A 46-year-old South Holland man pleaded guilty Thursday to aggravated driving under the influence resulting in death, accepting responsibility for a 2023 Oak Lawn crash that killed 3-year-old Matthew Dushenko, of Burbank.
Cook County Judge Margaret Ogarek sentenced Paul Sutton to 16 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections, in accordance with a plea agreement reached between prosecutors and Sutton’s lawyers.
Sutton, who was permitted to address the court before his sentencing, expressed grief and regret for what his actions had done to the Dushenko family.
“If I could, I would change the whole situation,” Sutton said. “They don’t deserve that. And I just pray that they rest in peace … and that God wraps his arms around their family.”
The crash occurred at 95th Street and Ridgeland Avenue in Oak Lawn in July 2023. Sutton was driving more than 70 mph and had a blood-alcohol content of 0.196%, over twice the legal limit, when he crashed into the side of the Dushenko family’s car, prosecutors said.
Matthew was later pronounced dead at Advocate Children’s Hospital in Oak Lawn. His mother, Tetiana Dushenko, described her son as “full of joy” at his funeral, saying he liked playing with dinosaurs and loved his older brother.
Matthew’s father, Serhii Dushenko, who was in the passenger seat, was critically injured in the crash, and died about two months later of his injuries, prosecutors said.
“I can’t even imagine how they feel,” Sutton said. “I’m more than willing to accept the responsibility.”
Sutton was also badly injured in the crash, and needed to be extricated from the windshield of his car, prosecutors said.
Sutton’s attorney, Cierra Norris, said she had had many conversations with her client where he broke down crying.
“I know that it offers little condolence,” Norris said. “We’ve never had one that we’ve finished without him just breaking down at the end for the remorse that he feels for this, as he should.”
Prosecutors said Sutton had a lengthy criminal history, including a conviction for driving under the influence in 2017, and at the time of the crash had a warrant out for his arrest for driving with a revoked license.
More Top Picks Best Flutes For Beginners
Ogarek said Sutton’s criminal history and the number of similar previous cases was an aggravating factor in the case, as was the need to deter similar behavior by others. On the other hand, she said, Sutton had worked to better himself while incarcerated.
“You have done a lot of work while you’ve been in custody to try and address some of the demons that have plagued you, that brought you to this point — or that point — on that date, that robbed that family of their family members,” Ogarek said.
Sutton will have to serve 85% of his sentence before becoming eligible for release, Ogarek said, which will be followed by a mandatory two-year period of parole. Sutton will receive credit for the just over three years he has already spent incarcerated.
“Mr. Sutton, you’ve expressed clear remorse for this case today,” Ogarek said. “Good luck to you.”
After the sentence was handed down and Sutton was dismissed, there was a long moment of quiet in the courtroom.
“Thank you everybody for the silence in that courtroom. That was needed,” Ogarek said. “That case … that was a tough case.”