DUI Category Archives — Page 34 of 41 — Illinois DUI Lawyer Blawg Published by Springfield, Illinois DUI/DWI Attorney

Published on: November 4, 2011

Football player receives supervision in Champaign County DUI

The University of Illinois is the flagship university in Illinois. The main campus is located in the twin cities of Urbana-Champaign, Champaign County. There are branch campuses in other cities, including Springfield, Illinois.

As a Big Ten university, the U of I has a football program. Being a university, it has young people. Young people drink, some of them drive. And some of them are charged with Driving Under the Influence (DUI).

On July 30, 2011, one Ashante Williams, a U of I football player, was arrested for DUI in Urbana. It was reported that Williams was stopped at about 1:30 AM for improper lane usage and speeding. Williams did submit to a breath test, with a resulting blood alcohol level of .177. The legal blood alcohol level in Illinois is .08. 625 ILCS 5/11-501(a)(1).

When a person who is arrested for DUI registers a blood alcohol level of .08 or higher, he has committed a “per se” violation of the DUI laws. This is a Latin term that essential translates into “automatic”.

The state does not have to prove that the driver was under the influence of alcohol (“drunk”) but simply that he was operating a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol content of .08 or higher. The Illinois Supreme Court has upheld the constitutionality of the “per se” law. People v. Ziltz 98 Ill.2d 38, 455 N.E.2d 70 (1983)

Williams was granted court supervision for one year. Supervision is a sentence that prevents Williams from having his driver’s license revoked by the Secretary of State, the agency in Illinois that maintains driving records.

The judge imposed certain conditions on Williams (fines, alcohol classes, Victim Impact Panel sponsored by MADD), including that he not receive another traffic violation during the year his supervision is in effect. If Williams complies with all of the supervision requirements, although he pled guilty to DUI, he will not have a conviction entered on his record and the charges will be dismissed. 730 ILCS 5/5-6-3.1(e)

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Published on: October 28, 2011

Mike Ditka’s son’s Lake County Illinois DUI arrest

By Theodore Harvatin

One of Mike Ditka’s sons, Mark Ditka, was arrested for DUI in Lake County Illinois. This follows closely on the heels of his brother Michael’s DUI arrest last month, his third. Some may recall their father Mike Ditka, former NFL football player, coach and television announcer, was arrested for DUI a few years ago, in the northern part of Illinois.

Michael has two previous DUI violations. Therefore, Illinois prosecutors have charged him with felony DUI in accordance with 625 ILCS 5/11-501 (d). Although his first offense may have resulted in court supervision, which is not a conviction, Michael faces a felony offense due to appellate court case law holding that any prior “violation”, including supervision, counts in determining whether there is a third violation. People v. Bloomberg, 378 Ill. App. 3d 686, 881 N.E.2d 615, 317 Ill. Dec. 447, (Ill. App. Ct. 2008)

Both Michael and Mark have pleaded not guilty. Since DUI is a criminal offense, the state has the burden of proving them guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. People v. Shaffer, 134 Ill. App. 3d 548, 89 Ill. Dec. 709, 481 N.E.2d 61 (1 Dist. 1985)

On the other hand, Mark is eligible to receive court supervision. Court supervision is not a conviction. This is important because the Illinois Secretary of State will not revoke your license if you are not convicted of DUI. Therefore, you will not be required to attend a driver’s license hearing.

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Published on: October 21, 2011

Miranda rights in Illinois DUI arrests

By Theodore Harvatin

Under the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, the state cannot force you to give evidence against yourself (you have “the right to remain silent”; you can “take the Fifth”). Under the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution, you have the right to a lawyer when you are charged with a crime.

A famous case, Miranda v. Arizona 384 U.S. 436 (1966), held that the police must inform you of the right to remain silent, that anything you say may be used against you, that you have the right to consult with attorney before any police questioning and that a lawyer will be appointed if you are unable to afford one. This is often referred to as “reading me my rights”.

The United States Supreme Court reasoned that if someone were not aware of his rights, then having those rights would not be of any use to them. Therefore, Miranda determined that in the proper circumstances, the police are required to inform you of your rights.

In a case known as Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643 (1961), the court had, before the Miranda case, held that if the police violate your constitutional rights, the appropriate remedy is to exclude the evidence that the police gathered illegally. This is knows as the “exclusionary rule”.

