A press release from McHenry County State’s Attorney Lou Bianchi:

DANIEL BENDING SENTENCED TO FIVE YEARS IN THE DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS FOR DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF ALCOHOL CAUSING DEATH

Louis A. Bianchi, McHenry County State’s Attorney, announces that forty-nine year old Daniel Bending, formerly of Marengo, was sentenced to five years in the Illinois Department of Corrections for the offenses of Driving with a Blood Alcohol Concentration of 0.08 or more (Causing Death) and Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol (Causing Death). The Illinois truth in sentencing law requires that the defendant serve 85% of the sentence.

The Defendant was arrested after having struck Leonard Anderson, a 77-year old truck driver, as he crossed Route 20 on foot in Marengo on April 18, 2008.

A blood test revealed that the Defendant’s blood alcohol concentration 2½ hours after striking Leonard Anderson was still over the legal limit. Leonard Anderson survived the initial crash, but later succumbed to his injuries.

On June 18, 2012, a jury found the Defendant guilty of the above-mentioned offenses. The case was prosecuted by Assistant State’s Attorney Patrick Kenneally, Robert Zalud, and Alexander Geocaris.