Lemont Man's Trial For Alleged Romeoville Road Rage Killing Set

A Lemont man charged with throwing a fatal punch during a June 2011 confrontation at a Romeoville stoplight is set to go before a jury in April.

Christopher Yeoman, 40, was initially charged with only misdemeanor battery when he was arrested for allegedly punching 64-year-old Frank Egas after the two stopped for the traffic light at the intersection of 135th Street and Route 53.

Yeoman and Egas first crossed paths near the intersection of New Avenue and 135th Street about 4:30 p.m. on June 2, 2011, where they engaged in a "traffic altercation," police said.

The situation escalated as they drove west on 135th, and the men got out of their vehicles after stopping for the light at Route 53, police said.

Yeoman punched Egas in the face, according to court papers, and Egas hit the ground.

Police and paramedics arrived to find Egas on the pavement but Yeoman had reportedly taken off. He was tracked down at a relative's home in Lemont, police said.

Egas' health deteriorated to the point he moved into a Lake County nursing home. He eventually died there in September 2011.

The Lake County Coroner determined that Egas succumbed to injuries suffered in the June 2011 incident, according to prosecutors.

When Egas' condition worsened, the charges against Yeoman were boosted to aggravated battery to a senior citizen. Yeoman, a carpenter and the father of three children, was hit with second degree murder in June.

According to his obituary, Egas "immigrated from Ecuador to the United States when he was 9 years old. He earned his naturalization by volunteering to serve in the U.S. Army in the Vietnam War."

Yeoman's attorney, Clifford Johnson, asked for and was granted a Dec. 21 court date to argue for access to Egas' medical records from Edward Hines Jr. VA Hospital.

Judge Sarah Jones schedule the jury trial for April 15.