Park Forest, IL-(ENEWSPF)- A Steger man was arrested in early January and processed on felony DUI charges and another felony charge when police responded to investigate a report of a disabled vehicle on Monee Road. Police alleged the man was so intoxicated they had to cease field sobriety tests for fear he might fall and hurt himself.
On January 3 just after 10 PM, two officers responded to the 200 block of Monee Road to investigate a report of a disabled vehicle. The call was later changed to a DUI instigation.
While on their way, SouthCom Dispatch told officers a caller reported seeing a black-colored vehicle driving erratically before veering off the roadway into a ditch on the north side of Monee Road, according to police.
When police arrived, they found a black 2008 Mercedes-Benz positioned in the north side ditch directly in front of a home in the 200 block of Monee Road. The vehicle was facing westbound and police saw tire marks entering the ditch near Tampa Street before the spot where the car came to a rest in front of the residence, according to police. The vehicle had driven over water drainage lids and one of the drainage lids had been knocked over into the drain, according to police.
The vehicle’s engine was revving as the driver attempted to apply gas to free the vehicle from the ditch, according to police.
Officers found a small Dole pineapple can on the ground near the driver’s side door, according to the report. Police also found a 5 mL vodka bottle on the ground next to the front passenger-side door. The bottle did not have a cap, according to police. All of the windows of the car were closed except for the front passenger side window, according to police.
An officer approached the driver’s side window and ordered the driver to lower his window. The driver lowered the window after being told several times to do so, according to police. The driver, later identified as Frederick Jones, initially sat motionless after lowering the window and stared straight ahead, not responding further to the officer, according to police.
There were two small clear plastic cups in the cup holder directly in front of the center console, according to police. One cup held what appeared to be a yellow-colored liquid and the other cup had a very small amount of a clear-colored liquid inside it, according to police.
The report says that Mr. Jones had “bloodshot and glassy eyes,” and looked “confused” as to what was occurring.
An officer asked Mr. Jones why his vehicle went off the roadway and Mr. Jones allegedly responded after several seconds, slurring his speech, telling the officer that he lived down the street, pointing toward westbound Monee Road, which happened to be the opposite direction of the location of his residence in Steger, according to police.
Mr. Jones later stated that he was going to University Park, according to police.
Officers asked Mr. Jones to provide his driver’s license and a copy of his vehicle insurance. Mr. Jones then opened his center console and began fumbling through several items before passing the officer his cell phone, according to police.
Police again told Mr. Jones to provide his driver’s license, according to police. Mr. Jones then allegedly passed the officer a pack of Newport cigarettes with half of a ripped $20 bill, according to police.
The officer again asked Mr. Jones to provide his driver’s license. This time, Jones allegedly gave the officer his cell phone again, according to police.
The officer smelled a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from Jones’s breath and from the vehicle, according to the report.
Police then instructed Mr. Jones to exit the vehicle. Mr. Jones took several moments to exit the vehicle. Mr. Jones allegedly made “inaudible comments that were slurred,” according to police. Mr. Jones allegedly stumbled while exiting his vehicle, according to police, and had to be escorted by an officer to the sidewalk for fear that he might fall, according to police.
The officer asked Mr. Jones if he had consumed any alcoholic beverages and he allegedly stated that he drank two beers, according to police.
The officer then asked Mr. Jones if he would be willing to perform Standardized Field Sobriety Tests and Mr. Jones agreed, according to the police. After allegedly displaying “clear indications of intoxication” during the tests, the officer ended attempts to further conducted field tests for Mr. Jones’s safety, according to police.
Police arrested Mr. Jones, put him in handcuffs, and transported him to the Park Forest Police Department, according to police. Mr. Jones had to be held up while being guided to the patrol vehicle to prevent him from falling, according to police. Mr. Jones’s vehicle was towed from the scene, according to police.
At the station, Mr. Jones related that he did not wish to perform a breath test, according to the report.
The arresting officer used a Park Forest Police Department database and saw that Mr. Jones had three prior convictions on DUI charges and five prior convictions on charges of a revoked driver’s license, according to police. The arresting officer then contacted the Will County Felony Review and an Assistant States Attorney approved felony charges against Mr. Jones.
Frederick Jones, 38, 3757 Crescent Dr., Steger, was arrested on January 3 and processed on the following felony charges: aggravated revoked driver’s license, DUI, and aggravated DUI.
About Police Reports
Please note that we repeatedly say “according to police” in these reports and often use “allegedly.” We are not asserting in any way that those police arrested and charged committed any offenses. We report on what is in the reports that the police furnish to us. As those accused are innocent until proven guilty, the burden is on prosecutors and police to prove all alleged crimes.
eNews Park Forest has continuously published the addresses of those arrested and will continue to do so. 5 ILCS 140/2.15 states that the governmental body (for these reports, the Police Department), shall release information on those charged, including their name, age, and address. This information is necessary to ensure the proper identity of those arrested.
Presumption of Innocence
An arrest does not mean that a person is guilty. The law presumes all those whom police arrest are innocent until proven guilty. It is the policy of eNews Park Forest not to remove items from the public record from publication. Suppose you find your name in the police reports. Our policy is that we will only add information relevant to the final disposition of the case at hand, e.g., “Mr. Smith was subsequently acquitted,” “Mr. Smith entered a guilty plea,” or “All charges against Mr. Smith were subsequently dropped.” We will do so upon receiving and verifying proof of such disposition.
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Police captured all the incidents in this report on body-worn and dash-mounted cameras by officers at the respective scenes, according to police. All Park Forest police officers wear body-worn cameras. Officials typically abbreviate these devices as BWC in the reports.
We encourage persons wishing to leave anonymous information on any criminal matters, including narcotics or gang activity, to call the Park Forest Police Department Investigations Division at (708) 748-1309.
