Driver Charged in Death of Cyclist Carlos D. Ocana-Castillo, 21, in West Englewood

Update 3/6/18 11:30 AM: According to Police News Affairs, Motorist Kiara Black, 22, of Country Club Hills, has been charged with one felony count of failure to report a crash resulting in a death. Black appeared in Central Bond Court on Saturday, March 3.

Last Wednesday, February 28, a motorist fatally struck 21-year-old Carlos Daniel Ocana-Castillo on his bike in West Englewood and fled the scene.

According to police, at about 10:25 a.m. Ocana-Castillo was biking on the 1800 block of West 59th Street. The driver then changed lanes and struck the cyclist from behind, then drove off without rendering aid, police said. The victim, who lived on the 1800 block of South Blue Island in Pilsen, was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on Thursday. The death was ruled an accident, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office.

According to a GoFundMe page started to cover expenses for Ocana-Castillo’s family, he was on his way to a store to buy snacks. “He suffered severe damage to his head and heart along with a broken leg,” the page states. “He was taken to the hospital while conscious, but then we lost him. He was given 30 hours total, and two different tests to see if his brain still responded, unfortunately this was not the case, and he was declared brain dead at 6:48pm on March 1st, a day before his birthday… Daniel was a young man who had to work hard to support himself and his brother.”

Fatality Tracker: 2017 Chicago pedestrian and bicyclist deaths

Pedestrian: 3

Bicyclist: 1

Note: Streetsblog Chicago’s traffic death numbers represent fatal crashes on Chicago streets. The pedestrian count above is based on Chicago Police Department data for January 2018 released by the Chicago Department of Transportation, plus media reports for February and March.