SEYMOUR — A Monticello teenager found typing on her laptop computer in her car after a crash early Friday was arrested for driving under the influence.
"She said she had to get a paper turned in," Champaign County sheriff's Sgt. Dan Coile said of Julie C. Walsh, 19, of Monticello.
Coile said Deputy Chad Beasley saw Walsh's Ford Focus on the side of Illinois 10 near County Road 250 E in western Champaign County about 2:15 a.m.
Thinking the driver was having car problems, Beasley approached and found Walsh typing. He saw that her car was damaged.
After conducting field sobriety tests, noting that she smelled of alcohol, and based on her report that she'd had a couple of drinks, Beasley arrested Walsh for driving under the influence.
Coile, who was helping Beasley on the stop, noted that the damage to her car, including a hole ripped in the car hood, appeared to be fresh. Walsh said she had no idea how it had happened.
Coile was able to determine that she had apparently left Illinois 10 on the north side of the road near 250 E, went through a ditch and knocked over a stop sign at 1600 N. She then went through another ditch and hit another stop sign, taking it out, before parking on the shoulder where Beasley found her.
Walsh was released from the county jail Friday morning after posting bond. She was told to appear in court March 8.
Refreshing to find a dedicated student these days!
She had it in for them dang stop signs!!!!!!! Them dang stop signs will do it too you all the time!!!!
I knew that girl. She played volleyball at Monticello. I thought she was playing volleyball out of state. She's a great kid. Hope she learned her lesson, though if she didn't, I'm sure this embarrassing newsfeed will help.
While I find this story very funny, did the author really need to tarnish this poor girl's reputation? According to the previous commenter, she's a good kid. This is way too embarrassing of a story to write about a 19 year old. I can think of a lot of stupid mistakes I and others made at that age, and I certainly wouldn't want any of them flashed for the whole world to see.
Shame on you Mary Schenk. You'd think there would be newsworthy stories out there for you to be investigating instead of this. What, no dogs shot this week?
Awww, aren't you the compasionate one. Any tarnishing was self-accomplished, my friend. Quit trying to wear the hero badge by unloading on "the man".
How about sharing your youthful indiscretions with me. I promise I won't tell anyone.
Joe, I don't really think they were trying to give it to the "man" as you said. It sounded like she felt bad that the story kind of added insult to injury. I too made mistakes as a kid, and I'd rather not air them out for everyone to see.
But hey, she's an adult, and she'll pay for her mistake. Hope she learned from it.
Joe,
Like you, I appreciate the public forum, and I'll unload if I want to unload. I'm sick to death of reading sensationalized stories on here. From making the police look bad for protecting themselves to trying to sell papers at the expense of a teenagers mistakes, this paper is becoming more and more like the National Enquirer.
Sick to death of reading sensationalized stories on here? You'll love this one:
http://www.news-gazette.com/news/courts-police-and-fire/2013-02-15/uhs-student-arrested-robbing-car-salesman-stealing-walmart.ht#comment-502524 [16]
Evidently, it's foolish teen week. I'll tune back in next week!
So Joe, let me get this straight. You think they should stop writing stories about the CPD shooting dogs (which I agree with you), but you think it's okay to publicly humiliate a 19 year old kid? She made a mistake and paid for it. The gazette obviously had nothing else to do and wrote an embarrassing story. She's 19...I'm sure the handcuffs were lesson enough. The story is just way too much.
I will say the girl was stupid for what she did, I don't think she should be hung out to dry by the local paper. Isn't a blurb in the court news enough? I know way too many people who drink and drive, some caught, some not, and I think public humilation for this kind of stuff is ridiculous.
I'm all for whatever the court throws at her. Fine, AA, whatever. I just think an article embarrassing a kid is too much. I'm sure the wrath she faced at home was bad enough.
Joe wrote
On another story:
While I find this story very funny, did the author really need to tarnish this poor boy's reputation? This is way too embarrassing of a story to write about a 17 year old. I can think of a lot of stupid mistakes I and others made at that age, and I certainly wouldn't want any of them flashed for the whole world to see.
Shame on you Mary Schenk. You'd think there would be newsworthy stories out there for you to be investigating instead of this. What, no dogs shot this week?
Joe wrote
On this story:
Awww, aren't you the compasionate one. Any tarnishing was self-accomplished, my friend. Quit trying to wear the hero badge by unloading on "the man".
How about sharing your youthful indiscretions with me. I promise I won't tell anyone.
Contradiction?
All of this is public record. It's what happens in the paper. If she weren't an adult, her name wouldn't have been used. It's part of the consequences for drinking and driving, which could have been much more severe for her, by the way. She's lucky it's only her name that's been tarnished.
I hope she doesn't do it again. People like this are extraordinarily selfish. I do have some sympathy for her because she's so young, but she's certainly old enough to be responsible for her own actions.
