Head-On Collision Kills Cook County Sheriff’s Deputy

CHICAGO, IL- Fox32chicago.comwrites that a veteran deputy with the Cook County sheriff’s office was killed in a severe car accident on Monday night while he was driving to work. The victim was in the city’s far south-side neighborhood in Mount Greenwood when his vehicle collided with a Jeep that had just backed out of a driveway and was making a turn to drive south. The deputy was northbound, andthe vehicles collided head-on.*

The victim was identified as Nick Theofanopolous, 39. Theofanopolous was taken to the Christ Medical Center where he died from the injuries that he suffered in the crash. The victim had been with the sheriff’s office for 15 years.

The driver of the Jeep was injured in the collision as well. The 21-year-old woman was treated at Christ Medical Center. She was not cited in relation to the crash.

The officer lived in Oak Lawn, a southwestern suburb of Chicago. An autopsy determined that the victim died from multipleinjuries he suffered in the collision and his death was ruled an accident.

Head-on collisions can be deadly even when vehicles are not traveling at high speeds. According to studies, people have a fairly low chance of surviving a head-on crash when the vehicles involved are traveling at or above 43 miles per hour. Sadly, it is not uncommon for cars to travel at speeds high enough to cause these types of deadly accidents on roadways where there is nothing to prevent a car from drifting over a center line and into oncoming vehicles. Responsible drivers can be struck in these crashes because they happen very quickly and do not allow for time to react.