Illinois DUI Lawyer Blawg

You may find yourself in a situation in which you no longer live in Illinois and have no need for an Illinois driver's license but have an unresolved DUI driver's license revocation. This can occur in several situations.

You have moved outside the state of Illinois and attempted to obtain a driver's license in your new state. You step up to the counter of your new DMV and are told that Illinois has a "hold" on your right to obtain a driver's license in your new state. You explain that you do not want an Illinois driver's license but the DMV of your new state mentions "PDPS" or National Registry.

Another similar out-of-state scenario arises because you were arrested in another state for DUI at a time you held an Illinois driver's license and/or were an Illinois resident. Despite the fact you were never arrested for DUI in Illinois, a conviction for DUI in the other state will lead to an Illinois driver's license revocation and as a result, the new state's DMV is insisting that you clear up the Illinois revocation.

Finally, you may have never had an Illinois license or been a resident of Illinois but simply received a DUI while passing through the Illinois. If you are convicted of that DUI offense, Illinois will revoke not your driver's license but your privilege to drive in the state of Illinois. This revocation will have to be cleared up before your new state will issue you a driver's license.

Even more shocking, but not at all uncommon, is the circumstance in which you have held a driver's license in another state for many months, sometimes years and even decades. You go to the DMV to renew the license when the time comes (or maybe even replace a misplaced or damaged license card) and are told that an Illinois "hold" will prevent you from driving until the hold is cleared. You are quite surprised that it is just now coming up because you have renewed your license one or more times in the past, no questions asked.           

Continue reading "Illinois driver's license reinstatement using out of state packet" »

The State Journal-Register, the Springfield Illinois daily, reports that a man was arrested for Driving Under the Influence (DUI). The story alleges that the accused drove into a front yard and hit a parked car, after which he left the scene. Police have charged him with aggravated DUI. The article does not lay out the facts that would explain why the DUI was aggravated.

Leaving the scene of a collision involving property damage is a Class-A misdemeanor (625 ILCS 5/11-402) punishable by up to 364 days in the county jail and/or a fine of up to $2,500. In addition, if the damages exceed $1,000.00, the Illinois Secretary of State will suspend the offender's driver's license for a period of one year upon conviction 625 ILCS 5/6-206(a)(21)

On the other hand, if a driver is convicted of leaving the scene of an accident in which someone suffers personal injury or death, even if the injury is only to the driver who fled, that person is guilty of a Class 4 felony in accordance with 625 ILCS 5/11-401 The Secretary of State will revoke the convicted person's driver's license for a period of one year. 625 ILCS 5/6-205(a)(4)

A revocation differs from a suspension in this respect: once a suspension period ends, the Secretary of State would automatically return your driver's license upon payment of the reinstatement fee. If you are revoked, you must have a driver's license hearing with the Secretary of State.

The penalty for leaving the scene is similar to that which a DUI arrest carries. The reason is that it is felt many people flee the scene of an accident because they are attempting to avoid a DUI arrest. Those persons who cause injury and flee should, the thinking goes, explain themselves to the Secretary of State.

Continue reading "Springfield Illinois man faces Aggravated Driving Under the Influence charges" »

Illinois law makes it illegal to operate a boat or other watercraft or a snowmobile while under the influence of alcohol. 625 ILCS 45 /5-16 (Boating Under the Influence (BUI))and 625 ILCS 40/5-7 (Snowmobiling Under the Influence (SUI)) The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) enforces these laws and maintains a record of violations, suspensions and revocations.

If you lose your Illinois driver's license due to a DUI conviction, you must have an administrative hearing with the SOS. The SOS takes the position that all negative consequences that have arisen in your life pertaining to alcohol and other drugs are relevant to determining whether you present a future driving related risk.

In other words, even non-driving related alcohol and drug offenses come into play in determining the risk you represent to public safety if the SOS restores your driving privileges. Legal situations such as drug arrests, disorderly conduct charges while consuming alcohol or other drugs, minor in possession and other under aged drinking tickets, fake IDS and DUI arrests that occur in another state or on a military base are all factors that the SOS will consider.

BUI and SUI offenses also enter the picture, indirectly. Offenses for operating a boat or snowmobile drunk are not entered directly on your driver's license, at least not in Illinois. A DUI disposition includes a conviction, court supervision, a statutory summary or implied consent suspension or a DUI pled down to reckless driving. Therefore, BUI and SUI are not considered a "DUI disposition".

Continue reading "Illinois driver's license hearings and Driving Under the Influence (DUI) in a boat or snowmobile" »

Illinois DUI law provides law enforcement with several different means of demanding blood tests to determine the presence of alcohol or other drugs, including prescription medication, in drivers. These provisions rely upon the concept of 'implied consent". In other words, when you choose to operate a motor vehicle upon the public roadways of Illinois, you have indirectly given your consent to be subjected to these tests if certain conditions exist. 625 ILCS 5/11-500 et. seq.

In any DUI arrest situation, the police have the choice to ask you to submit to a blood test. Because of the time and expense involved, if the arresting authorities believe that the cause of your alleged intoxication is alcohol and if there was no accident requiring immediate medical treatment, most likely they will rely upon a breath, rather than blood, test. The results of breath tests are ordinarily immediately available.

On the other hand, not all DUI charges require proof of actual impairment from alcohol, other drugs or prescription medication, or proof that your blood alcohol level (BAL) exceeds .08. These so-called "per se" violations require the police to show that ANY amount of a banned substance is still in your system, even if the amount detected was not enough to impair your driving ability.

Breath tests will not detect drugs. Urine tests will not detect the very small quantities that police may suspect. Proof normally requires a blood test. Absent an accident, you are entitled to refuse to submit to such tests.

Continue reading "Blood tests and Illinois DUI accidents" »