I'm the real Joe American, I say this article is just a waste of space. It's a 19 year old kid that made a stupid decision. I'm just glad she didn't hurt herself or others, and I'm sure spending the night with Champaign's finest helped put the fear of God in her. As for this story, come on, give me a break. This isn't journalism. This is a bored journalist with nothing else to do on a Friday.
Actually, I'm the real JoeAmerican. And when I'm not surfing porn, I visit the news gazette to troll the message boards. And for this story, I've decided that Ms. Walsh deserves to be put in jail and the key thrown away because she's probably pretty and wouldn't have liked me when I was a kid.
Some of us don't like you as an adult, either.
Would you feel the same way if it was you she took out instead of the stop signs? DUI is DUI. No senationalism here. This part of the state has a reputation for strict enforcement of DUI and part of being arrested makes your misdeeds a matter of public record.
I'm glad she didn't hurt herself or others. I agree with the other posters about this being over the top. It seems stupid that a kid gets so much publicity. Are they going to write an individual article for every kid that gets in trouble over unofficial?
I've known Julie for a long time. I'm sad to see this article written in such an embarrassing way, though I'm also sad Julie made this decision. She's a terrific kid, and I'm confident she'll learn her lesson. I wouldn't be surprised to see her leading counselling sessions for young adolescents after this...that's the kind of person she is.
Julie, if you're reading this, be thankful you didn't hurt anyone or yourself, and learn from your mistakes! You've always been resilient, and I know this time will be no different!
While a DUI is very serious, it could be a lot worse. Thankfully the young lady was not injured or worse and neither was anyone else. This is either an opportunity to learn a very valuable lesson from a one time mistake and/or it is time to take stock and decide if there is a more serious problem. Note: a DUI is a very good indication that someone has a serious problem with alcohol. What's worse about 1/3 of all DUI offenders repeat. This is a pattern that must be avoided at all cost. So it is key for anyone who thinks they may have a problem with alcohol to take it seriously and decide if they might want to quit drinking for good. Life really isn't that bad without it. In fact some say it is down right liberating to be rid of that monkey. To thine own self be true.
it dont matter the age its before noon and they are drunk and they are on the way to school.
it dont take a villiage idiot to say wow thats just NO GOOD. i feel this will not be the last time we read about this
The News Gazette seemed to have been drawn to Julie's misfortune based on the law enforcement report regarding her intial responses to questioning. As of now, I have to speculate that the News Gazette's reporting of Julie's arrest indicates disparity in local crime reporting. Julie makes news while the arrest of a U of I prof does not in the News Gazette's reporting. Why does Julie make news, and the other one does not?
Maybe because channel 3 covered it? Some of these cases are covered because of the "novelty" factor, she was using her computer and claimed to not know she had wrecked her car. She has a paper due. If it was a boring story it wouldn't be here. But I'm curious, why the poor Julie, when before it was everyone piling on about someone else who was driving drunk. Perhaps that should be required reading for all the "Julies and Johns" out there of what the future could hold. Misfortune? This was her choice.
Perhaps, your right; but look at the other crime stories of today. Violations of probation, stolen gun possession, and another DUI story. Surely; the story WCIA has covered on the disorderly conduct, and assault on a local airliner meets a news worthy mention. I would think that is a "novelty" crime story also. Julie is not employed by a major educational institution. She is just a 19 year old student. Hopefully, her future holds a Ph.D. also.
What happened with the U of I prof?
www.illinoishomepage.net [46] , Man Arrested at Willard Airport. News regarding certain citizens should not be suppressed while news on others is published.
Agreed. I'm not sure what he was thinking, since there has been no time in the last 20 years when one didn't have to put carry on bags either under the seat or in the overhead bin.
Influential pillar of the community, perhaps. E&C Eng, $134,421 annual.
Also didn't see anything in the News Gazette about the DUI charges against a Vermilion County deputy being dropped. But hey at least his running a red light charge is still pending.
She is 19 and the drinking age is 21. Why not do a story about it? Maybe other under aged drinkers will learn from this. She might be a good kid but at the time she made bad choices. We all learn from our mistakes.
Why not do a story about an over 40 year old prof who is arrested for disorderly conduct, and assault on an airplane carrying other passengers? Publish all of the arrests. Don't cherry pick which ones to publish, or not.
Indeed. Why not do a story about you're [sic] obsession with faculty and academic professionals?
Because for too many years; their flaws have been swept under the carpet by the university, and the local press. I spent 30 plus years around them. Some were good at what they did, and others could not pour water out of a boot with the instructions on the heel. Some were decent people, and others were indecent people. They have the same human flaws, and make the same mistakes as others. The mantle of Ph.D. does not bestow any special powers. It means that the individual knows a large amount of information on a given subject. It does not make them better drivers, better neighbors, better citizens, or better anything except for their area of study. This guy who acted like a child on a commercial aircraft demonstrates the fact that a Ph.D. has nothing to do with committing a crime. He should be treated no different than anyone else by the media, the court, and his employer.
