A friend just called me to let me know a former co-worker's son, nephew and husband were killed by a drunk driver this morning. It makes my heart ache but I cannot possibly imagine what she is feeling right now. If you do this or know someone who does, please just think about it for two seconds. This woman just lost her whole world.

Horrific Car Crash Leaves 4 Dead On Southwest Side
4 Others Also Critically Injured, Including 2-Year-Old Boy
CHICAGO (CBS) ― An overnight car crash caused by an allegedly drunken driver on the city's Southwest Side killed four people and hospitalized four others, including a 2-year-old boy.

As CBS 2's Kristyn Hartman reports, the investigation into the crash near Columbus and Western avenues is in its early stages, but it looks as if speed was possibly a factor.

The allegedly drunken driver, identified as Sir Albert Cole, was behind the wheel of a Ford Crown Victoria, which collided with a Toyota Camry on Columbus Avenue at 12:30 a.m., police said. Chicago Lawn District Lt. Gerald Koch says the driver had a blood-alcohol level as much as nearly three times the legal limit.

The crash happened adjacent to a train yard and parallel to the tracks, Fire Media Affairs Director Larry Langford said.

Three people died at the scene – Otis and Theodore Jolliff, both 28, and Otis Thomas, 46, according to police and the Cook County Medical Examiner's office. All three lived at 8113 S. Sawyer Ave.

One victim was ejected from one of the cars and two others were cut from the Camry.

Cole, 20, of Cole, of 6116 S. Richmond St., was also killed. He was pronounced dead at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn.

Four others were injured, including a 2-year-old boy. The toddler was taken to Mt. Sinai Hospital in critical condition. A 20-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman were also taken to Mt. Sinai in critical condition, a 21-year-old woman was in stable condition at Advocate Christ, and another 20-year-old man was in critical condition, also at Advocate Christ.

At least one of the cars was traveling at a "fairly high rate of speed," according to investigators from the police Major Accident Investigation Unit, who said the two cars spun on the damp road after the collision.

The crash might have been a head-on collision because the front end of each car was "severely impacted,'' according to Langford, who also said at least one of the cars may have been speeding.

"There is not much left," Langford said. "[The cars] are pretty mangled up."

Langford said there was no visible alcohol on the scene.

The posted speed limit is 35 miles per hour on Columbus Avenue, which becomes Southwest Highway in the suburbs. But the road is a "high speed area" because there is no cross traffic, Langford said.

No streets intersect Columbus Avenue for about 1/4-mile in each direction from the accident site.

Police major accident investigators said the four-lane road was damp at the time of the crash, but well-lit.

"It's not dark out there," Langford said.

It was unknown early Wednesday morning which driver was at fault, according to MAIU, which is probing the crash.

CBS 2's Kristyn Hartman, the STNG Wire and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

Oh, my gosh, Ivy. How awful!

Very sad news.

So sad.

How sad.

Very sad indeed, if you want to drink, stay home and have fun or whatever, do not drive! Where there really 9 people in the Camry? Or am I reading the article wrong?

There is no legitimate reason what-so-ever for anyone to ever drive drunk or even buzzed...NEVER!!!!!

questionofu said:

There were 3 people in the Camry. All family. All gone now. I had her on my mind lately and I wish I had asked about her. Now, the next time I see her, it will be to give her condolences. I only met Otis, Sr. one time but he was very nice to me.

I'm a control freak when it comes to driving. Whenever I go out with friends I usually drive so I don't drink. I work as a Paralegal so I know that you can get a misdemeanor conviction for even having a beer. It's not worth it for me. There is too much to lose.

I say walk, or take a cab.


So sorry to hear this Ivy. This could've been avoided.
[Edited 3/19/08 9:18am]

Stymie said:

That is certainly heartbreaking ...

Terrible and it happens way too often

that's really sad news.

well, my solution to the problem is that i just plain don't drive at all. ever.

though i'm very impressed with my bf, who will not drive somewhere if he knows we're going to be drinking that night. instead, we just plan on bringing a cab home. he's a very responsible boy.

sad

they should shut the city down for st. patricks day accept for police/ambulances shuttle busses/metra/cabs

This makes for a good argument for lowering the blood alcohol level to .02 instead of .07 . Too much guessing going on with how much liquor is enough to still be OK to drive.

So sorry to hear this Stymie my heart goes out to you and the family.
[Edited 3/19/08 10:20am]



.
[Edited 3/19/08 10:26am]

this is so sad.

This happens at least once a week here in Atlanta. On the freeways going the wrong direction most times.

paintedlady said:

Unfortunately I don't think this would really make a difference. Most people caught drunk driving or getting into accidents are way over the .08 limit anyway.

They still drive because they are selfish, have a lack of good judgement, think they can drive drunk, etc....they won't care if it is .08 or .02 or zero tolerance.

Sowhat said:

sadly, I agree.

