Recent St. Charles East grad charged with reckless homicide in fatal crash
ST. CHARLES – The driver of last weekend’s fatal drunk driving crash in St. Charles appeared in court Wednesday as police continue to investigate who supplied him and other teenagers at a party with alcohol.
Onofrio Lorusso, 18, of Wayne, is charged with four counts of reckless homicide and 12 counts of aggravated DUI. He also is charged with misdemeanor DUI and traffic citations in the early morning June 14 crash that killed 17-year-old Cameron Godee.
At the time of the crash, Lorusso’s blood alcohol level was 0.227 – more than twice the state’s 0.08 legal limit – and he had marijuana in his system, according to prosecutors.
A quiet Lorusso, with a gashed forehead, appeared in bond court Wednesday afternoon where his bail was set at $500,000.
If Lorusso posts the $50,000 bond needed to be released from jail, he must be electronically home monitored and must wear a device that detects any alcohol consumption.
Although Lorusso was still in custody Wednesday afternoon, defense attorney Vincent Solano said he expected Lorusso’s parents to post bond.
Assistant State’s Attorney Nemura Pencyla asked for a $1 million bail, given Lorusso’s “significant financial resources,” and the “motivation or ability to flee.”
Lorusso surrendered to St. Charles police before the bond hearing after he was released from Delnor Hospital in Geneva.
Detective Jerry Gatlin said police continue to investigate the 3:22 a.m. crash in the 3100 block of Royal Fox Drive. Lorusso’s 2005 Ford Explorer left the road and crashed into two trees, police said.
One aspect police are trying to determine is who supplied alcohol to a party the teens attended just before the crash, Gatlin said.
“Clearly this involved underage drinking and we’d like to know who supplied the alcohol,” he said. “We’re dedicating resources to get to the bottom of that.”
Lorusso, Godee and two other teens that were in the car could have left the party for a food run, or to pick up another teen, he said.
The passengers: 17-year-old Chelsea Mertz and 16-year-old Colton Kumerow each were hospitalized after the crash.
Kumerow was released earlier in the week from Central DuPage Hospital in Wheaton while Mertz remains at Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove, according to police.
A Good Samaritan spokeswoman would not release Mertz’s condition Wednesday because she’s a minor.
Mary Godee, Cameron’s mother, said Wednesday that the news of felony charges didn’t do much to comfort her loss.
“I would like to say there is some comfort there, but...[Cameron] was my life and now he’s gone,” she said. “A piece of my heart is now gone.”
Lorusso returns to court July 1. He has yet to be indicted or arraigned.