The Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office has turned down a second request for the release of documents and data pertaining to a fatal crash that took place back in 2016. The second request by the Sheriff’s Office was turned down on Monday, March 23.

The records are being sought over an ongoing wrongful death lawsuit that has been filed against a sheriff’s deputy, a guilty driver and the county. The deputy who is named as a defendant in the lawsuit was involved in a high-speed chase that resulted in the death of Joy Lambert.

The incident took place on February 8, 2016. Deputy Christopher Moski attempted to stop Laronda Graham when he suspected that Graham was speeding. However, Graham refused to stop which led to a high-speed chase over a distance of 2.5 miles. The chase took place in a traffic rush hour and during the case, speeds reached as high as 91 mph.

Just as the chase was going on, Graham ran a red light at the Cunningham Road and Springfield Avenue. It was then that her vehicle crashed into Lambert’s vehicle who was driving to work at the time. Lambert sustained critical injuries in the crash and died. Graham later pleaded guilty and was charged with aggravated fleeing police as well as reckless homicide. She received one year for the first charge and five years for the second charge.

Lambert’s family is now suing Deputy Moski, Graham and the Winnebago County in a wrongful death lawsuit. Attorneys representing the family have repeatedly sought access to the reports as well as audio and video recordings from the crash. The Illinois Attorney General’s office has also recommended that this material be released to the public. However, the County Sheriff’s Office has turned down a second request for access to these materials.

Disclaimer: The Accident News article you just read includes information obtained from numerous sources. These sources include, but are not limited to, websites and press releases from law enforcement, the county coroner, fire departments, and other news outlets. While we strive to provide readers with the most accurate information, sometimes the information received is not entirely accurate. For complete details, please refer to an official police report.

The articles published contain sensitive subject matter that may be hard to read by some. We understand that losing a loved one is hard and devastating. Accident News’s decision to share the stories is to help others who may be facing the same situations by providing appropriate resources to the general public.

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