Teen charged with felony after crash at Joliet intersection injured four
The 16-year-old driver is accused of fleeing the Tri-County Auto Theft Task Force before plowing through a red light and colliding with three other vehicles.
By Emily Brooks ·
A 16-year-old resident of Plainfield Township faces adult felony charges for a July 20, 2026, collision in Joliet that left four people injured. The suspect was taken into custody this week after a warrant was issued for aggravated reckless driving and aggravated fleeing and eluding police.
Joliet police records state the driver was behind the wheel of a Kia Rio. The vehicle had been flagged by the Tri-County Auto Theft Task Force as a reported stolen car. Officers located the Kia in the parking lot of Joliet West High School and attempted a traffic stop.
According to the police statement, the teen accelerated rapidly to escape the officers. The pursuit ended when the vehicle traveled north on Larkin Avenue from Glenwood Avenue in a reckless manner. The driver allegedly ignored a stoplight at the intersection of Black Road and North Larkin Avenue.
The Kia struck a Jeep Wrangler driven by a 67-year-old Joliet man. The victim was making a legal left turn on a green arrow. The impact sent the Jeep spinning onto its roof. The Kia then continued into the westbound lanes of Black Road.
The car hit a Subaru Forester driven by an 80-year-old Glenview man who was stopped in a left-turn lane. Moments later, the Kia collided with a GMC Sierra driven by a 74-year-old Joliet man waiting at the intersection. The incident damaged all four vehicles involved. Charges were filed at the Will County Courthouse in Joliet.
