Wilmington Man Jailed In Wrong Way I-55 Deadly Crash

WILMINGTON, IL — After spending more than two months recuperating from his injuries, a 48-year-old Wilmington man was moved from a suburban Chicago rehabilitation center to the Will County Jail in connection with a deadly wrong way crash along Interstate 55.

The Will County State's Attorney's Office of Jim Glasgow has charged Erik Christensen with seven total counts of aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol and aggravated driving while license revoked.

The Illinois State Police investigated the Nov. 22 fatality that ended the life of Nicholas J. Ercolini, 33, of Blackstone, Illinois, which is about 10 miles southeast of Streator.

However, at no point in November, December or January was Christensen in the custody of the Will County Jail. He had not appeared in the courtroom of Judge Dave Carlson to answer to his charges.

But last Thursday, the Will County Sheriff's Office booked Christensen into their custody.

Joliet private practice criminal defense lawyer Steve Haney had a pending motion asking the judge to lower Christensen's bail from $200,000 to $50,000.

According to Haney, his 48-year-old client resides in Wilmington on West Goodwin Road with his three children, ages 18 to 21. Christensen is self-employed and works construction.

When Haney filed his bail reduction motion Dec. 23, the Joliet defense lawyer argued that Christensen "is currently hospitalized with significant injuries that require specialized daily attention. Without such attention, defendant is at risk of amputation."

Haney argued that his client deserves a more reasonable bail that would assure his appearance at all future Will County Courthouse hearings.

Files at the courthouse show that Judge Carlson rejected Haney's motion, opting to keep the bail at $200,000 for the 48-year-old Christensen.

At the moment, the Wilmington man does not have $20,000 to secure his freedom in connection with the $200,000 bail. He remained in the Will County Jail on Feb. 8.

Christensen's criminal complaint states that on Nov. 22 his alcohol concentration was above the state's legal limit of 0.08 when he drove a Chevy Tahoe on I-55 in Wilmington Township, crashing into another motorist, Nicholas Ercolini, resulting in the 33-year-old's death.

One of the felony charges states that Christensen's driving privileges were revoked or suspended at the time of the fatal wreck.

Another charge states that the 48-year-old Wilmington man "knew or should have known that the vehicle he was driving was not covered by a liability insurance policy."

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