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Published on: October 12, 2011

Father charged in Springfield due to daughter’s DUI death

By Theodore Harvatin

The Sangamon County State’s Attorney in Springfield Illinois charged a man with felony Driving Under the Influence (DUI). The charges stem from the death of the man’s seven-year-old daughter following a crash in a country road near Springfield.

The driver, with his daughter properly placed in a child restraint seat, drove off the roadway, down an embankment and across a creek bed, then crashed into a ditch. The front of the vehicle suffered extensive damage. The allegation is that the driver committed a violation of the Illinois DUI law 625 ILCS 5/11-501
Court records show that the driver had two previous Springfield DUI arrests. The first charge resulted in the driver being sentenced to court supervision. Court supervision prevented a conviction which would have been entered in accordance with 625 ILCS 5/6-205(a)(2) and created the need for a driver’s license hearing.

The second DUI charge was dismissed, a case that demonstrates there are two elements to a DUI charge. The first element is being under the influence.

In addition, to prove DUI, the police must show that you were in actual, physical control of the vehicle while under the influence. However, they are not required to show that you were actually driving, but merely that you either had been driving or were about to drive. Consequently, you can be guilty of DUI even if you are pulled over and “sleeping it off”. People v. Davis, 205 Ill. App. 3d 431, 150 Ill. Dec. 349, 562 N.E.2d 1152 (1 Dist. 1990)

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Published on: October 7, 2011

DuPage County political operative pleads guilty to DUI

By Theodore Harvatin

DuPage County is located in Wheaton, Illinois, a Chicago suburb known for being tough on Driving Under the Influence (DUI) offenders. Many politicians from that area have used this attitude to climb the political and judicial ladder.

According to news reports, on August 28, 2011, the defendant in this case was initially stopped for improper lane usage (weaving). 625 ILCS 5/11-709 Weaving is the most common reason that police provide for initiating an investigative stop.

Appeals courts for Wheaton DUI cases had initially held that police may initiate a stop of a driving who is weaving within his own lane, even though that is not illegal. People v. Manders, 317 Ill. App. 3d 337 (2d Dist. 2000) This case was later overruled in People v. Greco, 336 Ill. App 3d 253 (2d Dist. 2003)

The defendant was a first time DUI offender who was charged with a Class-A misdemeanor. A Class-A misdemeanor is punishable by a fine of up to $2,500.00 and/or incarceration in the county jail for up to 364 days. 730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-5.5
Because this was his first DUI charge, the accused was eligible to request court supervision and in fact received it. This brings with it several consequences.

The first is that when one is sentenced to court supervision, the judge cannot order jail time. However, a DUI supervision can never be expunged from your record. 730 ILCS 5/5-6-3.1(f).

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Published on: September 30, 2011

Confiscation and sale of motor vehicle due to MDDP violations

By Theodore Harvatin

The law in the state of Illinois contains specific provisions for what happens to you if you are arrested for Driving Under the Influence (DUI). You will face various criminal consequences, such as fine and jail, as provided in 625 ILCS 5/11-501 et. seq. Furthermore, there will be various driver’s license consequences.

If you are convicted of the DUI, your driver’s license will be revoked for 1, 5 or 10 years, depending upon how many previous DUI convictions you have on your record. And if this represents your fourth or more conviction after January 1, 1999, your driver’s license and driving privileges in Illinois will be subject to a lifetime revocation 625 ILCS 5/6-208. In order to be allowed to drive again following an Illinois driver’s license revocation, you must have a hearing through the Illinois Secretary of State.

The other aspect of your DUI arrest involves an automatic suspension of your driver’s license, which will typically take effect on the 46th day following your DUI arrest. This is known as a “statutory summary suspension” or SSS. An SSS goes away without a hearing after the suspension period ends.

