Update 12/17/25, 11 AM: The victim has been publicly identified as Sergio Maya. This post has been updated accordingly.
An SUV driver fatally struck Sergio Maya, 34, early this morning near Pratt Avenue and Sheridan Road in Rogers Park. This tragedy is a reminder that Sheridan, a four-lane, highway-like street where speeding is common, badly needs a "road diet."
According to police, on Friday, December 12, at around 5:50 a.m., Maya was on foot in the 6800 block of North Sheridan, north of Pratt. A man, 27, was driving an SUV northbound when he struck the pedestrian in the street.
Maya was taken to St. Francis Hospital and later pronounced dead, police said. Read more about his life at the end of this post.
The driver stayed on the scene and was not immediately cited. This afternoon, News Affairs said he was ticketed for failure to reduce speed to prevent a crash.
Those with additional information on the case can contact the Major Accident Investigation Unit at 312-745-4521, or leave an anonymous tip at CPDtip.com.
We don't have specific details about what led to the crash. However, Streetsblog has previously discussed the need for safer conditions on Sheridan, which serves as a "traffic sewer" for drivers heading to and from DuSable Lake Shore Drive, 1.6 miles southeast of the crash site at Hollywood Avenue.
Two blocks south of Hollywood, in September 2018, a driver heading south on Sheridan made a left turn and fatally struck Lorraine Campion, 91 in the 5500 block, near Catalpa Avenue in Edgewater.
Last August, contributing writer Craig Stern made the case for doing a "four-to-three conversion" road diet on Sheridan. The result would be one mixed-traffic lanes in each direction with a turn lane, plus protected bike lanes.
Stern noted that this would reduce the chances of serious and fatal crashes for all users. It would also upgrade Sheridan from its current status as a hazard and barrier that makes it more dangerous, difficult, and unpleasant for vulnerable road users to access the lakefront.
Maya's obituary states that he worked at South of The Border Restaurant & Bar in Rogers Park. "Sergio Maya chased beauty and depth," it reads. "He sought beauty in his friends and in the world. His life was filled with adventure. He always made plans for the next great adventure including his upcoming move to New York. Sergio didn't waste time with the details, he focused on the experiences he would have, the relationships he would build, and the marrow he would suck out of life... All that knew Maya can say that he was deeply loved and that he fully extracted everything he could from his time on this planet."
A fundraising page has been launched to cover funeral expenses and has raised over $11,000.
Fatality Tracker: 2025 Chicago pedestrian and bicyclist deaths on surface streets
Pedestrian: 26
Bicyclist: 2
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.
• On January 24, 2025, a hit-and-run SUV driver struck and killed Halyna Hudzan, 66, on the 700 block of North Oakley Boulevard in West Town.
• On February 1, 2025, a truck driver struck and killed Hattie Mickell, 76, walking in the street on the 0-100 block of South Western Avenue on the Near West Side.
• On March 13, 2025, a hit-and-run driver fatally struck a pedestrian in an alley at 1145 N. Harding Ave. in the Humboldt Park community area.
• On March 14, 2025, a motorcycle rider fatally struck Camryn Green, 26, as she crossed the street in the 6500 block of Higgins Avenue in Norwood Park.
• On March 17, 2025, a sedan driver sideswiped another car, then jumped the curb and fatally struck Jamie Cerney, 38, on the sidewalk of the 5200 block of West 63rd Street in Clearing.
• On April 7, 2025, a pickup driver fatally struck a 72-year-old man trying to cross DuSable Lake Shore Drive at Roosevelt Road in the Loop.
• On April 29, 2025, an allegedly intoxicated sedan driver fatally struck a woman, 25, on the sidewalk near 13th Street and Lawndale Avenue in North Lawndale.
• On May 13, 2025, an allegedly drunk SUV driver fatally struck a man, 76, on the 7000 South block of Western Avenue in the Chicago Lawn neighborhood and fled the scene.
• On May 16, 2025, a semi truck reportedly disobeyed his traffic signal when making a right turn and ran over and killed a 44-year-old man in the crosswalk at Cermak and Ashland avenues in Pilsen.
• On May 24, 2025, an SUV driver failed to yield while making a left turn, causing a crash and fatally striking Maria Ochoa, 88, at Archer and Laramie avenues in Garfield Ridge.
• On June 10, 2025, the left-turning driver of a large vehicle leaving a parking lot fatally struck a pedestrian mid-block at 4823 W. Diversey Ave. in Belmont Cragin.
• On June 21, 2025, a hit-and-run car sedan struck and killed Brendan Siddall, 26 on DuSable Lake Shore Drive near Waveland Avenue in Lakeview.
• On July 13, 2025, an allegedly intoxicated driver fatally struck Rosa Hernandez, 69, at Roosevelt Road and Halsted Street on the Near West Side.
• On July 19, 2025 a hit-and-run car driver fatally struck Marcela Herrera, 22, and seriously injured her fiancé, Mauricio Leyva, 21, at Cullerton and Ashland avenues in Pilsen.
• On July 31, 2025, around 6:53 p.m., a Chevy driver fatally struck a female pedestrian near 63rd and Morgan streets in Englewood. The driver was arrested and charges were pending.
• On August 3, 2025, around 3:23 a.m., a man, 31, was found unresponsive in the 7600 block of South Stewart Avenue in Gresham and later pronounced dead, the victim of a hit-and-run driver.
• On August 6, 2025, around 7:30 p.m., a hit-and-run SUV driver fatally struck a pedestrian in the 1400 block of West Estes Avenue in Rogers Park
• On August 9, 2025, around 3:20 a.m., a hit-and-run SUV driver fatally struck Jermaine Martin, 22 in the 5400 block of South Kedzie Avenue in the Gage Park community.
• On September 18, 2025, the driver of a Chevy sedan fatally struck Anakin Perez, 9, in front of his school on the 4800 block of West Walton Street in Austin.
• On October 1, 2025, a minivan driver fatally struck Juslene Akeza, 4, as she crossed the street at Granville and Talman avenues in West Ridge.
• On October 19, 2025, a speeding hit-and-run sedan driver fatally struck an adult female pedestrian near 66th Street and Ashland Avenue in West Englewood.
• On October 24, 2025, a hit-and-run sedan driver fatally struck Maximiliano Lemus Jr., 72, near 26th Street and Komensky Avenue in Little Village.
• On November 8, 2025, a male pedestrian was found unresponsive in the street at 235 W. 95th St. in Roseland and later pronounced dead from an apparent hit-and-run crash.
• On November 17, 2025, a hit-and-run van driver fatally struck a man, 45, near 117th and Marshfield Avenue in Morgan Park.
• On Friday, December 12, 2025, an SUV driver fatally struck a man, 34, in the 6800 block of North Sheridan Road in Rogers Park.
2025 Chicago bike fatality cases
• On May 26, 2025, a Hummer SUV driver fatally struck Yader Castaneda, 18, at Randolph Street and Michigan Avenue in the Loop.
• On Saturday, July 5, 2025, a hit-and-run Audi driver fatally struck Shaheed Muhammed, 56, on his bicycle at 63rd and Halsted streets in Englewood. The victim died from his injuries on Thursday, July 10.
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