DOWNERS GROVE
April 14:
- Stacey L. Scepkowski, of the 25900 block of South 104th Avenue, Monee, was arrested at 6:01 a.m. at the intersection of Main Street and Maple Avenue. She was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol with a BAC over .08, speeding and operating an uninsured vehicle. Her silver Chevy Impala was towed from the scene to an impound lot. Scepkowski was released on I-bond and has a May 22 court date in Wheaton.
- Melissa Torres-Contreras, of the 700 block of West 65th Street, Westmont, was arrested at 2:33 a.m. at Main Street and Rogers. Torres-Contreras was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, improper lane usage and no valid driver's license. Her silver Volkswagen Jetta was towed from the scene to an impound lot. She was released on I-bond and has a May 15 court date in Wheaton.
- Robert J. McKinnon, of the 3900 block of School Street, Downers Grove, was arrested at 12:25 a.m. on eastbound Ogden Avenue at Fairview Avenue. He was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol with a BAC over .08, speeding, improper lane usage and failure to signal when required. McKinnon's black Audi A6 was towed from the scene to an impound lot. He was released on I-bond and has a May 22 court date in Wheaton.
April 12: Ruta Varanaviciute, of the 900 block of Ripple Ridge Cove, Darien, was arrested at 11:26 a.m. at the intersection of Ogden and Florence avenues. She was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and speeding. Her white Kia Rio was towed from the scene to an impound lot. Varanaviciute was released on I-bond and has a May 22 court date in Wheaton.
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April 9:
- Katherine M. Jarosz, of the 300 block of Farnsworth, Glen Ellyn, was arrested at 3:56 a.m. at the intersection of Butterfield Road and Highland Avenue. She was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol with a BAC over .08, speeding and operating an uninsured vehicle. Her black Hyundai Elantra was towed from the scene to an impound lot. Jarosz was released on I-bond and has a May 8 court date in Wheaton.
- Jaimie L. Petersen, of the 3100 block of Roberts Drive, Woodridge, was arrested at 1:33 a.m. at Puffer and 63rd Street. She was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol with a BAC over .08 and improper lane usage. Petersen's orange Chevy Aveo was towed from the scene to an impound lot. She was released on I-bond and has a May 8 court date in Wheaton.
ELMHURST
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April 15: Jason Brula, 24, 617 E. Highland, Villa Park, was arrested and charged with DUI after police pulled over his silver Chrysler Concorde for disobeying a traffic signal at St. Charles and West Avenue at 1:12 a.m. He also was wanted on a failure to appear warrant out of DuPage County. He was taken to DuPage County Jail.
April 14: Patino Balfred, 41, 4736 S. Karlov, Chicago, was arrested and charged with DUI after police pulled over his white Dodge Ram for improper lane use and failure to signal at Lake and McNair at 2:38 a.m. He was released on bond.
April 13:
- Michelle Schmuhl, 32, 499 Gregory Apt. 3A, Glendale Heights, was arrested and charged with DUI after police pulled over her black Nissan Rogue for following too closely and improper lane use at York and Interstate 290 at 2:40 a.m. She was released on bond.
- Ernesto Alcaraz, 34, 972 Westgate, Aurora, was arrested and charged with DUI and driving without insurance after police pulled over his white Toyota Corolla for speeding at North and Highview at 1:27 a.m. He was released on bond.
- Michael Ruffolo, 24, 2739 63rd St., Downers Grove, was arrested and charged with DUI after police pulled him over for improper lane use at Route 83 and Riverside Drive at 12:42 a.m. He was released on bond.
April 12: Ashley E. Ryan, 22, 423 56th St., Clarendon Hills, was arrested and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol after police pulled over her white Pontiac G6 for improper lane use and no rear registration plate light at Roosevelt and Prospect at 3:53 a.m. She was released on bond.
April 9: Hector Flores, 21, 2526 Harding, Chicago, was arrested and charged with DUI, driving without a license and illegal transportation of alcohol after police pulled over his white GMC for improper lane use and disobeying a traffic control device at Lake and Grand at 2:49 a.m. He was released on bond. Two passengers, Elias Rosaled, 43, 10411 W. Fullerton, Melrose Park, and Juan G. Sandoval, 35, 2526 Harding, Chicago, were charged with illegal transportation of alcohol and were released on bond.
