An Illinois semi-truck driver faces felony charges that accuse him of aggressive driving that caused a fatal crash on U.S. 20 in Portage Wednesday afternoon, court documents show.
Borko Stankovic. 41, of Lyons, Illinois, has been charged with Level 5 felony charges of reckless homicide and criminal recklessness.
Jeffery Eberly died as a result of injuries sustained in the crash which occurred around 1:20 p.m., according to a probable cause statement filed in Porter Superior Court. Eberly was 54 and lived in Mishawaka, according to the Porter County Coroner’s Office.
Detective Sgt. Robert Nichols said that a cellular phone, supplied by a male at the scene, showed a Ram Sprinter van slowing to stop in the eastbound lane and the White Freightliner semi-tractor coming up behind.
The semi-tractor, driven by Stankovic, made a hard left evasive maneuver to avoid a crash into the van, but crossed the double yellow line and struck head-on a westbound black Subaru, driven by Eberly. The Subaru was shoved north onto Douglas Drive and the white Freightliner jack-knifed, causing the Ram Sprinter van to be struck. The Ram Sprinter van ended up being catapulted forward into signage on the road’s south side.
“The driver of the white Freightliner had the opportunity to move from the left lane to the right lane, however the driver chose to try and pass the stopped Ram Sprinter van on the wrong side of the road,” Nichols stated in the court document.
Further investigation found that Stankovic only had a regular Illinois driver’s license and didn’t have the required commercial driver’s license.
“Based on the video, Mr. Stankovic was either distracted, not paying attention, not trained to operate such a large vehicle at near highway speeds,” Nichols wrote.
Jim Woods is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.