Illinois man charged in town of Sharon crash that injured six
ELKHORN—An Illinois man is facing 11 felony counts in an Aug. 23 two-vehicle crash in the town of Sharon that injured six people.
Rafael Eleazar Cagsanon-Balam, 31, of Capron, Illinois, is charged in Walworth County Court with:
-- Three felony counts of injury by intoxicated use of a vehicle, great bodily harm.
-- Three felony counts of great bodily harm by use of a vehicle with prohibited alcohol concentration.
-- Five felony counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety.
Three female juveniles involved in the crash suffered broken bones and other injuries that “would cause permanent disfigurement”, according to the criminal complaint.
Emergency crews responded to the crash at 8:52 p.m. Aug. 23 at Highway 67 and County K, according to a previous Walworth County Sheriff's Office news release.
A car eastbound on Highway 67 driven by Amaryllis Arellano, 24, of West Chicago, Illinois, collided with a Volkswagon northbound on County K. The northbound car was driven by Cagsanon-Balam, the release stated.
Cagsanon-Balam failed to stop at the stop sign, according to the release.
Arellano and the five passengers in the vehicle were injured, according to the complaint. The juveniles sustained the worst injuries and were taken to Mercy Hospital and Trauma Center, Janesville. The adults were taken to Lakeland Medical Center, Elkhorn.
A deputy found a can of beer in Cagsanon-Balam's car. A preliminary breath test showed Cogsanon-Balam had a blood-alcohol content of 0.25.
Cagsanon-Balam is being held at the Walworth County Jail on a $50,000 cash bond. He will appear in court next at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 8, at the Walworth County Judicial Center.