Driver cited in 2023 crash that killed Wheaton woman

Sixteen months after a Wheaton pedestrian was struck and killed by an SUV on Roosevelt Road, a motorist from Batavia has been issued a traffic citation in connection with the crash.

According to police, Paige Donahue, a 31-year-old Wheaton resident, was hit by a vehicle in the eastbound lanes of Roosevelt near Crest Street shortly after 8 p.m. on Jan. 2, 2023. The driver did not stop, police said.

The city issued a statement Thursday saying Wheaton detectives reached a breakthrough in the investigation after receiving results from electronic search warrants and an advanced analysis of physical evidence left at the scene from the vehicle.

As a result of the investigation, police say they identified Tarra Fiedler of Batavia as the motorist who was driving the vehicle, a Hyundai Tucson. Fiedler cooperated with detectives and provided a statement with additional details surrounding the evening of the 2023 fatal crash, the city’s statement read.

The DuPage County state’s attorney’s office conducted an extensive review of the facts and circumstances, including Fiedler’s statement, along with the evidence in the crash investigation. In “accordance with Illinois law and Illinois Supreme Court case law,” Fiedler was issued a citation for failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident with a future court date.

Additional criminal charges will not be pursued at this time, authorities said.

“Following our thorough review of this case, the facts and circumstances did not support the filing of criminal charges,” a DuPage state’s attorney’s spokesperson said via email.

Police expressed condolences to Donahue’s family.

“The Police Department is grateful to be able to provide some answers to Paige’s family. Her family has suffered over the past year and continues to grieve to this day,” the statement continued.

“This incident has impacted many lives, including the good Samaritans who stopped to aid Paige, the responding Patrol Officers and Fire Department personnel who attempted life-saving measures, the investigating detectives who spent months diligently investigating all leads, and the thousands of community members who showed support for the tragic loss of this young woman.”