April 7: Brian Bachman, 43, 2217 Ivan St. Apt. 1205, Dallas, Texas, was arrested and charged with DUI after police said they found him passed out at the wheel of his black Buick Enclave on the 300 block of Eggleston at 12:31 a.m.
April 6: Elmhurst police stopped Randy Shears, 27, 193 S. York, Bensenville, after he allegedly fled the scene of an accident at Interstate 290 and York at 12:05 a.m. Shears was a passenger in another vehicle. Elmhurst police turned him over to the custody of the Illinois State Police for DUI, according to the police report.
April 5: Christopher Kerkau, 51, 128 S. Illinois, Villa Park, was arrested and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol after police pulled over his silver Honda CRV for improper lane use at St. Charles and Villa at 9:41 p.m. He was released on bond.
GLEN ELLYN
April 13: Vicky L. Canals, 41, of the 1700 block of Ogden Avenue, Downers Grove, was charged at 2:40 a.m. with driving under the influence, speeding, uninsured motor vehicle and improper lane usage at Roosevelt Road and Sunset.
April 10: Timothy M. Taylor, 19, of the 1400 block of West 52nd Pl, LaGrange, was charged at 7:05 p.m. with driving under the influence, possession of drug equipment, uninsured motor vehicle and improper lane usage at Route 53 and Surrey Road.
April 9: Kim Soyeon, 28, of the 7900 block of North Nora Avenue, Niles, was charged at 1:29 a.m. with driving under the influence and speeding at Roosevelt Road and Nicoll Way.
HINSDALE
April 11: Melissa S. Kazmierski, 27, of the 6600 block of Conrad, Hodgkins, was charged at 10:33 p.m. with DUI, failure to reduce speed and possession of cannabis. An arrest was made after officers responded to a traffic crash at Ogden Avenue and York Road, according to police. Kazmierski was observed to be under the influence of alcohol and submitted a breath sample that was over .08. She also had a bag in her purse containing a substance that tested positive for cannabis, according to police. Kazmierski was charged and released to appear in court.
LEMONT
April 13: Romeo Mejia, 42, of the 3400 block of West 71st Street, Chicago, was arrested following a traffic stop at 13100 Archer Avenue. Mejia was charged with driving under the influence and appeared at the 26th and California courthouse for a bond hearing.
WHEATON
April 14: Police charged Matthew R. Asuan, 24, of the 3200 block of Grafton Lane, Aurora, with driving under the influence of alcohol. Asuan was driving a silver or aluminum 2011 Jeep Liberty at about 1:01 a.m. near the intersection of Naperville Road and Longfellow when police initiated a traffic stop. He was booked at the Wheaton Police Department and released later that morning.
April 12: Police charged Paul F. Palanca, 21, of the 4400 block of North Wildwood Court, Hoffman Estates, with aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol and aggravated revoked driver's license, both felonies. Palanca was driving a light blue 2008 Hyundai Sonata at about 2:52 a.m. near the intersection of Briarcliffe and 22nd when police initiated a traffic stop. He was booked at the Wheaton Police Department, transferred to the DuPage County Jail and later released.
April 11: Police charged Paul F. Palanca, 21, of the 4400 block of North Wildwood Court, Hoffman Estates, with aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol and aggravated revoked driver's license, both felonies. Palanca was driving a light blue 2008 Hyundai Sonata at about 2:52 a.m. near the intersection of Briarcliffe and 22nd when police initiated a traffic stop. He was booked at the Wheaton Police Department, transferred to the DuPage County Jail and later released.
WOODRIDGE
April 10: Joelle Eddy, 44, of the 500 block of West 61st Street, Westmont, was charged at about 10:50 a.m. with driving under the influence of alcohol, driving with a suspended driver's license and improper turn following a traffic stop on Route 53 at Seven Bridges Drive.
Also see a log of DUI arrests from the past week in Naperville.
Police report information is provided by local police departments. Charges are not evidence of guilt. They are a record of police actions on a given day, and persons charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court. If you or a family member are charged or cited and the case is subsequently adjudicated, we encourage you to notify the editor. We will verify and report the outcome.
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