If you agree to submit to testing to determine your blood alcohol level and register .08 or higher, your driver’s license will be suspended for 6 months if you have not had a DUI arrest in the previous 5 years (known as a “first offender”) The first offender suspension will be 1 year if you decide not to submit to testing. 625 ILCS 5.6-208.1
Someone who has had a DUI arrest in the previous 5 years is a non first offender. A non first offender who registers .08 or higher will be suspended for 1 year, while one who refuses faces a 3 year suspension. A non first offender is not entitled to drive for any reason during the entire suspension period. 625 ILCS 5/6-208.1 (g)

If you are first offender, you cannot drive at all during the first 30 days of a statutory summary suspension. Thereafter, you are entitled to a Monitoring Device Driving Permit (MDDP) unless:

1. Your driver’s license is otherwise invalid (revoked, suspended, expired).
2. You were charged with a DUI that resulted in death or great bodily harm.
3. You have a previous conviction for reckless homicide.
4. You are less than 18 years of age. 625 ILCS 5/6-206.1(a)(1)- (a)(4)

In order to receive an MDDP, you must agree to install a Breath Alcohol Interlock Ignition Device (BAIID) in all motor vehicles that you operate during the SSS period. BAIID is a machine that ties into your vehicle’s ignition system and detects the alcohol content of your breath when you blow into a tube, a step that is necessary for your vehicle to start.

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Published on: September 23, 2011

City of Naperville pays man $10,000 for wrongful DUI arrest

By Theodore Harvatin

The City of Naperville, Illinois, located in both DuPage and Will counties, has agreed to pay a man $10,000.00 for wrongfully arresting him, and then informing the newspaper about his arrest. The victim was arrested for Driving Under the Influence (DUI) despite registering 0.00 on a breath test.

The Fourth Amendment to the Unites States Constitution requires the police to have “probable cause” before they may arrest someone. In Terry v. Ohio 392 US 1 (1968), the Untied States Supreme Court was asked to decide whether a police encounter with a citizen in public required probable cause.

The Supreme Court held that a brief, limited in scope investigatory stop does not implicate the Fourth Amendment and therefore probable cause need not be present to render a public police encounter with citizens constitutionally valid. To make an initial stop of a citizen, police are only required to have a reasonable suspicion that a crime has been, or is about to be, committed. A mere “hunch” of illegal activity is not enough.

In the context of a DUI arrest the normal course of events is for the police to notice a traffic violation, which under Terry is a sufficient basis to initiate a stop. At that point, the police may briefly investigate. You may end up with a simple traffic ticket if there is nothing amiss.

The trouble starts if there are signs of alcohol or drug use, odors, bloodshot eyes, slurred speech, difficulty locating your license. Furthering the investigation, based upon these activities, turns the stop into a seizure (arrest) for which the police must establish probable cause.

In the Naperville case, the police violated the Constitution. When the driver registered .00 on the breath test, the DUI investigation should have ended.

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Published on: September 16, 2011

Illinois Secretary of State prepares emergency rule for driver’s license revocation cases

By Theodore Harvatin

When you are arrested for a Driving Under the Influence (DUI) charge in Illinois, you are dealing with two separate but related issues. One issue involves only your driver’s license. The other involves the criminal aspect of the case, the DUI arrest and the possible consequences involving jail, fines, probation etc.

At the time of a DUI arrest, the police will almost always ask you to submit to some sort of testing (blood, breath or urine). The purpose of the test is to determine if you have a certain level of alcohol in your system (in Illinois, the legal limit is .08) or any amount of illegal drugs. 625 ILCS 5/11-501.1
It is your decision whether to agree to testing. If the tests show something illegal, your driver’s license is subject to a suspension for 6 months if you have not had a DUI in the previous 5 years or 12 months if you have. 625 ILCS 5/6-208.1
These are “first offender” suspensions. That can be confusing because this may not be your first DUI offense. However, if the last one was more than 5 years ago, you are considered a first offender at least for the purpose of this suspension.

You may refuse the tests. If you do and this is you have had a DUI offense in the past 5 years, your driver’s license is subject to a suspension for one year. If you refuse under those circumstances, you will be suspended for 3 years. 625 ILCS 5/6-208.1 Persons in this situation are non first offenders.

All of the above suspensions are known as statutory summary suspensions (SSS). This is a legal term that means the suspension is basically automatic. However, because it is a suspension, it ends automatically at the designated time (6, 12 or 36 months).

The primary difference between a first offender and non first offender is that a non first offender cannot seek any type of permission to drive, not even for work. All the time on the suspension is known as “hard time”, meaning no driving relief is available.

