In Illinois criminal and DUI trials, the defendant has the right to watch the arrest video presented as evidence in court, and a decision by the defendant not to watch the video must be made based on a clear understanding of that right.
Is it possible to trick a breathalyzer into providing a false breath alcohol concentration (BrAC) reading? Actually, it's not that difficult. You may just need to vary your normal pattern of breathing.
Could what happened to an Ohio man also take place here in the state of Illinois. Recently, a normal Sunday morning for a Blanchester, Ohio resident became a nightmare. Law enforcement officers arrested him because his son skipped church services in order to play with friends. The child's father could be sentenced to six months in jail if he is prosecuted and convicted of his alleged crime.
Persons arrested for driving under the influence (called DUI in Illinois) tend to assume that they will be automatically convicted. In fact, there are several options for dealing with an Illinois DUI that will avoid conviction.
In Illinois law, whether you're facing a DUI, a traffic ticket like Aggravated Speeding or a felony like UUW or Criminal Sexual Assault, there are decisions made all along the process to determine what charges you'll face. Prosecutorial Discretion is about who decides your criminal charges.
Total DUI arrests by the Illinois State Police dropped from 10,734 in 2010 to 5,619 in 2016. Chicago Police DUI arrests went from 3,695 in 2010 down to 2,592 in 2016. Chicago Police criminal arrests for the same years declined form 167,541 in 2010 to a meager 85,493 in 2016. We think this is an enforcement slowdown, not evidence of an improved society - let us know what you think.
What will BACtrack's new Skyn device for the Apple watch and wearable smart devices mean for DUI in Illinois?
Chicago DUI saturation patrols scheduled for the Jefferson Park district this weekend. The so-called "Strike Force" will also be ticketing other violations like speeding.
The state of Illinois is one of 16 states, which uses laws to regulate happy hour promotions in an effort to stop driving under the influence DUI and to promote public safety.
Chicago criminal and DUI lawyer discusses a new law proposed in Illinois decriminalizing possession of marijuana or cannabis, and affecting how DUI drugs can be charged in Illinois.
New Illinois DUI law coming to allow drivers suspended for DUI in Illinois to get a driving permit right away, and that's a very good and just thing.
A Highland Park teen who ran over a family of four with her father’s Lexus, killing a young girl, was found guilty of aggravated driving under the influence (DUI) based on huffing, which causes intoxication.
The Appellate Court of Illinois affirmed the order suppressing evidence in a charge of driving under the influence (DUI), improper lane usage, leaving the scene of an accident, failure to give information or render aid, illegal transportation of alcohol, operating an uninsured motor vehicle, and failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident.
A legislative proposal that would have given individuals the opportunity to legally drive with a highly restricted driver's permit after they had been convicted four times on the charge of driving under the influence (DUI) or alcohol or drugs has been defeated on a vote by the Illinois House of Representatives.
Something you don't see every day. A former resident of the state of Illinois, who has 10 previous convictions for driving under the influence (DUI), has been charged with yet another DUI, this time in Fairbanks, Alaska.
A new U.S. Supreme Court ruling affects Constitutional rights in Illinois and around the country. An anonymous tip can now provide sufficient probable cause to justify a decision by law enforcement officers to stop a vehicle in order to investigate reckless or DUI.
A Jeffersonville, Ind. woman who was sentenced to serve 48 hours in the Clark County Jail, ended up serving 3,696 hours or 154 days. The excuse provided by county officials was that the judge presiding over her case simply forgot to sign the order for her release. A subsequent news report revealed that besides the defendant mentioned above three other people spent months in jail despite being ordered to serve only days or weeks behind bars. Three women and a man, who were participants in the drug court program, reported that they spent months in the county's jail for violations of program rules. The attorneys at Fagan, Fagan & Davis focus on Illinois criminal defense including driving under the influence (DUI) and drug and alcohol related matters throughout Cook County, Lake County and DuPage County. If this individual had been one of our clients, this miscarriage of justice would not have been allowed to continue.
Law enforcement officers need extensive training in how to interaction with persons suffering from a disease or a disability. In the case of a DUI, a diabetic in crisis can mimic signs of impairment from alcohol. A person suffering from deafness or other ear problems may exhibit symptoms an officer can easily misconstrue. Here's an extreme example.
The Christmas and New Year holidays have become associated with stepped up DUI law enforcement efforts. There are other holidays on the horizon such as Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, Labor Day and Thanksgiving later in the year. Illinois police departments increasingly make use of DUI roadblocks or checkpoints.
Chicago DUI Strike Force Patrols planned for this weekend, January 10-12, 2014.
The Illinois State Police (ISP) have announced, in a press release, that they intend to conduct a roadside safety check in Cook County starting at 11 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 3 and concluding at 4 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 4.
The Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Pilot Program Act, a new Illinois law effective Jan. 1, 2014, is a medical marijuana pilot program that makes it legal for people suffering from certain medical conditions to use medical marijuana as a treatment. But the law treats those who qualify very poorly indeed when it comes to an investigation for possible DUI.
A suburban Chicago police chief has announced that his department will be tweeting out the names of persons who have been arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence (DUI). These individuals have been accused of DUI, not convicted, and are presumed to be innocent of any wrongdoing until proven otherwise. They are about to be victimized by the people charged with serving and protecting the public, and that includes the people they arrest. This will encourage vigilantism, and cost people far more than the legal penalties that our legislature has prescribed, circumventing the legal process in Illinois Courts.
Prior to 1933, there was no law in the state of Illinois governing the legal age for alcohol consumption. Males, in 1933, had to be 21 years of age to consume alcoholic beverages and females had to be 18 years-old.
States like Illinois and California are considering legislation that outright prohibits gun ownership or carry permits by those who have been found guilty of DUI. Expect extensive litigation if these moves succeed.
We regularly appear for Illinois Criminal defense, DUI defense and Traffic violations throughout the Chicago area including Cook, Lake, DuPage, Kane and Will county courts, Skokie, Rolling Meadows, Bridgeview, Markham, Maywood, Waukegan, Wheaton, Naperville, Elgin, St. Charles and more.
