The mother of former WNBA player Sophie Brunner was killed in a crash in Illinois on Saturday, Aug., 9, after she was hit by a driver with a history of DUIs who was in the country illegally, authorities said.
At 12:38 p.m., deputies in Stephenson County said they responded to a head-on crash on Illinois Route 26 near Oneco Road and found Darcy Connolly-Brunner and Rolando Ico-Choc, both dead at the scene.
Ico-Choc, a 30-year-old Guatemalan national was traveling southbound on Illinois Route 26 North when he entered the northbound lane and crashed into a Ford Edge driven by Connolly-Brunner, the Stephenson County Sheriff's Office said.
As part of the investigation, deputies are examining whether alcohol impairment by Ico-Choc may have been a contributing factor in the crash, police said. There is no indication that Connolly-Brunner was impaired.
Ico-Choc has had multiple prior DUIs and been banned from driving, the New York Post reported. State Sen. Andrew Chesney, R-Freeport, said Ico-Choc had been on Homeland Security's radar.
"A woman who dedicated her life to her family and her community was killed in road daylight by a man who never should have been in this country or on the road," Chesney said in a statement.
Chesney blamed Illinois' lax immigration laws that prohibit local cops from working with Immigration and Customs Enforcement for Connolly-Brunner's death.
"Over the last few years, this man was shielded by systems that provide sanctuary to illegal immigrants and are more focused on allowing criminals to walk free than on protecting Illinois citizens," Chesney said. "I am not going to sit by silently while dangerous repeat offenders who are in this country illegally are given free rein to destroy lives."
Brunner played briefly in the WNBA in 2017 before becoming a basketball coach and teacher.
Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.
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