Darien man gets four years for deadly DUI crash

He could accept a four-year prison sentence, but Justin D. Lind says it's tougher to live with killing his best friend and destroying a family's happiness.

The 28-year-old Darien man was sentenced to four years in prison Thursday by DuPage Circuit Judge Robert Anderson. Lind pleaded guilty earlier to aggravated drunken driving on May 27, 2006.

Lind also was speeding when he lost control of his 1989 Chevrolet Caprice on I-55 at Cass Avenue near Westmont. His passenger, Jason Hydzik, 27, also of Darien, perished in the crash.

Before being led away to serve his term, Lind embraced family members outside the courtroom.

Inside, he looked at Hydzik's mother, father and brother and begged their forgiveness for killing the man he called "his brother."

Lind and Hydzik visited two bars the evening of May 27, defense attorney Terry Ekl said. Although Lind often acted as designated driver, he made a tragic error in judgment that night. Prosecutors said he had a blood alcohol content of .24 percent; the legal threshold is .08 percent.

Lind acknowledged the poor judgment in his statement to the Hydzik family in court.

"Your son died because I was not strong enough to protect him," Lind said. "I was not strong enough to carry him home.

"As long as I live, I will know what's been taken away from you. I'll never be able to fix this. Please forgive me."

Paulette Hydzik said the pain of her son's death would never go away.

She described a collection of 15 photographs in her living room showing Jason and his brother, Tony Michael, decorating a Christmas tree, climbing a tree and celebrating their grandmother's 80th birthday.

"Those joyous times serve only to heighten the anguish I live with. Now I am plagued by visions of my son in a coffin," she said.

Hydzik described a precocious, outspoken child who once called a newspaper to request a story and photograph about his school's victory in a chess championship, which he won.

But Jason was also a caring individual who showed a special talent for working with seniors, she said.

"I continue to struggle to find comfort in the fact that Jason brought joy to so many others during his brief life," Hydzik said.

The news of his death has caused the family psychological trauma and sent Jason's father to the emergency room in the midst of making funeral arrangements.

Adding to the pain is the fact Jason was making plans to be married when he died.

"I receive invitations for weddings and my response is one of envy," Hydzik said. "Why am I not planning to be the mother of the groom?

"I am angry at the careless driver who neglected his responsibilities and placed so little value on the lives of his passengers, at the legal system that seems to favor the needs of the perpetrator more than the victims, at the unfairness of the death of someone so young and promising and at God."

Anderson told Lind, "No one gets over the loss of a child. It's like losing a hand."

Lind could be released on good behavior after serving 85 percent of his sentence.