Shawman Meireis, 40, was killed when two Corvettes were drag racing on Sunday, August 28. One of the vehicles went out of control and hit the tourist who was on a crosswalk. Meireis is a business consultant from Naples, Florida who came to visit the city along with her 27-year-old boyfriend, Eric Eanone.

Meireis was walking to a late dinner after a music festival at 1:40 am when two Corvettes which were street racing came towards her on Cicero Avenue near Midway Airport. The vehicles were cutting off each other and crossing through traffic until one of them hit a car and smashed into Meireis as she crossed the street. 

According to reports, the boyfriend was seen grabbing the driver of the Corvette and throwing him against a street lamp. “You killed my girlfriend,” he said. Meireis was killed a day before her 41st birthday. The driver who hit Meireis told officers at the scene that he had been fleeing a carjacking. However, the police report cited the witnesses saying the drivers of both Corvettes were racing each other before the accident at 1:40 am. There has been a spike in the number of reckless driving and drag racing cases in the country. 

Reports suggests the driver and a 19-year-old woman in a blue Corvette who was also involved in the race had been fueling their engines at a stop light. This happened just before the incident near Cicero Avenue, near Midway Airport. Police and witnesses said the two cars were weaving through traffic until the red Corvette hit Meireis. Later, the blue Corvette sped off, leaving Meireis fighting for her life. She was declared dead in hospital.

The incident was one of many illegal street drag races to be reported in Chicago on the weekend.  Streets across the city were blocked by large groups filming drivers performing ‘doughnuts’, sometimes with passengers hanging out the windows. Other onlookers escaped narrowly through many of the scary adventures. Videos shared across social media also showed large crowds of people gathered downtown specifically at the intersections of the trendy West Loop and restaurant-filled South Loop districts.

Original Article