http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=291185
Lake Zurich nail-painting crash that killed motorcyclist ruled accidentalThe death of a Lake Zurich motorcyclist, killed when she was struck at a traffic light by a driver painting her fingernails, has been ruled an accident, authorities said Monday.
The autopsy found Anita Zaffke, 56, died of internal injuries to her chest and abdomen and a fractured spine after the crash Saturday afternoon, Lake County Coroner Richard Keller said.
Keller also said a toxicology test run on the driver, Lora L. Hunt, 48, of Morris, was negative. Police do not suspect alcohol or drugs were a factor in the crash, Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran said.
Curran said Hunt experienced "a momentary lapse" and was not paying attention.
"We can all learn from this in the sense that cars are dangerous instruments. We need to be careful, always," he said.
Zaffke, who was wearing a helmet, was riding her Honda Shadow motorcycle south on Rand Road when she stopped at a yellow traffic signal at Old McHenry Road near Lake Zurich. Hunt told police she was painting her fingernails as she drove her Chevy Impala toward the intersection and did not see Zaffke until after she hit her, authorities said.
Hunt's attorney Ragan Freitag told ABC 7 that she has not seen the police report and won't comment on whether Hunt was painting her nails while driving. "At this point she is really distressed. There are some things she remembers and some things she doesn't - she is distraught over this," Freitag told ABC 7.
Zaffke and her motorcycle were pushed forward a few hundred feet by the force of the impact, authorities said.
ABC 7 reported Monday family members said Zaffke was heading from her son's Waukegan apartment to her home. They had been talking about plans for Mother's Day.
"I was pretty much in disbelief at first," said Greg Zaffke, Anita Zaffke's son. "We went up to the intersection, just went up and down, to try to see how this could possibly have happened."
Lake County sheriff's office spokesman Sgt. Christopher Thompson said Hunt has been charged with failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident.
Curran said the accident would be reconstructed as part of the investigation. Findings will be turned over to the Lake County state's attorney's office for a determination of whether additional charges are warranted, possibly by the end of the week.
"That's going to be the state's attorney's office call," Curran said. "They'll look at everything including the rate of speed."
Curran said there were no skid marks at the accident scene, where the speed limit is 55 mph.
No additional details about the accident are expected to be available until the end of the week when the investigation is finished and the case is turned over to the Lake County state's attorney's office, Thompson added.
Greg Zaffke now wears black nail polish to bring attention to the need for stricter penalties for people who hurt motorcyclists like his mom, according to ABC 7.
"I'm sure there are motorcycle groups who would like to hear about this story and potentially help us get the story out," he said.
Contact:Sheriff
Mark C. Curran, Jr.
25 S. Martin Luther
King Jr. Avenue
Waukegan, IL 60085
Ph 847.377.4000
Fx 847.360.5796
sheriff@lakecountyil.govState’s Attorney
Michael J. Waller
18 N. County Street
Waukegan, IL 60085
Ph 847.377.3000
statesattorney@lakecountyil.gov
