State Trooper Injured After Drunken Driver Plows Into Squad Car: Cops

Photos courtesy of Todd Sherman/Northern Illinois Fireground

An Illinois State Police trooper has been “significantly” injured after a drunken driver plowed into a stopped squad car early Friday morning in Bolingbrook.

Illinois State Police Master Sergeant Jeff Liskh said at around 12:18 a.m. troopers were conducting a traffic stop on the right shoulder of northbound I-55 near Weber Rd.

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“While they were parked on the shoulder, lights activated, another vehicle driving northbound came on to the shoulder and struck a squad parked in the rear, which then caused the squad to strike one of the officers who was outside his squad,” Liskh said.

The officer sustained “severe, significant” injuries and was taken to Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove. However, the injuries did not appear to be life threatening, Liskh said.

The other trooper was evaluated and released from the hospital. The driver of the car they had pulled over was uninjured.

Daniel M. Gaeta, a 24-year-old Joliet man, has been charged with aggravated driving under the influence.