Ex-Chicago police officer gets 5 years in prison for driving drunk, killing Antioch man in McHenry crash

After a hearing at which the mom and sisters of a man killed by a drunk driver in McHenry tearfully shared their pain, the former Chicago police officer who hit him was sentenced Monday to five years in prison.

In February, Steven Foulk, 71, of Island Lake, pleaded guilty to aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol/causing a death, a Class 2 felony. He is required to serve 85% of his prison term, Judge Mark Gerhardt said. Gerhardt allowed Foulk to turn himself in at the McHenry County jail on Aug. 1 to begin his prison term so he can deal with his medical issues.

The fatal crash occurred about 2 a.m. July 15, 2021, prosecutors said. After a day of golfing and drinking, and having more drinks at a bar in Johnsburg, Foulk was driving a Toyota Camry south on Chapel Hill Road. He hit the back of a motorcycle that was stopped at the traffic light at Chapel Hill and Route 120.

The motorcycle, which was flung into the middle of Route 120, was driven by Kenneth Jackson, 37, of Antioch. Foulk told police he did not see the motorcycle, McHenry Police Officer Richard Rewiako said Thursday, the first day of the hearing.

The officer said Foulk told him he could not take the field sobriety test and that he was a retired Chicago police officer. McHenry County Assistant State’s Attorney William Bruce, who asked that Foulk be sentenced to five years in prison, said Foulk was trying to win favor from police officers in disclosing that information. Foulk’s attorney, however, later said he was just letting them know so he would be protected in the jail.

At about 5:30 a.m., blood and urine alcohol tests showed Foulk’s alcohol level was .159, while at about 8 a.m. a breath test showed his level was .098, the officer said. Another police officer testified that the investigation found Foulk was driving about 15 mph above the speed limit. He did not brake his vehicle until 0.4 seconds before the crash, the officer said.

Jackson’s mother, Karen Betancourt, tearfully read an impact statement in court, saying that when she arrived at the hospital, her son “was destroyed from head to toe.” He suffered multiple lacerations and fractures, his spine was severed and he was on life support. “I could barely recognize my own son.”

She said nearly 100 people came to the hospital, packing his room and the hallway just outside of it. When removed from life support, he was surrounded by family and friends. She stayed with him alone afterward talking to him, telling him she would find him one day.

She said he “had his life taken from him ... unfinished dreams, a to-do list in his phone. ... I feel my son in my heart and I hear his voice. He says, ‘I want to be alive, I want my life back. I have so much to do,‘” she said.

She and Jackson’s two sisters wept as each took the stand and described him as extraordinary, self-motivated, disciplined, kind, witty and funny.

“He had exquisite comedic timing,” his mother said.

The family members said they will miss his laugh and sense of humor and the way he checked in on them and cared for them. He often thought of others before himself. They said they will not see him raise a toast at his wedding or have children and grandchildren. Their pain only gets worse with time and will last forever, they said. His sisters also said their children will miss out on an uncle they loved and whom they looked up to.

“Our hearts are broken,” Betancourt said. “The worst part of Kenny’s death is it was totally preventable. One person chose not to get a ride and chose to drive. [Foulk] caused the massacre of my son and destroyed my family.”

Foulk’s attorney, Matthew Haiduk, argued for probation, saying there were “extraordinary circumstances.” He cited Foulk’s multiple ailments, including cancer and diabetes, as well as, issues with memory and balance, for which he has scheduled doctor appointments and an MRI. In announcing the sentence, Gerhardt said for a 71-year-old man such health issues are not considered “extraordinary.”

Haiduk also said when the “accident” happened it was dark and raining and the motorcycle did not have back reflectors or a license plate light. Bruce later rebutted this, saying the motorcycle did have lights, and the reason Foulk didn’t see it was because “He was three sheets to the wind.”

In a seeming bid for leniency, Haiduk also told the judge Foulk enlisted in the military during the Vietnam War rather than wait to be drafted like others at that time, and he was a Chicago police officer for 25 years. He helped find a baby who was kidnapped, get an assault rifle off the streets and capture a sex offender. Haiduk said Foulk has been successfully attending Alcoholics Anonymous and, earlier, his wife said since the crash, he has not had a drop of alcohol.

But Bruce cited photos shown during the hearing showing dozens of alcohol bottles in his trunk – some full, some empty – that Foulk brought to the golf course that day. He also referred to the video shown of Foulk in a bar drinking multiple rum and Cokes just prior to the crash.

Foulk also made a statement. He cried as he apologized and said he had wanted many times to tell the family he was sorry, but lawyers advised him not to do that.

“A day doesn’t go by that I don’t think about what happened,” he said. “Words cannot explain how sorry I am. If I could go back and change what happened I would do so. I hope you believe me when I say I’m sorry.”

Foulk, who also apologized to his own family, concluded saying he can’t imagine the pain he has caused Jackson’s family, especially his mother. “I hope you find it in your heart to forgive me.”

He enjoyed riding dirt bikes, snow mobiles and boats. He regularly competed in the boat races at Blarney’s Island in Fox Lake. During an event following his death a moment of silence was held at the bar, Betancourt said.