Well it appears that 86 is too old for criminal charges:

An 86-year-old motorist was ticketed Friday for his involvement in an accident that killed a teenage bicyclist from Chicago and injured two schoolmates riding with her, according to the Illinois State Police.

John Hillyard, of downstate Enfield, was ticketed for improper lane usage in the Wednesday crash that killed 17-year-old Faith Dremmer and injured two of her friends, Julia Baird and Kaia Tammen, both 18.

State Police Sgt. Mark Zimmerman said this morning Hillyard was only issued the one ticket and criminal charges would not be filed. […]

Zimmerman said Hillyard told state police he may have fallen asleep at the wheel before the crash occurred but said he wasn’t absolutely certain if that was the case. A relative of Hillyard’s reached by telephone this afternoon said Hillyard and other family members were too devastated by what happened to talk about the crash.

So comforting to know that I can be minding my own business, obeying the law on my bike and someone can fall asleep at the wheel in the middle of the afternoon, cross the center line and seriously injure or kill me and the most they’ll get is a traffic ticket that probably totaled less than $100. As devastated as this man’s family says he is — which I suppose could be taken to mean he might never drive again — it doesn’t appear from the story that the state has done anything to keep this man from getting behind the wheel again.

I realize this is an old man and a tragic accident, but come on. I hope for the sake of Faith Dremmer’s memory that this at least starts a serious conversation about how old is too old to be driving. We at least owe her that.