By the way; are you a Ph.D. commenting while "working at home", or from your office on campus? Are you a Professor Emeritus taking up office space, and staff assistance?
I can't believe the mindset in the C-U area. I moved away 25 years ago but most now are scolding the reporter for reporting the news? Hello? It's the news. Is there other "uncovered" news? Yes, of course. An underage drunk driver was caught before she could hurt anyone. Of course, your tax dollars will pay to repair her damage to public property but Illinois taxpayers are rolling in it anyway, no big deal! It's puzzling though how anyone can scold the reporter...you just want to say, "Knock, knock, anyone home?"
The accident happened around 2:15a. She was most likely on her way home from the bars, not on her way to class.
Just spoke to someone at work, and they said with all of the recent talk about "professional courtesy" surrounding the CPD, SA, and CCPD, they're going to push for the max against Walsh because of her name. They're hoping people associate her with the sheriff, which by all accounts, she's not related to him.
She deserves whatever she gets, but I think for the State's Attorney to get her pitchfork out to get a "name" is silly. What a waste. And to think I voted for her!
Heard the same thing. Trying to make up for that Vermillion County off duty cop.
I just don't get the politics of this county. They've had a chance to nail a cop, who should've really known better, and instead they're going to go after a kid, who also should've know better, but was acting like a stupid kid. I say give her some counselling, long-term, and make she follows up with it. If you're going to let the cops get away with it, we might as well let the underage drinkers.
Whoa...that was a pointless rant, but I feel better!
Is the source reliable? I've heard murmuings of the same thing, but wow. Wow.
I guess my other comment is why are the police so free with their information? The quotes provided by the author are direct quotes. Unlike the previous commenters, I have no problem with the author writing a good story, but I would like to know why Sgt. Coile feels he needs to be blabbing more detail than necessary. I always thought the police were supposed to be people you looked up to, not gossip machines. He's in a lot of stories, including ones where he's not even an arresting/assisting officer. Is he the department's de facto spokesperson or what? Or is he auditioning for the Sheriff's job by getting his name out there. As my drill sergeant said years ago, shut your mouth and just do your job!
I felt the same way. Seems like a lot of people are out to get the reporter. If anything, this story helps Walsh. NO WAY you're going to find a jury that hasn't read about this. I'd guess the cops are pretty open about stories like this so they can continue to say "No comment" about off duty cop dui's, partners in crime driving the wrong way on the interstate, and the shootings of dogs.
BTW...I was on the cops side for that dog shooting, but I'm curious as to why it took so long for a public statement. They said at the time they don't comment on ongoing investigations, but they'll blab about other people's business?
Maybe the reporter bought Coile a donut.
You can't comment on ongoing internal investigations because it's an employment matter. There are specific privacy concerns involved in employment - it's the law. This investigation does not seem to be ongoing - the report is written. AND we don't know whether the comments were approved by the dept. in general, or if it was just one cop commenting.
Direct quotes from the police report that show she was so intoxicated she didn't know she was in an accident, was using her computer in an illogical setting, etc. No he wasn't "gossiping" to the reporter. He was describing the scene he found her in. If you had just wrecked your car would you call for help or do your homework? Which makes sense? Which suggests there is an ongoing drinking problem and not a onetime situation? It is his job to report the scene he found her in and if her behavior was odd. Does it support the charge, suggest drug use, etc.
Have you seen the police report? Usually when a reporter is quoting from a report, it's just the facts that are reported, not direct quotes from the officer.
This seems to be the story of the year so far. Rather than focus on the press, police, and the driver, perhaps it's time to focus on the root of this whole problem---underage drinking! It's a serious problem in Champaign/Urbana. My son can get served anywhere in town, and he's only 19. How about doing an investigative study on that? At least when he's at a friends house drinking, I can have a 1% feeling of relief knowing that he'll probably crash on the couch. But once you leave the bar in a car, you're doomed!
Don't kid yourself. If they run out of alcohol they'll just jump in the car and go get more. If you know people who are serving him illegally and are looking the other way you are part of the problem. By looking the other way you are condoning it.
I live six and a half hours away, and he'll make his own choices. I can't control the bars in town. Though are you suggesting the family sue the bar owners that served the underaged teen? Maybe they should be held liable!
He never drank a drop growing up. Went to school and started doing what everyone else does.
If you have a flawless child that you have raised, then please send me your guide!
I called the cops and had the people arrested. If you are supporting your son in college you could be liable for his actions as he's considered your dependent. Something to keep in mind.