Illinois DUI Lawyer Blawg
Illinois law provides for different situations in which a person arrested for Driving Under the Influence (DUI) may be required to obtain a Drug and Alcohol Evaluation Uniform Report. It all begins with some sort of encounter with law enforcement, possibly a traffic violation which, according to Terry v. Ohio 392 US 1, 20 L.Ed. 2d 889 (1968) is a permissible basis for a police officer to come into contact with a member of the public.
Or the driver may be involved in a collision that, even though not the driver’s fault, forms the basis of a police intrusion. Even a burned out turn signal, a DUI roadblock or a random running of a license plate can justify a stop.
Thereafter, the officer may detect signs of possible impairment. These may include an odor of alcohol, slurred speech, bloodshot, watery eyes, confusion about where you have been and where you are going, and difficulty producing your license, registration and insurance cards. Following that, the officer will probably ask you to exit your vehicle so that he can administer standardized field sobriety tests.
The three tests that are typically administered are the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (the HGN is the procedure in which the police move a pencil across your line of vision), the walk-and-turn (walking a straight line) and the one-legged stand, or OLS. Each test is scored for the number of clues (errors) from which the officer makes a subjective conclusion as to whether or not you passed.
The next test will be administered using a Portable Breath Test (PBT) device, as authorized by Illinois law (625 ILCS 5/11-501.5) to determine whether there exists probable cause to arrest for DUI. However the PBT results are not admissible in the DUI prosecution itself as a means of proving your alcohol blood alcohol content.
At this point, the police will decide whether or not to arrest you. If you are arrested, you will be asked to take a “chemical test”, either of your breath or blood. The breath test is administered with a type of machine that the Illinois State Police have allegedly certified for accuracy pursuant to 20 Illinois Administrative Code, Part 1286. The results of this test are admissible at trial to prove your blood alcohol contents. 625 ILCS 5/11-501.2
You may decline to take a test or you may agree to do so. If you decline, or if you test at least .08, your driver’s license will be subject to a suspension.
If you have not had a prior DUI arrest in five years, you are eligible for a Monitoring Device Driving Permit (MDDP). Prior to the MDDP coming into existence, a suspended driver was eligible to request a Judicial Driving Permit (JDP) which required you to obtain a Uniform Report before the judge decided whether to issue the permit. The MDDP, on the other hand, is not discretionary with the court. If you meet the basic qualifications, it is automatic. Not evaluation is necessary.
A Uniform Report is also required if you plead guilty to DUI and are placed on court supervision. And in some counties, a Uniform Report is required with any DUI guilty plea. Finally, if your driver’s license is revoked, you must have a driver’s license hearing with the Secretary of State, who will require you to provide a Uniform Report and an update if the Uniform is more than six months’ old. 92 Illinois Administrative Code, Part 1001