By Dee Longfellow
For The Bensenville Independent
At about 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 27, the Independent received a press release from the City of Elmhurst saying that police were investigating an incident that occurred at York St. and Crestview Ave. and that traffic lanes were closed on York St. northbound at Lake St. and southbound at Grand Avenue. Commuters were asked to avoid the area. The lane closures were in place as late as 10 p.m. Tuesday.
The City of Elmhurst issued a release on the morning of Wednesday, Feb. 28 saying police had attempted to pull a car over for an infraction, but the car sped off rather than stop. The vehicle was later found abandoned somewhere in Chicago, but the driver remained at large. The officers involved were not injured.
Suspect identified, arrested; currently held on $100,000 bond
On Thursday, March 1, DuPage County State’s At-torney Robert B. Berlin and Elmhurst Police Chief Michael Ruth announced that a $100,000 bond had been set for a Chicago man accused of nearly striking an Elmhurst police officer with his vehicle following a traffic stop.
Byron Auterberry, 33, of 1235 N. Waller, Chicago, was charged in relation to the incident with two counts of Aggravated Assault and one count of Aggravated Fleeing or Attempting to Elude a Peace Officer, all Class 4 Felonies. Bond was set by Judge Brian McKillip.
On Tuesday, Feb. 27, at approximately 4:46 p.m., officers with the Elmhurst Police Department conducted a traf-fic stop on a vehicle allegedly driven by Auterberry. It is alleged that during the stop as one of the police officers approached Auterberry’s vehicle from the front, Auterberry drove his vehicle toward the officer coming within just several feet of the officer, causing the officer to discharge his service weapon. It is further alleged that as Auterberry drove toward the officer, he crashed his vehicle into another vehicle before fleeing the scene. An investigation into the matter conducted by the Elmhurst Po-lice Department led to Auterberry who was taken into custody yesterday without incident.
Auterberry’s next court appearance is scheduled for April 2, 2018 in front of Judge Robert Miller.
Members of the public are reminded that this complaint contains only charges and is not proof of the defendant’s guilt.
