A party bus driver has been sentenced to two years in prison after slamming into 18 vehicles near Wrigley Field three summers ago. And, because Gregory Baldwin was released on bail while his case was ongoing, he will serve half of his term in a prison.
Baldwin, 48, dropped off his passengers at the ballpark on a Saturday afternoon in August 2022 and navigated traffic that was particularly heavy due to the annual Northalsted Market Days street event in Boystown.
Prosecutors claimed he was driving the party bus north on Broadway at Cornelia when he went around a backup and into oncoming traffic, despite a witness’s pleas to stop.
A popular video recorded some of what transpired next.
Baldwin impacted 18 vehicles, including a Chicago Fire Department ambulance occupied by an EMT.
A motorist followed the party bus and kept 911 operators informed of its whereabouts until police surrounded it in a circular drive at the mouth of Belmont Harbor. A Market Days crew member stated that he followed the bus while waiting for authorities to return the driver to the crash site for identification.
Baldwin appeared before Judge Aleksandra Gillespie this week and pleaded guilty to criminal damage to government property—the ambulance. She gave him a two-year sentence with two days credit for time spent in detention following his arrest.
For good behavior, they will shorten his sentence to one year, which should result in his release from prison around this time next year.