CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- An Illinois state trooper is making a public plea for people to pay attention when they’re behind the wheel.
The plea comes after two Illinois State Police troopers were injured Sunday when their vehicle was rear-ended on Interstate 57 in West Pullman on the Far South Side.
Two squad cars were parked about 1:40 a.m. on the shoulder of I-57 near 119th Street with the emergency blinker lights on, state police said. Two troopers were conducting a traffic stop when a 2015 Chrysler veered onto the shoulder and struck the rear most squad car, state police said. The impact of the collision caused a chain reaction crash involving both squad cars and the Chevrolet SUV that was stopped.
Both troopers were taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries, state police said. The driver of the SUV, a 23-year-old woman, and a 22-year-old passenger were taken to the hospital with minor injuries.
The driver who caused the crash, Clarence P. Junius, 38, of Markham, was charged with DUI, driving with a revoked license, driving an uninsured vehicle, improper lane usage, failure to reduce speed to avoid a collision and violating Scott’s Law, a law requiring drivers to move over for any emergency vehicle stopped on the road, Illinois State police said.
On Sunday night, ISP posted a long message from a State Trooper Tracy Lillard, who on Facebook, she goes by Trooper Tracy and @ISPmamabear. She said she was writing, this time though, as wife of a state trooper and urging everyone to drive like your life depends on it.
"I’d like to write to you as Tracy. Just Tracy. Not Trooper Tracy, not Mama Bear, just Tracy. I’m going to write this as a wife of a police officer. It’s part of who I am," she wrote. "For all of you ladies and gentlemen that are married to a police officer you probably know how I feel right now. Our department just had the 25th and 26th Trooper hit today. This year we have had 26 Troopers struck by motorists that didn’t move over or slow down for them. We have lost four Troopers this year, two of which were a direct result of drivers not moving over. I just can’t wrap my head around it. I’m almost at a loss for words and that doesn’t happen often.
"I’m asking you to think long and hard about something. It’s so simple. It’s so easy. It’s something you do probably every day, but don’t think anything about it. Driving. Looking for stranded motorists or emergency vehicles on the shoulder and then moving over for them. Moving over and slowing down is everything to us. It’s what we think about daily. You all moving over. You all seeing us and adjusting your driving speed and positioning to us accordingly," she continued. "I have tried my best for the last few years to explain the law. I have tried my best to have you understand that we are human beings, just like you. We just happen to work alongside the roadway. I know there are so many wives out there in our department that cringe just like I do when I see these messages of another Trooper hit. It’s a sinking feeling. Unimaginable. And then to read comments like 'You shouldn’t write tickets then on the side of the road' and 'Stop generating revenue and you wouldn’t be in this position' and 'Find a better spot to stop' and 'Don’t sit on the shoulder then.'
"I. Cant. Even. We handle crashes. We stop to help motorists. We write tickets. We alert drivers of a closed interstate up ahead. We change tires. We provide first aid. We give directions. We wait with drivers that run out of fuel. We don’t sit out there and have lunch and play cards. We don’t hang out on the shoulder for fun. We don’t do it on purpose. We can’t just drive on by. We can’t just say to dispatch, ‘oh, that’s too bad, we can’t help cause it’s a bad spot. Looks like a bad crash. Hope they can scoot to the next exit.’ We are the police. We go. We do. We help," she said. "Have I been hit at work? Yes. Has my husband been hit at work? Yes. Do we worry about being hit? Yes. Do we hear people making excuses why they can’t look at the road? Yes. Do we worry that distractions are making people less attentive behind the wheel? Yes. Will we keep going to work? Yes. Will we keep writing tickets? Yes. Will we keep responding to crashes? Yes. Will we keep changing tires for motorists if we can? Yes. Will we stop with the people that are broke down and provide emergency lights behind them so they don’t get hit when they are waiting for a tow truck? Yes. We will keep being the police.
"I just wish people would wake up. It’s not happening just in Illinois. It’s nationwide. Open your eyes. Open your ears. Drive like YOUR life depends on it. Drive like my life depends on it. Drive like my husband’s life depends on it. Drive like our K9’s life depends on it," she continued. "Move over because that person you’re moving over for may be your sister that’s out of gas. It may be your uncle that has a flat tire. It may be your neighbor that was in a crash. It may be your son that hit a deer. The law includes EVERYONE that is on the shoulder with their hazards on or emergency lights on. It’s ALL of us. It’s all of YOU.
"My message has always been the same, the shoulder of the road is our office. It’s his office. It’s my office. It’s my fellow police officer’s office. It’s where we do our work. Move over, slow down, and proceed with caution when you see a stopped vehicle on the side of the road. Please. I’m begging you. - Tracy, a Trooper’s wife."
Lillard is the wife of a fellow state trooper and a mother. Her post has reached thousands.