Man with Alzheimer’s drives off road, into lawn

A 75-year-old man diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease drove his vehicle off the road and into the front yard of a residence Sunday in west suburban Riverside.

Police responded about 11:18 p.m. to the 200 block of Longcommon Road, where they found the man, a resident of Evergreen Park, sitting behind his 2002 Nissan, according to Riverside Police

He told police he did not know where he was, where he had been going or how the crash occurred, police said.

Paramedics were called to the scene and officers contacted the man’s wife, who told police the man had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. She said she had hidden his keys so he could not drive, but the keys were missing from the home.

The owners of the property the man drove onto told police they heard the car leave the roadway and get caught in landscaping on the street. The man reportedly tried putting the car into drive and reverse several times to get out of the landscaping, police said.

The man narrowly missed striking a residence before coming to a stop on the lawn of 233 Longcommon Rd. There was extensive damage to landscaping on the street, police said.

The man was charged with improper lane usage, expired registration, and operation of an uninsured motor vehicle.

He had a valid driver’s license at the time of the crash. The police department filed a notification with the Illinois Secretary of State’s Office that the driver should be retested due to medical concerns.

The man was taken to MacNeal Hospital in Berwyn for evaluation.

No injuries were reported.