Illinois State Police trooper’s squad car struck in move over law-related incident

GALATIA, Ill., (KBSI) — A traffic crash occurred on IL-34, one mile west of Harco Road in Saline County, involving an Illinois State Police (ISP) trooper, authorities said.

The trooper was investigating a previous fatal crash when their squad car was struck by a driver who failed to move over, ISP officials said.

At approximately 5:08 a.m. Thursday, two ISP troopers were parked on IL-34 with emergency lights activated, blocking westbound traffic to secure the crash scene. A Ford Escape driven by Sandra S. Kahl, 66, of Thompsonville, struck the rear of one of the squad cars.

Kahl and both troopers were uninjured. Kahl was cited for Move Over Law violations and failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident.

This incident marks the eighth Move Over Law-related crash involving ISP in 2025. In 2024, ISP reported 27 such crashes, resulting in 12 trooper injuries and one death. In 2023, ISP had 21 Move Over Law-related crashes, with seven troopers injured.

ISP reminds drivers that the Move Over Law, also known as “Scott’s Law,” requires drivers to move over when approaching an emergency vehicle or any vehicle with its emergency or hazard lights activated. Violators face fines ranging from $250 to $10,000 for a first offense, and potential license suspension if the violation results in injury to another person ¹.