Police suspect alcohol, drugs played role in crash that killed 2 teens in Deerfield
By Charles Sheehan Tracy Dell'Angela and Tony C. Yang, Tribune staff reporters. Tribune staff reporter Jason George contributed to this report
Published October 15, 2006
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- A Deerfield High School senior and a 2006 graduate of the school died when a carload of teenagers smashed into a tree less than a mile from the school hours after the football team's homecoming game Friday night, turning a weekend of celebration into a time of mourning.
Instead of cheering homecoming parade floats Saturday, friends of the victims created a makeshift memorial at the crash scene, sobbing as they huddled under blankets. Dozens of students gathered, clutching flowers and crying in the morning chill.
Ross Trace, 18, a senior who lived in Riverwoods, was pronounced dead at the scene, of massive head injuries. He was riding behind the driver of the Volkswagen Jetta, Daniel Bell, 18. Bell, who graduated from Deerfield this year and lived in Bannockburn, died at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge hours later.
Three other passengers suffered minor injuries.
School officials canceled Saturday's homecoming parade as news of the crash spread throughout the northern suburbs. A crisis team, including school administrators and counselors, offered help to grieving students at Deerfield High all day Saturday.
School officials opted to hold the homecoming dance as scheduled Saturday night so students could gather and grieve. The dead teens were remembered there with a moment of silence, said Sue Hebson, an assistant superintendent for Township High School District 113.
Deerfield police said Saturday that a preliminary investigation led them to believe that alcohol, marijuana and speeding likely played a role in the crash about 11:30 p.m. Friday. Toxicology test results are expected Monday.
Lake County Coroner Richard Keller said the students had just left a party in Deerfield. Police are investigating possible criminal charges against anyone who provided alcohol to teens, said Deputy Chief Rick Wilk of the Deerfield Police Department.
The car crashed at the end of a cul-de-sac in a subdivision just southeast of the high school off Waukegan Road. Police said evidence indicated the car was traveling "far in excess" of the 25 m.p.h. speed limit when it hit a driveway at the end of Summit Drive just east of Portage Pass.
The car spun out, hit the tree on the driver's side ripping off a 3-foot section of bark, and came to rest in a field of dried brush. Both teens who died were wearing their seat belts, officials said.
The other passengers, Deerfield senior Joong "James" Kim, 17, and two 2006 graduates, Manny Abreu and Angelo Grandi, both 18, were treated at hospitals and released Saturday.
Still wearing his hospital wristband, Grandi returned to the crash site Saturday afternoon to place flowers at the makeshift memorial. After he put down the bouquet, Grandi's friends approached him.
"Oh my God," Grandi said while sobbing, tears rolling down his cheeks as friends surrounded him in an embrace.
Trace was well known in the school as a champion pole vaulter and varsity soccer player. His twin brother, Jesse, also competed in track and both brothers planned to attend Santa Barbara City College together in California.
Last spring at a sectional competition, Trace cleared 13 feet, 3 inches to take first place in the event. His dream was to win a state medal and pole vault after high school, his coaches said.
Grieving friends on Deerfield's cross-country team arrived as "an absolute wreck" for a Saturday morning meet at Glenbrook South High School, and there was talk of not competing, said coach Jeremy Kauffman. After a walk around the course, Deerfield captain Noble Schermerhorn articulated the will of the team: "We're going to run and we're going to run for Ross," Kauffman recounted Schermerhorn saying.
The team won the Central Suburban North Conference championship.
"Hands down it was the best race of the year," the coach said. Schermerhorn later visited Trace's house Saturday and delivered his medal to Trace's father as a tribute to the teen. "I've never seen two young men more in love with a sport, so positive all the time," Kauffman said of the twins. "They were just about being in high school, and being in track and field and they just loved it and worked so hard at it. There would have been a lot of colleges knocking."
Ross and his twin brother were inseparable, and evidence of their athletic prowess covered the walls and filled the bookcases of the Trace home, a family friend said.
Friends of Bell placed three poster-size photos of the fun-loving redhead at the base of the damaged tree. The posters showed him in a tuxedo, barbecuing at a party, and with a big grin while rowing a boat. One poster read: "May life guide you into God's arms. Rest in peace."
Bell, a one-time Montana resident, loved the outdoors and had a passion for fixing cars. He planned to attend an automotive school, friends and classmates said.
Earlier Friday night, Bell had worked a four-hour shift making deliveries for the BBQ Pit in nearby Highland Park.
"He was a very nice kid, kind of kept to himself," said Gus Karigan, owner of the restaurant. "When it came to work, he did a great job."
With authorities pointing to alcohol and drugs as a possible factor, the crash offered students another painful reminder of the importance of making sound choices, school officials said.
"We would hope students and others will learn from this tragic situation," Hebson said. "It's a message we send all the time before these kinds of events--one we can't send often enough."
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csheehan@tribune.com
tdell'angela@tribune.com
TEENS AT THE WHEEL
The Tribune is putting a spotlight on the dangers of teen driving. For the series so far, go to chicagotribune. com/teendrivers
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