(7/18/05) - The Slats -- Tragic News about The Dials
thesl...@hotmail.com
- www.thedials.us).
Doug Meis, drummer of The Dials, was a vibrant and wonderful guy who
exuded energy and pure punk rock joy. He was killed in a terrible
automobile accident on Thursday afternoon in Chicago. He will be
missed. The Slats want to extend their deepest condolences to Rebecca
of The Dials who lost her husband, John Glick of The Returnables, in
the accident - as well as the bands close friend Michael Dahlquist of
Silkworm.
Many musical, and non-musical, families were torn apart on Thursday,
and our hearts go out to them. Details on the incident are below.
Comments may be made on the message board at :
Mark/Jon/Brian - The Slats
>From The Chicago Tribune:
Driver charged in crash `wanted to end it all'
Woman faces 3 counts of first-degree murder
By Brian Cox and Lolly Bowean
Chicago Tribune
July 15, 2005, 10:33 PM CDT
Three Chicago musicians who worked regular jobs by day and rocked at
night were killed when a young woman bent on ending her life barreled
into their car on a Skokie street, law enforcement officials said
Friday.
Jeanette Sliwinski, 23, has been charged with three counts of
first-degree murder after telling police investigating Thursday's crash
at Niles Center Road that she had been in a fight with her mother and
"wanted to end it all," authorities said.
Sliwinski, of the 8900 block of Parkside Street, Morton Grove, was
going at least 70 m.p.h. eastbound on Dempster Street and had run three
red lights when she rammed her 2000 Ford Mustang into the car carrying
the three co-workers who were out for lunch, authorities said.
Killed were Michael Dahlquist, 39, of the 4800 block of South Ashland
Avenue; John Glick, 35, of the 2800 block of West Palmer Street; and
Douglas Meis, 29, of the 4500 block of West Lincoln Avenue, all in
Chicago. Condolences buzzed across music-related Web sites as friends
and fans shared the news. The men were in the prime of their lives, and
more concerned about touching people with their art than making hit
records, friends and relatives said.
"They were people who were so smart and brilliant and amazing," said
Rebecca Crawford, Glick's wife. "Everyone feels cheated that they
haven't been able to accomplish what they set out to do."
Dahlquist, who moved to Chicago from Washington state five years ago,
played drums for Silkworm, a band praised by critics for its
independence and eagerness to experiment.
Glick grew up in Boston and moved to Chicago six years ago. He was a
guitarist and singer with the Returnables. Meis played drums with
Glick's wife in a band called The Dials, described by Matt Priest, a
talent buyer, as "loud and noisy but super melodic and super poppy."
"Michael was friendly to an extreme. He was a very outgoing and upbeat
guy," said Tim Midgett, who played bass and guitar with him.
Without Dahlquist, the band is over, he said. "He can't be replaced."
By day, the three worked together at Shure Inc. in Niles, which
manufactures microphones and other audio electronic products, said Paul
Applebaum, company vice president.
The deaths "really devastated a lot of people here," Applebaum said.
"We are trying to make some sense of it ourselves. These people were
highly respected and well-liked around here."
Sliwinski, who is in fair condition at St. Francis Hospital in
Evanston, declined to be interviewed, hospital spokeswoman Christine
Rybicki said. Sliwinski also has been charged with two counts of
aggravated battery, authorities said.
People who answered the door at her Morton Grove home declined to
comment.
Skokie police said Sliwinski was not tested for alcohol or drugs.
Police did not say if she was wearing a seat belt at the time of the
crash.
The three men were stopped at a red light at about 12:20 p.m. when
their Honda Civic was rammed from behind, said Colleen Daly, Cook
County assistant state's attorney.
Daly said Sliwinski made no attempt to stop. Her car pushed the Honda
into the car in front of it, injuring two others, and a fourth vehicle
received minor damage, the prosecutor said.
The Honda and Ford went airborne and flipped over, with one of the
victims being ejected. The brakes in Sliwinski's car were functioning
properly, Daly said.
The Cook County medical examiner's office Friday ruled the deaths
homicides.
"She said she wanted to end it all when she ran into the back of the
car," Daly said.
Cook County Circuit Court Judge Consuela Bedoya ordered that Sliwinski
be held without bond Friday. She is under guard at the hospital.
Prosecutors may seek the death penalty, Daly said.
Cook County court records show Sliwinski pleaded guilty April 5, 1999
to retail theft and was sentenced to community service. On Jan. 21,
2000, she pleaded guilty to consuming alcohol as a minor and paid a
$100 fine, records show.
Applebaum said grief counselors were helping Shure employees Friday.
"Some people who knew them had to leave work," said Applebaum, adding
that customers also were upset and offering sympathy.
"The remarkable thing is how many people said they knew these people
personally," he said.
Glick was a senior marketing specialist and had been with Shure since
June 2001. Dahlquist was a senior technical writer who started with the
company in October 2001. Meis started in December 1998 and was a
customer service specialist.
Crawford said she was still in shock over the deaths.
"The three of them created an enormous amount of laughter and happiness
in other's lives," she said. "They had a certain exuberance about life
that is really hard to come by."