Jul 16, 2005 12:24 pm US/Central
Three Killed In Woman's Suicide Attempt
Chicago Musicians Die In Car Crash
SKOKIE (AP) ―
A woman who told authorities she "wanted to end it all" was charged with first-degree murder and aggravated battery after she allegedly caused a high-speed crash that killed three Chicago men out on their lunch break.
Bond was denied Friday for Jeannette Sliwinski, 23, of Morton Grove, who allegedly told investigators that she had been in a fight with her mother before the crash and wanted to take her own life.
Police said Sliwinski was driving at least 70 mph and had run three red lights when her car rammed a car carrying the men at an intersection in this northern Chicago suburb early Thursday afternoon.
The victims were identified as Michael Dahlquist, 39, John Glick, 35, and Douglas Meis, 29, all of Chicago. The three men worked together at Shure Inc., a Niles-based audio equipment manufacturer, and they also were musicians, playing in several rock bands.
Officers said the men's car was stopped at a red light when the vehicle was struck from behind.
The deaths "really devastated a lot of people here," said Paul Applebaum, Shure's vice president. "We are trying to make some sense of it ourselves. These people were highly respected and well-liked around here."
Skokie police said both cars were flipped over by the impact of the crash, and the musicians' car struck another vehicle, causing two injuries.
Friends and family members said Friday that Dahlquist, who moved to Chicago from Washington state five years ago, was the drummer for a band called Silkworm. Glick, a Boston native, was a guitarist and singer with the Returnables, while Meis played drums with Glick's wife, Rebecca Crawford, in a band called The Dials.
"They were people who were so smart and brilliant and amazing," Crawford said. "Everyone feels cheated that they haven't been able to accomplish what they set out to do."
Sliwinski was listed in fair condition and being guarded at St. Francis Hospital in Evanston on Friday, according to the Chicago Tribune. A hospital spokeswoman on Saturday said there was no one there under that name, and Skokie police did not immediately return a call for comment.
"She said she wanted to end it all when she ran into the back of the car," said Cook County Assistant State's Attorney Colleen Daly, adding that prosecutors might seek the death penalty against Sliwinski.
(© 2005 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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