Oak Lawn Trustees To Vote On $10M Settlement For Injured Pedestrian

OAK LAWN, IL — Oak Lawn village trustees are poised to approve a $10 million out-of-court settlement with the family of a pedestrian grievously injured in an alleged hit-and-run accident involving the former village manager, Larry Deetjen, in his village-owned vehicle.

The evening of Oct. 10, 2019, Deetjen, 73, was driving northbound on Harlem Avenue in his village-owned Crown Victoria in Chicago Ridge, when police said he hit a 48-year-old Worth man crossing the road near Harlem Avenue and 101st Street. Deetjen is said to have continued driving without stopping to help the injured pedestrian. The accident was apparently captured on security cameras from nearby businesses.

Deetjen was charged a month later with misdemeanor traffic offenses, including leaving the scene of an accident, failing to render aid, failure to give information after striking a person, failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident and failure to exercise due caution. His next court hearing at the Bridgeview Courthouse on the criminal charges is Nov. 18.

The family of Mark J. Berkshire, the injured pedestrian, filed a civil suit against the village and Deetjen in January 2020. According to the civil complaint, Berkshire suffered a fractured skull, brain swelling and other injuries.

The resolution, included on Tuesday’s village board consent agenda, is asking village trustees to approve the settlement and agreement with Ashleigh Cortes, Berkshire’s guardian. The resolution further noted that both parties have determined that it is in their mutual best interests to resolve “all their disputes, demands, claims,” and “no party admits to any wrongdoing.”

The amount of $6,573,955 is to be made payable to the probate court, with $3,326,044 going to the family’s attorney, Henderson Parks, LLC, of The Cochran Firm in Chicago. The village’s insurance carriers, Safety National Casualty Corp. and PMA Companies, are expected to pay the bulk of the settlement, with the Village of Oak Lawn picking up the $250,000 deductible.

“[There] was discussion in executive session that on the advice of our lawyers, this is the best case scenario,” Mayor Terry Vorderer told Patch. “This was a tragedy for everybody in the Village of Oak Lawn. There are no winners.”

Chicago Ridge police were able to trace the vehicle’s registration to the Village of Oak Lawn. The Crown Victoria was found in front of Deetjen’s Oak Lawn condominium building the evening of the accident, where Deetjen was arrested, police said. A breath test showed no indication of alcohol, and police said the former village manager was cooperative in their investigation.

In the days immediately following the accident, Deetjen was placed on administrative leave. He resigned with a $100,000 exit deal before the village board was able to hold a hearing to determine disciplinary action.