Suburban Chicago man accused of driving drunk with toddler in car: prosecutors

ELMHURST - A suburban Chicago man faces felony DUI charges after prosecutors say he drove with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.208 — more than 2½ times the legal limit — with his young child in the car.

What we know:

Alexis Lara, 24, appeared in court Monday morning on four counts of aggravated DUI, a Class 2 felony, along with multiple misdemeanor and petty traffic offenses, including endangering the health or life of a child, according to the DuPage County State’s Attorney.

The court denied the state’s motion to deny pretrial release.

As conditions of his release, Lara must wear a SCRAM device, is prohibited from possessing or consuming alcohol or nonprescribed controlled substances, and may not operate a motor vehicle, prosecutors said.

The backstory:

Elmhurst police were called at 9:46 p.m. Sunday to a disturbance involving a woman striking the window of a dark-colored SUV near Schiller Street and Hampshire Drive.

Officers who arrived saw a vehicle matching that description having difficulty staying in its lane and veering into the lane of oncoming traffic, according to the state’s attorney’s office.

Police stopped the vehicle near Schiller Street and Clinton Avenue and made contact with the driver, later identified as Lara.

Lara’s wife and their child were also in the vehicle at the time.

Police said Lara had bloodshot, watery eyes, slurred speech and smelled of alcohol. 

Officers found three open bottles of Modelo beer in the vehicle, authorities said.

After field sobriety tests, Lara was arrested. At the police station, he provided a breath sample showing a BAC level of 0.208, according to prosecutors.

Lara has two previous DUI convictions and is on probation for aggravated DUI.

What they're saying:

"Driving is a privilege, not a right," DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin said. "In DuPage County, we have absolutely zero tolerance for anyone who endangers public safety by getting behind the wheel after they have been drinking. What I find unconscionable in this case are the allegations that with a .208 BAC, Mr. Lara, who is currently on probation for aggravated DUI, put his twenty-two-month-old child in the car and then proceeded to drive, endangering the lives of everyone in that vehicle. The fact that Mr. Lara is currently on probation for aggravated DUI and is now charged with yet another non-detainable DUI offense, illustrates the need to strengthen the State’s Safe-T-Act to allow a judge the opportunity to detain an individual based on the facts and circumstances of each particular defendant’s case…"

What's next:

Lara is due back in court April 27.