraph sounds like those victim blamers that tell rape victims that maybe if they just didn't dress so slutty...
CRITIC
8:56 pm on Wednesday, January 9, 2013
FIRST OF ALL, THE VICTIM WAS NOT RIDING A BIKE, HE WAS WALKING. 2ND- TIRE MARKS WERE LEFT IN THE SOFT DIRT, WELL OFF THE ROAD. 3RD- IF THIS ANIMAL HAD STOPPED, HE WOULD HAVE TAKEN HIS CAR MIRROR WITH HIM INSTEAD OF LEAVING IT BY THE BODY. 4TH- HE ADMITTED TO BEING AT 3 DRINKING ESTAB. PRIOR TO THE INCIDENT. 5TH-- SCARED OR OTHERWISE, ANY DECENT PERSON WOULD HAVE CALLED 911 EVEN IF IT WAS ANONYMOUSLY
CRITIC
8:57 pm on Wednesday, January 9, 2013
FIRST OF ALL, THE VICTIM WAS NOT RIDING A BIKE, HE WAS WALKING. 2ND- TIRE MARKS WERE LEFT IN THE SOFT DIRT, WELL OFF THE ROAD. 3RD- IF THIS ANIMAL HAD STOPPED, HE WOULD HAVE TAKEN HIS CAR MIRROR WITH HIM INSTEAD OF LEAVING IT BY THE BODY. 4TH- HE ADMITTED TO BEING AT 3 DRINKING ESTAB. PRIOR TO THE INCIDENT. 5TH-- SCARED OR OTHERWISE, ANY DECENT PERSON WOULD HAVE CALLED 911 EVEN IF IT WAS ANONYMOUSLY.....
Quagmire
7:16 pm on Thursday, November 15, 2012
Where is the forum moderator??? I have flagged the two spam posts above by betty & xiaoyang as inappropriate as well as emailed her and nothing has been deleted.....
George Slefo
10:56 pm on Thursday, November 15, 2012
@ Quagmire -
Thank you for pointing this out. There are a lot of comments that get posted on Patch and it's because of our community that we're able to keep up with content violations.
The comments section now reflects your post. Much appreciated.
Best,
George
Quagmire
8:20 am on Saturday, December 1, 2012
Why does this spam get to remain on here? Should be taken off immediately.