A Lisle, Illinois, man with a lengthy history of drunk driving and reckless behavior is being held without bond after prosecutors say he slammed his high-powered pontoon boat into a smaller vessel at roughly 80 mph in a no-wake zone, decapitating a 48-year-old woman and critically injuring her husband.
Richard M. Stevenson, 45, faces two counts of aggravated driving under the influence causing death and one count of reckless homicide in connection with the deadly crash on the Fox River near McHenry on Saturday afternoon, July 25. McHenry County Judge Cynthia D. Lamb denied pretrial release Monday, calling Stevenson “a real and present threat” to the community.
Prosecutors allege Stevenson was operating a 31-foot South Bay pontoon boat “at full throttle” when it overtook and rode up and over a 20-foot Crownline in a posted no-wake zone south of the McHenry Dam around 2:30 p.m. The impact caused catastrophic injuries to passenger Magdalena Jablonska, 48, of Des Plaines, who was killed at the scene. Her husband was also injured and transported to a hospital.
Security camera footage obtained by investigators and circulating in news reports shows a boat racing along the river shortly before the crash. Witnesses reported Stevenson had been drinking heavily throughout the day, including multiple shots of Fireball whiskey, and was seen speeding on both the Chain O’ Lakes and the Fox River. Blood tests later showed his blood-alcohol concentration at approximately .20 to .236, more than twice the legal limit of .08 for operating a boat in Illinois.
Two passengers aboard Stevenson’s boat fled the scene before police arrived. Stevenson himself remained near the wreckage and was later located along the shoreline. He was taken to a hospital for treatment and testing.
At a detention hearing, Assistant State’s Attorney Brian Miller described Stevenson as “a ticking time-bomb and that bomb went off this past Saturday on the Fox River.”
Court records detail Stevenson’s troubling past, including three prior DUI arrests between 1997 and 2005, multiple speeding and reckless driving convictions, and instances of fleeing police.
The McHenry County Coroner’s Office confirmed Jablonska’s identity Tuesday. An autopsy revealed blunt force injuries to her body and head. Toxicology results remain pending.
Illinois Conservation Police, the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office, and local fire departments continue to investigate the crash. Stevenson remains in custody at the McHenry County Jail as the case moves forward.
