Two Chicago men charged in fatal August street racing crash on southwest side

CHICAGO (AP) — Two Chicago men have been charged in connection with the August death of a Florida woman who was struck by a car as the men were allegedly street racing, police said.

Aaron Guerrero, 27, was charged with reckless homicide with a motor vehicle and aggravated street racing in the death of Shawman Meireis, 40, Chicago police said.

Noe Garcia, 36, was also charged with aggravated street racing in the incident on the city’s southwest side, the Chicago Tribune reported.^[1]

Guerrero and Garcia were both scheduled to appear Wednesday at a bail hearing. It was unclear if either man has an attorney who could speak on their behalf.

Police said Meireis, who was visiting Chicago from Florida, was crossing a street near Midway Airport early on Aug. 28 when two Corvettes came racing toward her.

The Corvettes were cutting each other off and weaving through traffic when Guerrero's vehicle hit another car and careened into Meireis, who was thrown to the pavement.

Meireis died at a hospital one day before her 41st birthday. She had been out for a late dinner with her boyfriend and was from Naples, Florida, according to her obituary.

Guerrero told officers he had been fleeing a carjacking, but a police report cites witnesses who said the drivers of both Corvettes were racing each other just before the accident, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.^[2]

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