A May trial date is scheduled for a Winthrop Harbor teenager accused of striking and fatally injuring a Waukegan man while she was texting while driving last summer.
Justine Kerscher, 17, is charged with aggravated use of an electronic communication device, a Class 4 felony that carries a potential sentence of one to three years in prison upon conviction. Probation is also an option for the charge.
Kerscher has pleaded not guilty to the charge, which was contained in a Lake County Grand Jury indictment unsealed earlier this month.
The incident occurred about 8:10 p.m. Aug. 21. Kerscher struck Mark Baker, 45. while he was riding a bike near Pine Street and Beach Road in Waukegan, according to the indictment.
Baker died several weeks after the crash.
Kerscher “knowingly operated (a motor-vehicle) while using an electronic communication device” and “the defendant was involved in a motor vehicle accident that resulted in the death of Mark Baker,” according to the indictment.
Authorities said it is believed Kerscher was texting at the time of the crash. She has no prior criminal record and was released on a signature bond to the custody of her parents.
Read more Waukegan-area news in the Lake County News-Sun.