Court documents identify man killed, two men injured on I-74 bridge walkway

The woman who allegedly drove her SUV over the Interstate 74 bridge pedestrian path from Bettendorf to Moline, Ill., early Sunday morning, killing one and injuring two others, faces 10 charges in Rock Island County court.

Chhabria A. Harris, 46, knowingly drove her Cadillac Escalade on the pedestrian path, striking and killing Ethan Lee Gonzalez, 21, of Moline, and seriously injuring Anthony Casteneda, 18, and Charles Bowen, 22, according to court documents.

Harris faces charges of:

•One count of aggravated DUI, death resulting

•Two counts of aggravated DUI, serious bodily injury

•Three counts of failure to stop after a crash causing personal injury

•Three charges of aggravated reckless driving

•One count of aggravated reckless homicide.

She is being held on $2 million bail, and must post $200,000 bond for release.

Police say Harris drove her SUV onto the new walking/bike path from the Bettendorf side at about 2 a.m. Sunday, and traveled the length of the span, striking the three people about 200 yards from the Moline pathway entrance, according to early police investigations.

There was no evidence Sunday of rubber marks from tires on the concrete that holds the railings in place and no visible scrapes or scratches to suggest the vehicle hit either side of the pathway railings when crossing. The span is 14 feet wide and separated by barriers from the bridge's motoring lanes.

No skid marks from the vehicle can be seen on the path.

Bettendorf City Administrator Decker Ploehn said Monday the city and both states' Department of Transportation will meet "to see what measures, if any, should be taken."

The Iowa DOT also made the following statement Monday: "We are deeply saddened by this tragic incident and our hearts go out to the victims and their families. Iowa DOT is coordinating with the cities of Bettendorf and Moline to investigate the incident and discuss how we can prevent incidents like this from occurring in the future."

The path opened April 28 after five years of construction. An official ribbon-cutting ceremony for the path was held three days before the fatal crash.

Moline is leading the investigation since the injuries occurred near the Moline entrance to the path.

Authorities ask anyone with information to contact police at (309) 797-0401.