On This Day in 2005, Dave Matthews Band’s Bus Driver Pleads Guilty To Crappy Crime Against the Chicago River

If you’re having a crappy day, just be thankful you weren’t floating under a bridge along the Chicago River when Dave Matthews Band was in town. 

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Back in August of 2004, the jam rock band’s tour bus famously dumped over 800 pounds of human waste from their blackwater tank off of the Kinzie Street Bridge in Chicago. It would have been bad enough if the waste was dumped straight into the river. But to make matters worse, a sightseeing boat happened to be directly under the bridge when the incident occured.

Through the years, the famous dump has been called everything from “Poopgate” to “The Crappening”. Much to Dave Matthews’ chagrin, people keep talking about it years later. Someone even put up a plaque commemorating the wildly irresponsible act on the Kinzie Street Bridge.

Surprisingly, on this day in 2005, the band’s tour bus driver pled guilty to the crime. It would have been easy to point fingers at a number of individuals. For one Stefan Wohl to step forward and take responsibility was a pretty shocking turn of events.

Dave Matthews Band’s Tour Bus Driver Pled Guilty to Dumping 800 Pounds of Human Waste Off the Kinzie Street Bridge

However, nobody else, including Dave Matthews Band, was allegedly on the bus at the time. The vehicle in question was owned by the band’s violinist, Boyd Tinsley. It was driven by Wohl for the tour in question. Wohl alone was the one to make the decision to empty the tank while driving over the Kinzie Street Bridge.

For those who decided to board Chicago’s Little Lady that day, the incident was far from funny. Most of the 120 passengers on board the sightseeing boat were exposed to the contents of the blackwater tank, and some even had to be hospitalized for testing. Children, elderly people, a pregnant woman, and some people with disabilities were on the boat when it took the brunt of the blackwater tank’s contents.

Unfortunately for Wohl, someone clocked the bus’s license plate and sent it to the police. Jerry Fitzpatrick, who also drove for the band, had to deny that he was responsible. Initially, Wohl denied his involvement as well and was supported by Dave Matthews Band.

It eventually became clear that the lie couldn’t be kept up after some security camera footage was released, and Wohl pled guilty to reckless conduct and water pollution. He was sentenced to quite a few hours of community service, probation, and a fine that had to be paid to Friends Of The Chicago River. Dave Matthews Band also donated and paid fines that added up to about $300,000 to the City of Chicago and the State of Illinois. Dave Matthews himself is still apologizing for the incident today.

Photo by Theo Wargo/WireImage

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