Pedestrian fatally struck by vehicle on Eisenhower Expressway
CHICAGO (WLS) -- A pedestrian was struck and killed while walking on the Eisenhower Expressway early Saturday morning.
His family believes 41-year-old Jess Rodriguez had gotten out of his car to help someone else on the road when he was struck on I-290 near Damon Avenue around 4:05 a.m. Saturday.
Two Illinois Department of Transportation minutemen who were on the scene after the accident were also hurt when a car hit their truck.
Police say there could be charges against the driver responsible.
"The hardest thing is he was my first born," said Mary Dresson, the victim's mother. "He and his sister were born on the same day five years apart."
Rodriguez's family said some witnesses told police that he had pulled to the expressway's shoulder near California Avenue, got out of his car, which he left running, and began walking back toward Damen Avenue after seeing a woman walking on the side of the highway.
It was then, they say, Rodriguez was hit by another vehicle. Witnesses say that driver did not stop immediately, but did a short time later about a mile away, with Rodriguez still on the roof of the car.
Illinois State Police are still investigating the crash and have not confirmed why Rodriguez was on the shoulder or any details of what happened before the accident.
"I don't know how he got hit," Dresson said. "If he was on the shoulder, he should be able to see cars and he shouldn't have gotten hit."
Friends say Rodriguez was a big guy with a big heart who worshipped his 9-year-old son and a 5-year-old daughter. Relatives say although he's just started a new marketing job downtown so he could spend more time with his children. They say it was his dream to have a career in law enforcement.
"He had a dream to become a police officer," said Armando Garcia, the victim's brother-in-law. "From what I knew, (he was a) good guy, very loved."
State police investigators Saturday evening said they are still interviewing the driver involved in the crash.
