Four Illinois State Police cruisers struck in twelve hours, including semi truck rear-end crash

Troopers are asking drivers to obey “Move Over” laws after multiple Illinois State Police (ISP) cruisers were struck by vehicles in a twelve hour period this week.

The crashes occurred across the state of Illinois on March 16, 2026, ISP said in a news release.

The first crash occurred around 4 a.m. on westbound I-80 near Houbolt Road in Will County. An ISP trooper was attending the scene of a previous crash with emergency lights activated when a vehicle failed to move over and side swiped the driver’s side of the trooper’s squad car. The trooper was inside the car but was not hurt. The crash resulted in a citation for a Move Over Law violation.

The second crash took place  4:10 a.m. while another ISP trooper was assisting with the first Move-Over-related crash on I-80 in Will County. An additional vehicle driving through the previous crash site failed to move over and struck a vehicle from the initial crash, pushing it into the second ISP trooper’s cruiser. No injuries were reported. This driver was also cited for a Move Over Law violation. 

The third crash occurred at 4:45 p.m. on northbound I-57 at milepost 295 in Ashkum, Iroquois County. A trooper with ISP’s Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Bureau was on the shoulder of I-57 with lights activated assisting a motorist.

“A truck-tractor semi-trailer failed to move over and struck the rear end of the squad car, pushing it forward into the vehicle that the Trooper was assisting. The Trooper was transported to a hospital with serious, but non-life-threatening injuries. Three other occupants involved in the crash were also transported with injuries. The truck driver was cited for a Move Over Law violation,” ISP said.

A fourth crash occurred at 4:25 p.m. on I-88 westbound near IL-78 (milepost 23.5) in Whiteside County. A trooper was stopped with their emergency lights activated, assisting a motorist that slid off the roadway when a sedan driver lost control and rear-ended the ISP police cruiser. The trooper was inside the cruiser and suffered serious but non life-threatening injuries. ISP says charges could be filed pending the results of the investigation.

ISP reminds drivers that violations of the Illinois “Move Over” law can result in a fine of no less than $250 and no more than $10,000 for a first offense. If the “Move Over” violation results in injury, the violator’s driver’s license may be suspended for a mandatory period of anywhere between six months and two years.