Tragically, it appears that Chicago saw its first pedestrian fatality case of 2025, with the killing of Alex Rivera, 32, on Sunday, January 5, in the Chicago Lawn community area.
According to the initial Chicago Police Department statement on the case, at around 4:50 a.m. that morning, Rivera and a 36-year-old woman were entering their motor vehicle on the 2600 block of 60th Street. "[Rivera] refused to get into the vehicle, and the [woman] was attempting to drive off when the male victim jumped in front of the moving vehicle."
River suffered abdominal injuries and was take to Christ Hospital in critical condition, and was lated pronounced dead, CPD stated. The driver was placed in custody and an investigation was ongoing.
According to Police News Affairs, the motorists was identified as Dalila Paredes of Gary, Indiana. She was charged with a misdemeanor count of driving under the influence of alcohol, and cited for failure to exercise due care for a pedestrian in the road. She has a court date scheduled for Friday, February 28 at the Daley Center, 50 W. Washington St. in Chicago
The Illinois Traffic Crash Report, prepared by the responding CPD officers, provides more information about what reportedly happened. The crash took place at 2604 W. 60th St., and Paredes was driving west in a 2023 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The driver told the police that Rivera "who is her husband, ran in front of her vehicle causing" her to strike him. The report states that the crash occurred after a reported domestic battery.
Fatality Tracker: 2025 Chicago pedestrian and bicyclist deaths on surface streets
Pedestrian: 1
Bicyclist: 0
Streetsblog Chicago’s traffic death numbers represent fatal crashes on Chicago surface streets, based on media reports and/or preliminary Chicago Police Department data.
2025 Chicago pedestrian fatality cases
• On January 5, 2025, a Jeep driver fatally struck Alex Rivera, 32, in the 2600 block of West 60th Street in the Chicago Lawn community area.
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