Poster Child for Minutemen

Gus Philpott
Woodstock Advocate
January 23, 2009

This morning's Northwest Hurrah carries the news about Eulalio Haro, convicted yesterday of three felonies in a DUI accident on June 24, 2006, when he hit a motorcyclist on U.S 14 near the hospital at Doty Road.

There are frequent DUI convictions in McHenry County, Why is this one different?

According to the newspaper article, Haro was deported to Mexico in 1995 after he spent 19 months in prison following a DUI accident that killed his brother.

In addition to being stopped at the border at least one time when he tried to re-enter the U.S., Haro was deported a second time.

But he got back in (now, just how did that happen?) and was convicted TWICE in 1998 for drunken driving. Where? Right here in McHenry County!!!

Just what is it going to take in Illinois to get some coordination and cooperation between the Secretary of State's office, courtroom activity and law enforcement to put a stop to such carnage on our roads?

Not mentioned in the article is that alcohol is involved in about 40% of the accidents state-wide and in McHenry County. Maybe this is just in fatal accidents. I haven't seen my notes on alcohol-related accidents for a couple of years.

So you can be a law-abiding motorist and be hit by a drunk head-on. Or rear-ended while you are stopped at a red light or stop sign. Or at an intersection where a drunk runs a red light or stop sign.

MADD has been mad for years - perhaps so many years that now MADD's outrage is just another news item and lost in the shuffle.

Why did Haro even have a driver's license?

The bigger question is, how many "Haro's" are there out on our roads every day???

Sentencing will be March 18 in Judge Condon's courtroom.