A night of terror

The suspect, Thomas L. Meighan Jr., has not been charged directly in her death but prosecutors say their investigation continues. For now, he's charged with a series of motor vehicle violations pieced together from what police describe was a wild night in which his pickup truck sped through red lights, went the wrong way down streets and veered across roadways. The photo at left, from WJZ-TV, shows a truck believed to be the one involved in the fatal accident

We also learned that the suspect has 21 convictions for motor vehicle violations, including six for driving while intoxicated and two for drivng under the influence. At the time of the deadly crash on Oct. 16, taking the life of the promising 20-year-old junior and molecular and cell biology major from the Chicago area, he was free on bail on another hit-and-run and DWI charge.

We're still piecing together his long and complicated record to determine how he mananged to stay free and behind the wheel despite a record that should've barred him from the road.