So sad,Ivy. I've lost my nephew and his friend to a drunk driver (they were riding a bike on a country road when a guy in a truck hit them) and when I was in high school, a drunk driver hit our bus. We were coming home from roller skating and pulled on the side of the road with a mechanical problem. The driver slammed into the back of the bus. It exploded and spilled fuel and fire everywhere. I was on the bus with my boyfriend and we barely escaped. Nine of my friends burned to death. It changed so many lives forever. I felt the hand of God that day helping my boyfriend and I find our way out.
and peace to you and thiese familes. Love you, Ivy. Come visit soon.

I do not drink and drive, but I have seen many drunk drivers on the road, and I do not hesitate one minute before calling 911 with the info.

I made a promise to myself long ago to never ever drink and drive. I could never be selfish enough to take other peoples lives in my hands like that. I just think about my lovely wife and beautiful daughters and how I would feel if some drunk ass came along and killed them .

I gave up Alcohol completely for several years to make 100% sure I would never drive even slightly buzzed. Only after my wife got her drivers license did I start casually drinking again. As soon as I start, the keys go immediately into her hands. Even if it is just one or two beers.

MoonSongs said:

such a waste of life...

sorry

That's heartbreaking . I am so sorry, Ivy .

Southwest Side crash leaves family torn
SOUTH SIDE | Close-knit kin grieve as father, son and nephew die in head-on crash on their way home from work. The driver who hit their car also was killed.

March 20, 2008Recommend (9)

BY ANNIE SWEENEY Staff Reporter/asweeney@suntimes.com
They were a father and a son, cousins and best friends.

They worked together, Teamsters who drove forklifts at McCormick Place, and then carpooled home together.

» Click to enlarge image Police say the driver of this car crossed the center line and hit a Camry head-on. The man and the three men in the Camry died.
(AP)

RELATED STORIES
Four dead, four hurt in crash

Just after midnight Wednesday, the three men were killed when a car plowed into them head-on on the Southwest Side as they drove home from an evening shift. Otis Thomas, 46; his son, Otis Jolliff, 28; and his nephew, Theodore Jolliff, 28, were killed.

Theodore Jolliff's father, who is Otis Thomas' twin brother, normally works and carpools with them. He happened to work an earlier shift in the day, so he was not with them.

By Wednesday morning, several friends and family members had gathered at Otis Thomas' Ashburn home in the 8100 block of South Sawyer to begin grieving together.

A stunned Phyllis Jolliff, who lost a son, nephew and brother-in-law, stared into the distance, unable to speak as tears fell. Her sister, Cheryl Jolliff Thomas, who lost a husband, son and nephew, quietly talked about how these men worked hard and took care of their families. Latesha Jolliff, who lost a husband, father-in-law and friend, chatted on about how she loved her "soul mate'' -- the younger Otis, whom she called "Odie''-- so much she had his name stained into her skin three different times.

She proudly pulled back her hair to show the tattoo on her neck -- a red heart nestled between "Odie" and "Latesha.''

"They were good men, all of them,'' Latesha Jolliff said. ". . . We lost three people at one time. I can't explain it. It's overwhelming.''

The driver of the car that hit the family, Sir Albert Cole, 21, also was killed. Five others in his car -- including his 20-month-old son --were injured. The toddler was in fair condition at Mount Sinai Hospital.

Diamond Scott, Cole's girlfriend and the mother of his toddler son, told WMAQ-Channel 5: "Not only was he my boyfriend, but he was my best friend. . . . I'm just glad his last days he was with his son."

Otis Jolliff was driving his 1996 Toyota Camry east in the 2800 block of West Columbus when Cole, who was driving a Crown Victoria, crossed the center line and struck his car, according to preliminary reports. The cause of the accident remained under investigation, but early reports suggested that Cole had been drinking.

Cole, of the 6100 block of South Richmond, was ticketed two weeks ago for disregarding a stop sign and failing to produce registration or insurance, according to court records. He was ticketed last year for not having registration, and in 2004, he was involved in an accident, also according to court records. He was arrested last month for possession of marijuana, a misdemeanor.

The Thomas and Jolliff families are an extended clan from the neighborhood near 69th and Peoria. Otis Thomas and his twin, Theodore Thomas, married Jolliff sisters -- Phyllis and Cheryl.

The younger cousins were as close as their fathers, family said. The four not only worked together, but hung out, playing pool or watching movies.

"They are inseparable,'' Latesha Jolliff said. "They are so close. You wouldn't see Odie, you wouldn't see 'Thee [Theodore]. They all dressed alike, [did] the same thing, say the same thing. They thought they were comedians at times."

Between them, the three men who were killed had six children, two each. Otis Jolliff, who took his mother's name, had just moved his two little girls, ages 6 and 8, home from Arkansas to live with him and his parents.

"I lost my family,'' Cheryl Jolliff Thomas said. "They were family men. . . . Odie just got his kids and me and my husband was supporting his family."

The Thomas brothers both joined the Teamsters Local 714 in 1985 and then brought their sons on about five years ago, said John Gilmore, the business agent for the union.

All four were dock workers who did labor on trade shows or concerts. On Tuesday night, they were helping to set up for the International Hardware Show, Thomas said.

"You just don't know day-to-day,'' Gilmore said. "They are out working, trying to make a living and take care of their families and some senseless accident takes their lives.''

i'm so sorry, ivy.