Patty Renner, Stewardson, Illinois: Driver Pulls Out of Gas Station into Path of Fatal Motorcycle Collision

Pulling onto a rural highway from a roadside gas station takes only a brief second of misjudgment. For Patty Renner on Monday afternoon, that simple turn out of the local Phillips 66 in Stewardson turned a quiet afternoon into a tragic fatality.

Renner was pulling out of the gas station driveway onto Route 32 around 2:45 p.m. She attempted to make a left turn to go north on the main roadway that cuts through town.

At that exact instant, 75-year-old Keith Rentfro was riding his motorcycle south along that same stretch of Route 32. Renner’s car pulled straight out into the southbound lane, leaving the incoming motorcycle no space to avoid a direct crash.

The heavy impact threw Rentfro off his motorcycle onto the highway. Renner managed to avoid any physical injuries in the crash, but the intersection immediately turned into an active emergency scene.

First responders rushed to the stretch of Route 32 near the gas station to provide immediate care. Paramedics worked on Rentfro at the scene before rushing him to the emergency room at HSHS St. Anthony Hospital in Effingham.

Medical staff in the hospital emergency department did everything they could for Rentfro, but his injuries were far too severe. He died at 3:47 p.m., roughly an hour after the initial impact near the gas station lot.

Coroner Kim Rhodes and Deputy Coroner Lauren Heuerman were dispatched to the hospital ER around 4:06 p.m. Their office officially identified Rentfro and initiated the initial medical-legal investigation into his death.

A heavy police presence surrounded the gas station for hours following the crash. Officers from the Stewardson Police Department, Shelby County Sheriff’s Department, and Illinois State Police blocked off the lanes while the State Police Reconstruction Unit gathered data from the road surface.

Pathologists at the McLean County Coroner’s Office in Bloomington will conduct an autopsy on Wednesday morning at 10:30 a.m. Officers from Illinois State Police Troop 7 in Pesotum and county deputies are continuing their investigation into the crash details, and authorities have not yet announced any traffic citations or criminal charges.