Here's a look at the top 5 trending stories on nwi.com yesterday.
CROWN POINT — A man was placed on probation Monday after pleading guilty to a reduced charge for jumping a curb while "joyriding" in a car in Munster and hitting a man and his two young children.
Nicholas C. Heppner-Lundin, 21, of Munster, also must complete 180 days of community service for the crash Aug. 18, 2018, that left a then-18-month-old girl with a traumatic brain injury and bruising all over her body and her then-5-year-old brother with bruising to his body and scrapes to his head.
Lake Criminal Court Judge Diane Boswell asked Heppner-Lundin to recall what went through his mind in the moments before the crash.
Heppner-Lundin tearfully said he saw his trajectory and felt like he was in shock.
"I knew it was going to happen, and there was no way to avoid it," he said.
Boswell told him to remember that feeling and use it to remain focused moving forward.
Heppner-Lundin pleaded guilty to a Class A misdemeanor count of reckless driving. He initially had been facing six felony counts of criminal recklessness and three misdemeanor counts of reckless driving.
In accordance with a plea agreement, Boswell sentenced him to one year in jail but suspended the term in favor of probation. He also must remain enrolled at Purdue University.
Lake County Deputy Prosecutor Judith Massa read a letter from the children's father, Kevin Foy, who also was hurt in the crash, and Foy's wife. The Foys were in the courtroom, but they opted not to speak because they were too emotional, she said.
As Massa read the letter, she also became emotional, and Deputy Prosecutor Daniel Burke finished reading the statement.
Kevin Foy wrote he watched helplessly as Heppner-Lundin's car barreled toward him and his two children, who were in a stroller, in the 9600 block of White Oak Avenue.
"It veered toward me and ripped my children from my hands," the letter said.
Foy found his son lying injured in the grass, but had to immediately leave the boy to search for his daughter. His son was ejected from the stroller, but his daughter remained strapped into it when he found it toppled over.
"I held her as she began to lose consciousness," Foy wrote.
The girl, accompanied by her mother, later was airlifted to a Chicago hospital because of the severity of the toddler's injuries.
The couple's son began wetting his bed after the crash and remains scared to walk on a sidewalk. The family anxiously marks milestones for their daughter because it's not yet clear how much her injury could affect her development.
Heppner-Lundin apologized to the Foys, saying he initially thought he might have killed the children and felt "destroyed." The path to healing will be long for everyone, he said.
"Mistakes this big should never happen," he said.
Massa said the Foys' medical expenses were being addressed in a different venue.
There was no evidence showing drugs or alcohol were factors in the crash, Massa and defense attorney Paul Stracci said.
Three female suspects are in custody after fleeing police and hitting two squad cars after allegedly stealing merchandise from Strack & Van Til, police said.
On Monday afternoon, Schererville cops were looking for a vehicle suspected to be involved in a theft from the grocery store on U.S. 41 before police located the car in Dyer, Dyer Police Chief David Hein said.
The vehicle drove recklessly around the parking lot of Jewel on Joliet Street before striking a Dyer squad car in the McDonald's lot and another one in the Taco Bell lot, Hein said. Damage was minimal, and no officers were injured.
Schererville police then apprehended three female suspects and discovered a large quantity of items suspected to be stolen from Strack & Van Til in the vehicle, Hein said. Dyer police plan to charge the driver with several charges related to the fleeing and squad car damage, while the investigation into the suspected theft continues.
LANSING — Several gunshots were fired during a fight between two groups of men early Sunday outside Bottoms Up Bar & Grill, injuring at least one, according to the Cook County Sheriff's Office.
When officers arrived at the scene just after midnight in the 1600 block of Thornton-Lansing Road, police said the men involved had each fled the parking lot in separate vehicles.
Officers then received a report of a 25-year-old man seeking treatment at Advocate South Suburban Hospital in Hazel Crest, Illinois, for a non-life threatening gunshot wound, police said.
Matt Walberg, a spokesman with the Cook County Sheriff's Office, said the investigation remains ongoing.
Check back at nwi.com for updates as this story develops.
GARY — A 35-year-old man was gunned down late Sunday, police said.
Officers responded to a report of a gunshot victim inside a residence in the 5200 block of East 13th Place and found Reginald Hamilton, of Gary, with a fatal wound to the chest at 11:04 p.m., Cmdr. Jack Hamady said.
The Lake County coroner declared Hamilton dead at 12:40 a.m. — about an hour after arriving on scene. His death was ruled a homicide.
Hamady said police found another man, who sustained injuries to the head, inside the home. He was taken to a local hospital for treatment where his current condition is unknown.
Officers recovered a rifle from the scene, Hamady said. They are currently trying figure out why the weapon was fired that killed the 35-year-old.
Hamady said there had been a gathering at the residence that evening, which Hamilton and other witnesses had attended.
Anyone with information is asked to call Detective Cpl. James Boyd at 219-755-3852. To remain anonymous, call 866-CRIME-GP.Â
Check back at nwi.com for updates as this story develops.
GARY — Multiple people were arrested during a checkpoint looking for impaired drivers Friday in Gary.
The Gary Police Department conducted the checkpoint in the area of 33rd Avenue and Broadway. Two drivers were found to be intoxicated, one motorist was discovered to be smoking marijuana and multiple drivers had children without proper safety seats, police said in a news release.
"Even one impaired driver off the roadway greatly increases the safety of all those around," said Lt. Dawn Westerfield, a Gary police spokeswoman. "A fatality crash occurs approximately every 48 minutes involving alcohol impairment. The Gary Police Department is dedicated to reducing the amount of impaired drivers on the road ways."
