Driver Accused Of Hit And Run Appears Before Judge For First Time

WAUKEGAN, IL — The woman accused of striking a 12-year-old boy and leaving the scene in Deerfield earlier this month appeared before a judge for the first time Tuesday.

Stacy Shapiro of Northbrook faces one felony count of leaving the scene of an accident with injury. Investigators said she was behind the wheel of an SUV that struck Chase Thompson, a Deerfield boy with special needs, on the evening of Feb. 7 on Deerfield Road at Beverly Place.

Shapiro, 46, turned herself in Friday at the Deerfield Police Department with the $25,000 cash portion of her bond ahead of an initial court appearance.

As of Tuesday, Thompson remained hospitalized with injuries suffered in the collision, including broken bones and damaged lungs.

According to family members, the Caruso Middle School sixth-grader, who has autism and is nonverbal, ran out into the street without shoes or a jacket before he was struck, giving drivers little opportunity to avoid him.

His father, Thad Thompson, thanked the community for its support and for assistance in locating the accused hit-and-run-driver, WLS reported. An online fundraiser had raised nearly $50,000 from more than 860 donors.

At Shapiro's hearing Tuesday, a Lake County judge ordered her not to consume any drugs or alcohol, not to possess any weapons and not to have contact with the victim, according to a spokesperson for the state's attorney's office.

The judge also ordered Shapiro to follow the directions and curfew set by pre-trial services. Shapiro declined to comment to reporters after the hearing, according to WLS. Shapiro was allowed to continue driving if she maintains a valid driver's license.

Earlier:
Northbrook Woman Charged In Hit-And-Run Of Deerfield Boy
Police Find Suspect Vehicle In Deerfield Hit-And-Run
$10,000 Reward Offered To Driver Who Struck Deerfield Boy
Hit-And-Run Driver Strikes 12-Year-Old In Deerfield, Police Say

Prior to her arrest on a felony warrant last week, Shapiro had been cited half a dozen times for traffic offenses in Lake County alone over the prior eight years, although not all of them led to convictions, according to court records.

A January 2012 citation by Highland Park police for using an electronic communications device while driving resulted in a fine. In May 2012, Deerfield police cited Shapiro for failure to reduce speed to avoid a crash. She pleaded guilty later that year and was sentenced to 90 days supervision and four hours of traffic school, records show.

Another Highland Park citation alleging Shapiro used an electronic device while driving was dropped by prosecutors in July 2014. Then in August 2016, she was issued another failure to reduce speed citation by Deerfield police, who also accused her of operating an uninsured motor vehicle. A guilty plea the next month on both charges resulted in a sentence of 60 days supervision.

Just three days before authorities say she struck Thompson and left the scene, Shapiro was found guilty in a bench trial of failure to reduce speed in Deerfield in connection with a Dec. 16, 2019, incident. According to a Deerfield police crash report, after Shapiro struck a Buick with her 2016 Ford Escape that afternoon on Waukegan Road near Deerfield High School, she told officers she had intended to stop but accidentally hit the gas pedal instead of the brake.

Update: Deerfield Boy, 12, Injured In Hit-And-Run, Released From Hospital