Chicago Ridge Police Officer Killed in Wrong-Way Tollway Wreck

Prior to becoming a police officer for the Chicago Ridge Police Department, Officer Steven Smith served in Afghanistan as a Marine.

Everything seemed to be going his way for an off-duty Chicago Ridge police officer who was killed in a wreck on I-294 near Oak Brook early Sunday morning.

Officer Steven Smith, 27, has been identified as the person killed on I-294 near Cermak Road. Smith was off-duty when the Dodge Neon he was a passenger in was struck by a wrong-way driver, ABC 7 Chicago reported.

A female driver was reported driving a 1998 Toyota Camry southbound in the northbound lanes near the Cermak Road toll plaza. Smith died at the scene.

Smith began as a part-time officer for the Chicago Ridge Police department in 2010 and became a full-time officer last February. Before that he served in Afghanistan as a Marine. He lived a few blocks away from the station house with his mother.

“He’s been a tremendous asset to our department,” Chicago Ridge Police Chief Robert Pyznarski told ABC 7. “He did his three months of field training, no complaints whatsoever. The officers kid around with him being the younger guys in the department; they had a lot of fun with him. He was a treat. He was a pleasure to work with.”

The accident is under investigation. The female driver is hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries. So far, no charges have been filed, news reports said.