Texas man was ordered held on $250,000 bail Wednesday after being charged with reckless homicide and aggravated DUI in a weekend crash on the Dan Ryan Expressway that killed his 4-year-old son.
Franklin L. Jackson, 46, of League City, Texas, was driving with his family in the middle northbound lane near 87th Street when his blue and gray Ford Expedition veered to the far right lane and hit a guardrail twice.
Jackson continued on to the 83rd Street exit to check the damage and found that his oldest son, 4-year-old Franklin L. Jackson Jr., was missing. His son, who was sitting in the SUV’s third row and was not wearing a seat belt, has been ejected through the back window, authorities said.
Jackson, who was taken to the hospital with a broken rib, said he didn’t know his son had been thrown from the car until he stopped at a gas station to check on the damage to the car, prosecutors said.
Police said Jackson admitted to drinking and driving, smelled of alcohol and had “glassy and bloodshot eyes.” An empty vodka bottle and beer cans were scattered in the car, according to prosecutors. If you were stopped by cops and are suspected of drunk driving, Can you refuse a breathalyzer?
Source: Chicago Tribune