When DeKalb County sheriff’s deputy Christina Musil went to work the night of March 28, 2024, she didn’t realize she wouldn’t return home to her three kids.

She didn’t know that while her police SUV sat on the shoulder of a rural Waterman road, truck driver Nathan P. Sweeney, 45, who’d held a CDL license since he was 18, was behind the wheel high on fentanyl.

Sweeney, of DeKalb, had struggled with drug addiction for much of his adult life, prosecutors and his defense lawyer, John Kopp, said Tuesday. That addiction was pivotal to many of the arguments made in Judge Marcy Buick’s courtroom as about 70 people watched. Dozens of law enforcement, including Musil’s coworkers and other area police, joined the late deputy’s loved ones as Sweeney was handed down the maximum sentence.

“You know today is the day you must finally be forced to face the terrible truth of your addiction,” Buick said to Sweeney. “The reason we are all here in this courtroom this afternoon is because you did in fact choose, deceitfully, to drive a Kenworth truck as an untreated heroin addict.”

Buick sentenced him to 14 years. He’s required to serve at least 85% with a mandatory two years of supervised release.

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Nathan P. Sweeney, 45, of DeKalb, weeps alloud as he apologizes to Christina Musil’s family and friends Tuesday, Aug. 26, 2025, during his statement of allocution at his sentencing hearing at the DeKalb County Courthouse in Sycamore. Sweeney received 14 years in prison for driving under the influence and causing the 2024 crash that killed sheriff’s deputy, veteran and mother Musil. (Mark Busch)

‘You brought me to my knees’

Musil was 35 when she was killed while on duty, and in her fifth year with the sheriff’s office. She’d worked as a corrections deputy and then in patrol after a deployment to Afghanistan with the U.S. Army National Guard. Musil was remembered by her parents Tuesday in emotional testimonies.

“You brought me to my knees and I didn’t think I was ever going to get back up,” Christina’s mother, Diane Caporaso said. Diane called Musil her best friend. She wept through her statement as she sat next to a framed photo of her daughter and grieved the loss for her grandchildren, too. She showed Sweeney a piece of art created by Musil’s son.

“My daughter wanted to make a difference as a police officer and she did,” Diane Caporaso said. “She was a great mom.”

Diane wore a shirt with No. 42 on it, Christina’s sheriff’s badge number. She thanked the dozens of sheriff’s deputies who stood vigil in the courtroom for becoming part of her family. Before her death, Christina lived with her mother and they raised her children together, Diane said.

Musil’s father, Philip Caporaso, said he misses his daughter’s voice and her laughter. He said he dreamed about her after her death.

“She was in the prime of her life and you took it away,” Philip Caporaso said. “[...] Our family will never be whole again.”

Sheriff Andy Sullivan said he thinks of Christina and her family daily.

“Every one of my deputies puts on their uniform every day to serve this community,” Sullivan said. “And that goes for all of law enforcement, knowing that there’s a possibility of not returning home. This is a profession that we were called to. This should have never happened. And to say that it breaks our hearts will never be accurate enough.”

In a tense courtroom, Sweeney apologized and asked for forgiveness. He looked directly at Musil’s loved ones and coworkers, mouthing, “I’m sorry. I’m truly sorry,” as he struggled through an emotional statement for almost 7 minutes.

“I understand that many people are hurt and angry with me, and I completely understand why,” Sweeney said. “If I could have one wish it would be to turn back time. I would give anything to undo what happened. I would take her place in a heartbeat.”

Sweeney said he knows the pain of losing loved ones in an instant: At age 2, he watched his father shoot his mother to death and then turn the gun on himself. He was later adopted, his lawyer said.

“I have spent my life trying to do what is the right thing for my own family, to work hard to support them and most importantly to love them with everything I have,” Sweeney said. “The poor decisions that I made affect them too, and that is always something I have to reconcile with myself.”

Prosecutor calls Sweeney ‘a ticking time bomb’

Prosecutors said Sweeney was going so fast at the time of the crash, 71 mph, that the force of the collision pushed the back of Musil’s vehicle to the front. Sweeney did not apply his brakes until after the crash, police have said in court filings.

Sweeney pleaded guilty on June 26, foregoing an expected jury trial. He admitted to getting behind the wheel under the influence of fentanyl. He was employed as a truck driver with Garzo Tire at the time, court records show.

The guilty plea was for a Class 2 felony DUI of drugs causing death. Three other charges he initially faced – reckless homicide and two more DUI resulting in death felonies – were dismissed as part of the agreement with the DeKalb County State’s Attorney’s Office and Sweeney’s defense.

The day after the crash, March 29, Sweeney called his addiction treatment physician in a panic because he knew he would start withdrawal, Buick said, citing a pre-sentencing investigation report.

Prosecutors asked for 14 years, arguing the maximum sentence was needed to deter others from driving under the influence and because of Sweeney’s criminal history.

Lead prosecutor Scott Schwertley pointed to Sweeney’s 2021 DUI felony conviction out of a 2020 incident in Kane County where Sweeney also drove under the influence of drugs. Sweeney’s Kane County court history came under fire in November when Capitol News Illinois reported that his driving record was not properly reported to the state, casting doubt on whether he should have had a driver’s or CDL license at the time of the crash that killed Musil.

He’d been arrested on Feb. 27, 2020, by Illinois State Police on Interstate 88 after they saw his car veering out of the lane, Buick said. Police said he was under the influence of heroin at the time.

Kopp argued that the 2021 plea agreement included a caveat that removed the DUI felony conviction from Sweeney’s record after he successfully completed probation.

But Schwertley said Sweeney’s drug use three years later showed he did not learn his lesson on the perils of driving while impaired.

“This defendant was a ticking time bomb driving a three-axel truck while abusing drugs and that three-axel truck became a killing machine,” Schwertley said.

In a statement after the hearing, State’s Attorney Riley Oncken said he was disappointed that Illinois law allows for “only” 14 years for crimes like Sweeney’s.

“He took the life of a police officer and the law should have allowed him to be punished more severely,” Oncken said. “A sentence of only 14 years for taking Christina’s life is not justice and our legislature has failed the citizens of Illinois again.”

Kopp asked Buick to impose probation only instead of prison time. Sweeney had cooperated fully with court orders throughout his proceedings. He’d undergone 90 randomized drug tests. He’d shown up to court. His addiction struggles and criminal history were the product of horrific childhood trauma that had plagued Sweeney into adulthood, Kopp argued.

Sweeney’s uncle and wife spoke on his behalf Tuesday. The family members offered condolences to Musil’s family. They did not excuse Sweeney’s actions. Instead, they asked Buick to consider Sweeney’s character in a lighter sentence, pointing to his addiction struggles and the violence he’d witnessed as a toddler.

His wife, Courtney Johnson, spoke of his devotion as a father, a grandfather.

“He’s the rock of our family, guided by faith,” Johnson said. “[...] This moment does not define the man I know him to be.”

Buick said Sweeney’s actions made the truck he drove while on drugs “a potential weapon of mass destruction.” She asked if he’d considered surrendering his license or telling his employer that he’d relapsed.

“You touted your work history as evidence that you are a hard worker,” Buick said. “Unfortunately, when your work history is combined with the truth of your addiction, that tells us the opposite. You’ve been irresponsible.”

Sullivan said that he also believes more must be done at the state level to outline more punitive measures for people who drive under the influence, as Sweeney did.

“The families in our communities suffer each time an officer is killed in the line of duty,” Sullivan said. “Nothing can bring her back, but we will always continue to honor Christina, her children, her mother and father, brother and sister, and her service.”

This story was updated at 7:57 p.m. Aug. 26, 2025.