A 23-year-old man from Annawan accepted a plea deal on September 27, 2024, for eight years in prison for the aggravated driving under the influence accident that killed Jeanne Johnson of Atkinson and aggravated fleeing from police. For case 2022CF301, Justin Kirchner pleaded guilty to count one for Aggravated DUI, and the remaining counts are dismissed per the agreement. He was sentenced to six years in the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC), served at 85%, credit for time served, followed by two years of mandatory supervised release, a $5,000 fine, plus assessments.
For case 2023CF238, Kirchner pleaded guilty to count one for Aggravated Fleeing Police/ 21 MPH over the speed limit, and the remaining counts were dismissed per the agreement. He was sentenced to two years in the IDOC (consecutive to the 6-year sentence), served at 50%, credit for time served, followed by six months of mandatory supervised release, a $5,000 fine, plus assessments. The remaining counts and cases were dismissed per the plea agreement.
Mr. Kirchner is currently in the Stateville Correctional Facility with a projected parole date of September 21, 2029.
According to testimony at a Preliminary Hearing for aggravated DUI, Trooper Lambin spoke with Mr. Kirchner on the scene that morning. Kirchner was driving a silver Ford Explorer and was the individual who called 911 after the accident. Trooper Lambin said he asked Kirchner to explain how the crash happened. Trooper Lambin said Kirchner told him he was traveling south and she was traveling north. He said the Ford Escape swerved into his lane, and he was unable to swerve because he had a trailer attached to his Ford Explorer. Mr. Kirchner was uninjured and refused treatment at the scene. Trooper Lambin asked Justin Kirchner to sign the statement he provided and explain what happened again. Kirchner was allowed to leave the scene with his father before daylight based on his statement that was “taken in good faith,” according to Trooper Lambin. No citations were issued at the scene based on Mr. Kirchner’s statement that Ms. Johnson was the at-fault vehicle. Trooper Lambin testified that there were marks in the southbound lane, but emergency vehicles were parked over the marks in the northbound lane. After emergency vehicles cleared the scene, law enforcement evaluated the scene and determined that Justin Kirchner’s statement didn’t match the evidence on the road. Trooper Lambin said there was no indication alcohol was involved and there wasn’t enough evidence to warrant drug testing based on the initial statement.
According to testimony at a pretrial hearing, the State alleged that on August 5th, Justin Kirchner was driving a motorcycle on Cambridge Road in Kewanee and willfully failed to stop for Henry County Sheriff’s Office Deputy, Deputy Dylan Galloway. Deputy Galloway was in a clearly marked vehicle and gave an audible alert to the motorcycle. The motorcycle drove more than 21 miles per hour over the posted 30 MPH speed limit and disobeyed stop signs at Cambridge Road County, Highway 28, Highway 81, and County Highway 5. Mr. Kirchner was taken into custody and held on a $500,000 bond.
Kirchner was originally charged with two counts of Aggravated Battery/Public Place (Class 3 Felony) for case 2024CF13, Aggravated DUI causing a Death (Class 2 Felony), DUI Any Amount of Drug (Class A Misdemeanor), plus traffic tickets for case 2022CF301, Possession of Meth <5 Grams (Class 3 Felony), Driving on Suspended License (Class A Misdemeanor), plus traffic citations for case 2023CF92, Driving on a Suspended License (Class A Misdemeanor) for case 2023MT28, and Aggravated Fleeing/21 MPH Over (Class 4 Felony), Aggravated Fleeing/2+ Control Devices (Class 4 Felony) and Reckless Driving (Class A Misdemeanor) for case 2023CF238.