Alcohol was a factor in a wrong-way crash that left a man dead early Sunday on I-57 in south suburban Matteson, authorities said.
A 22-year-old man from Colorado Springs, Colorado, was driving a blue 2004 Ford pickup south in the northbound lanes of I-57 at 3:31 a.m. when it crashed head-on with a northbound brown Nissan Altima near Vollmer Road in Matteson, according to a statement from Illinois State Police. Both vehicles rolled over as a result of the crash.
The driver of the Nissan, 27-year-old Lorenzo M. Franklin of south suburban Hazel Crest, was dead at the scene, according to state police and the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office. An autopsy Monday found he died of multiple injuries from the crash and his death was ruled an accident.
The driver of the Ford was taken to Franciscan Health in Olympia Fields with minor injuries, state police said. Alcohol was considered a contributing factor in the crash and charges against him were pending Monday morning.