In contrast, during the SSS, a first offender is eligible for a special license knows as a Monitoring Device Driving Permit (MDDP) During all but the first 30 days of an SSS, the first offender can, with a few exceptions, drive anywhere, for any reason.

Once an SSS ends, you are free to drive without the BAIID provided your license is otherwise valid. Assume that you are convicted of the DUI, your license will be revoked and you must have a hearing with the Secretary of State.

One type of license you may request at a Secretary of State hearing (formal or informal) is known as a Restricted Driving Permit (RDP). Unlike an MDDP, an RDP is not automatic and involves a very intense driver’s license hearing process.

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Published on: September 9, 2011

The effect of a foreign-state DUI on Illinois driving privileges

By Theodore Harvatin

If you hold an Illinois driver’s license and receive a Driving Under the Influence (DUI) in another state, Illinois will proceed as follows: If at the time of the arrest, you refuse chemical testing, the SOS will enter a suspension against your Illinois driver’s license and driving privileges for the same period of time as though you had refused testing in Illinois 625 ILCS 5/6-203.1
A DUI suspension is a temporary license sanction imposed for a definite period of time. Once that time elapses, you automatically get your license back upon payment of the appropriate fee, provided driving privileges are not invalid for some other reason. 625 ILCS 5/1-204
One of the things that will invalidate your license and take away the right to automatic restoration is a revocation. 625 ILCS 5/6-208 A revocation is the withdrawal of driving privileges for a period of 1, 5 or 10 years following a conviction.

At the end of that period, restoration of your driving privileges is not automatic. Rather, it is contingent upon a successful hearing before the Illinois Secretary of State.

The Secretary of State will not suspend your Illinois license if you submit to a breath test during a DUI arrest in another state. However, if you are convicted of the out-of-state DUI, your driver’s license will be revoked. 625 ILCS 5/6-206(a)(6)

Other than determining whether the lifetime driving ban applies (discussed below), the SOS, in determining the length of a revocation, takes into account a DUI conviction from another state only if the rendering state directly reports the conviction to Illinois in compliance with the Interstate Drivers License Compact. DUI convictions that Illinois discovers only through a search of the National Registry/PDPS do not become part of the revocation equation.

If you have no previous DUI revocations that appear on your Illinois driving record, the revocation must be for one year. 625 ILCS 5/6-208(b)(1) Putting aside any credits that may apply, after a year, you may request full restoration of your driving privileges provided that the implied consent suspension has run its course.

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Published on: September 2, 2011

Illinois DUI law enhancements for driving suspended or revoked

By Theodore Harvatin

When you have an Illinois DUI (Driving Under Influence), you face two different possible consequences, a suspension of your driver’s license, as well as fines, jail time and a revocation of your driver’s license.

The driver’s license suspension occurs because you either took a breath or blood test and registered .08 or higher, or you declined to submit to such testing upon request. In the first case, your driver’s license would be suspended for 6 months if you have not had a previous DUI arrest for the last 5 years and 12 months if you have had an arrest within the past 5 years.

If you did not agree to testing, your license would be suspended for 1 year if you have not had a DUI in the last 5 years. If you have had a DUI in the previous 5 years, you will suffer a suspension of 3 years. All the rules for breath test suspensions are in 625 ILCS 5/6-208.1
A DUI-related suspension (at times referred to as an “implied consent suspension”) is a temporary license sanction imposed for a definite period of time. Once that time elapses, you are automatically free to drive upon payment of the appropriate fee, provided driving privileges are not invalid for some other reason. 625 ILCS 5/1-204
The other challenge you face relates to the criminal charges associated with the DUI arrest. Here, you can be required to pay fines and or serve jail time. In addition, with a conviction, your driver’s license will be revoked. 625 ILCS 5/6-205(a)(2)

A DUI-related revocation is the withdrawal of driving privileges for a period of 1, 5 or 10 years following a conviction. 625 ILCS 5/1-176 At the end of that period, restoration of an offender’s driving privileges is not automatic. Rather, it is contingent upon a successful hearing with the Illinois Secretary of State, Illinois’ licensing authority. 625 ILCS 5/2-118; 5/6-208
You be have heard about people who are arrested for DUI and driving on a suspended or revoked license. The suspension occurs 46 days after the police serve you with notice of a statutory summary suspension.

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