Crime & Safety

DUI Charged in Three Accidents in St. Charles Over the Weekend

No one was injured, but one victim told police he was rear-ended and shoved off the road by a vehicle going 100 mph on West Main Street.

Imagine driving down the road in the dark and glancing into your rear-view mirror only to see the headlights of a vehicle approaching at a high rate of speed and then crashing into you.


That’s what reportedly happened early Sunday morning to a St. Charles man who police say was rear-ended by a drunken driver. The force of the crash shoved the victim’s car off of West Main Street near Corporate Reserve Boulevard and through a row of trees in a backyard.


Police have charged the driver of the other vehicle, Michael B. Semmens, 21, of the 500 block of Bradbury Lane, Geneva, with driving under the influence of alcohol, failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident, and leaving the scene of a vehicle damage accident.

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Semmens, was released on his own recognizance pending a court appearance, was charged at 6:36 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 8, 2013, after police were called to West Main Street and Corporate Reserve Boulevard about two hours earlier on a report of a car crashing into the backyard of a residence in the area.


Police found a 2012 Hyundai Sonata had crashed into a row of trees about 25 to 30 feet from the roadway. The unoccupied Sonata had damage to the front end of the vehicle, but it also was damaged on the rear end.

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Officers found the Sonata’s owner walking on West Main Street not far from the crash. The man, who refused medical treatment, told police he was walking back toward his home because he had left his cellphone there.


According to the report, he told police he was eastbound on West Main Street when he saw a vehicle approaching from behind at a speed he estimated at 100 mph. The report notes the speed zone there is 45 mph. The man told police that before he had time to react, the vehicle struck him from behind, shoving his Sonata off the roadway and into the trees. He said the vehicle fled eastbound.


Police began searching for a vehicle with heavy front-end damage and found a 2006 Honda Civic that had such damage parked in a lot at 2901 W. Main St., about a half mile from the crash scene. Debris from the crash site matched the Honda, which was registered to a Geneva woman, police said.


Geneva police found Semmens with his parents. He was taken into custody, but St. Charles police said he denied driving the car. The report states, however, that Semmens parents contradicted their son’s statement.


The crash was the third in which a driver was cited with DUI over the weekend.


Two Crashes Friday Night


Police also cited two other drivers with DUI in relation to two separate crashes on Friday night, Dec. 6. No one was reported injured in either crash, according to reports.


In the first crash, Ronald Lee Gjerde, 60, of the 42W700 block of Falcon Lane, was charged at 7:59 p.m. at Peck Road and Lincoln Highway with DUI, DUI with a blood-alcohol concentration greater than .08, and driving too fast for conditions.


Police said Gjerde’s blood-alcohol concentration registered at .173, which is more than twice the .08 legal limit for intoxication.


Police were called to Peck Road and Lincoln Highway after an accident in which Gjerde’s vehicle reportedly rear-ended the other driver at a stoplight.


Gjerde He posted his driver’s license and a $100 cash bond and was released pending a Jan. 23, 2014 appearance in Kane County Court.


Nearly four hours later, police arrested another man on DUI charges after another accident. Michael Francis Gruesen, 22, of the 00-99 block of Stirrup Cup Court, was charged at 11:44 p.m. on the 1300 block of Fox Chase Boulevard with DUI, DUI with a blood-alcohol concentration greater than .08, and driving too fast for conditions.


Police responding to a report of an accident said they found Gruesen’s 2012 Honda Accord,  in the front yard of 1301 Fox Chase Blvd. According to the report, the vehicle had been southbound on Keim Trail when it left the roadway, striking a mailbox, a stop sign and then the curb of Fox Chase Boulevard and into the yard.


Police said Gruesen’s blood-alcohol concentration was .080. He posted his driver’s license and a $50 booking fee and was released on his own recognizance pending a Dec. 16, 2013 appearance in Kane County Court.


Police Blotter information is provided by the St. Charles Police Department and other local law enforcement agencies. Charges are not evidence of guilt. They are a record of police actions taken on a given day, and persons charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court. If you or a family member are charged or cited and the case is subsequently adjudicated, we encourage you to notify the editor. We will verify and report the outcome.


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