Oak Lawn man gets 7-year sentence in fatal DUI case
SUN-TIMES MEDIA WIRE December 7, 2011 9:16PM
Joseph Brynda
Updated: January 9, 2012 10:14AM
An Oak Lawn man who killed a pedestrian while driving with his knees while texting — and while under the influence of marijuana and freon — was sentenced Wednesday to seven years in prison.
Joseph Brynda, 20, pleaded guilty Wednesday to aggravated DUI in connection with the Nov. 9, 2009, incident in Tinley Park, as well as to burglary in an unrelated incident in Oak Lawn in November 2010, Cook County state’s attorney’s office spokesman Andy Conklin said.
Court records show Brynda was texting while driving, and a witness told police he was “driving with his knees” when he struck and killed Philip Rangel, 60, on 183rd Street. Rangel was on the parkway and walking to the 80th Avenue Metra station to catch a train to Blue Island after working.
Brynda’s 2008 Saturn then hit a stoplight at 183rd Street and 80th Avenue and collided with a 2002 Dodge stopped on 183rd Street.
Will County court records show that before the crash, Brynda, who had a Frankfort Square address at the time, had been cited eight times for driving offenses including speeding, disobeying traffic signals and failing to yield to emergency vehicles. He also was involved in at least one accident with injuries, according to the Illinois secretary of state’s office.
Brynda also was charged in 2008 with drinking alcohol as a minor, and in 2009 was charged with possession of marijuana and drug equipment, records show.
The burglary charge stems from an incident in which he burglarized a car near a park district building in Oak Lawn.
Brynda was free on $250,000 bond at the time, but it was revoked.
Contributing: Staff reports
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