Marion DUI Lawyers
- Patchett Law Office:
The following is to provide you with procedures and what may be expected through the DUI process in Illinois. These guidelines serve only as a general outline of the DUI process.
Section 11-501 of the Vehicle Code provides for four separate ways in which a person may be charged with driving or being in actual physical control of a motor vehicle while under the influence, namely:
1. While having a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 of more
2. While under the influence of alcohol
3. While under the influence of a drug or drugs
4. While under the combined influence of aalcohol and any other drug.
A person convicted of driving under the influence will have there driver's license revoked for a minimum of one year. Punishment upon conviction may range from Court Supervision, to imprisonment of up to 364 days, a fine of up to $2,500.00 or to one to three years in the penitentiary. Court Supervision is a possible disposition for the offender, but the court is under no obligation to grant supervision to a first offender.
License Suspension
Suspension is the temporary withdrawal by formal action of the Secretary of State of a person's license or privileges to operate a motor vehicle on the highways for a period specifically designated by the Secretary of State.
Drivers who submit to tests which show an alcohol concentration of 0.08 or more will face possible license suspension, but the period of suspension is only three months. If you did not submit to the test, your license will be suspended for a minimum of six months for refusal.
Petition to Rescind Statutory Suspension
If you refused to submit to a test or if you failed the test with a result showing an alcohol concentration of 0.08 or more, your license will be suspended on the 46th day following such refusal of test (this is a summary suspension or implied consent law). If we want a hearing to rescind (reverse) this suspension, we must file a Petition to Rescind Statutory Suspension.
This Petition should be filed as soon as possible to get the hearing set before your suspension begins. If the Court does not set the hearing within 30 days after filiing, the petition may be granted and your suspension will be rescinded (in other words, your license will not be suspended).
Reinstatement Fee
If your license is suspended, the Secretary of State will send you a notice stating such suspension. This notice will indicate the beginning and end of the suspension and whether or not you are a first offender.
In order to recieve a valid license after the suspension, you must pay a reinstatement fee in the amount of $60.00 or more, depending on your record. This must be by check or money order payable to the Secretary of State. Your license will not be valid until this reinstatement fee is paid. Until the fee is paid and processed, your license will continue to be "suspended"
A copy of a suspension notice is attached. You should provide your attorney with a copy of your notice when received.
License Revocation
Revocation is termination by formal action of the Secretary of a person's license or privileges to operate a motor vehicle on the highways.
Forms
You may be asked to complete and/or sign the following forms at your attorney's office:
* Traffic Data Sheet
* Questionnaiire for judicial Driving Permit
* Petition to Rescind Statutory Suspension
* Attorney Employment Contract
Reasonable Doubt
It is essential to question you concerning possible physical disabilities, diseases, ailments, injuries, and ingestion of drugs and medicines. Any of these may have caused you to exhibit the outward characteristics of intoxication. At the trial, if this type of evidence is introduced during the defense, it may help to create a resonable doubt.
Alcohol Evalution
The Court cannot dispose of a DUI charge or grant a Judicial Driving Permit without an evalution by an alcohol program . You will be provided with a list of the local approved alcohol evaluation program. You need to contact one of the providers and make arrangements for this alcohol evaluation as soon as possible. The stated purpose of an alcohol evaluation is:
1. To obtain signigicant and relevant information is order to determine the nature and extent of the use of alcohol or other drugs.
2. To Select an appropriate recommendation for the DUI defendant to Circuit Court or the use of alcohol or other drugs
3. To identify a DUI defendant's level of risk to public safety for the Circuit Court or the Office of the Secretary of State.
An alcohol evaluation form is attached for your inspection. This evalution may or may not contain all of the questions that the alcohol provider may ask.
Petition for judicial Driving Permit
A judicial Driving Permit is a permit issued by the Secretary of State pursuant to the Court's order granting limited driving privileges to first-time offenders who have had their full driving privileges suspended under the statutory provisions relating to statutory suspension.
If you are determined by your attorney to be possibly eligible for a Judicial Drving Permit (JDP), you will be asked to fill out the questionnaire. The Judicial Driving Permit will not reinstate full driving privileges. Relief is available only to relieve hardships arising from a need to drive for employment purposes, medical purposes, or alcohol or other drug treatment. The Court may not grant a JDP for any other reason.
After you out the questionnaire, we will draft the actual Petition for your signature. However, this cannot be filed until you obtain a letter for your employer stating your work hours and an alcohol evaluation. Attached is a form letter to be used as a guide for your employer to compose the letter.
Discovery
The pretrail devices that can be used by one party to obtain facts and information about the case from the other party in order to assist the party's preparation for trail is "Discovery".
Motion
An application or pleading made to a court or judge for purpose of obtaining a rule or order directing some act to be done in favor of the applicant is a "motion".
First Appearence
The date given at the bottom of the ticket is the "First Appearance" date. The accused must appear in person on this day and time.
At the First Appearance, the judge will advise the accused of the charges against him and of his rights. The judge will also ask the accused if he wishes to employ private counsel of if he seeks the public Defender as his attorney. If the accused seeks the Public Defender, the judge will ask a series of questions to see if he qualifies financially.
Arraignment
"Arraignment" is when the accused is brought before the court to plead to the criminal charge in the indictment or information (ticket). The charge is read to him and he is asked to plead "guilty" or "not guilty".
Pretrial Hearing
At any time after the issuance of a ticket, the court may order a "Pretrial Hearing" to consider such matters as will promote a fair and expeditious trail. If a plea is negotiated, it will often be done at the Pretrail Hearing.
Plea Bargaining or Plea Negotiation
The process whereby the accused and the State's Attorney in a criminal case work out a mutually satisfactory disposition of the case subject to court approval. It usually involves the defendant's pleading guilty to a leser offense or to only one or some of the counts of multi-count charges (tickets) in return for a lighter sentence than that possible for the graver charge.
Bench Trail
The trail held before the judge sitting without a jury, is a "Bench Trail".
Jury Trail
Trail of matter of cause before jury as opposed to trail before judge, is a "Jury Trial"
Sentencing Hearing
Hearing at which judgment (sentence) is formally pronounced by the judge upon the defendant, after his conviction in a criminal prosecution, imposing the punishment to be inflicted, is a "Sentencing Hearing"
Fines
When a case is tried and the defendant convicted, the penalty may be by way of fine rather than a jail sentence. Bear in mind that judges usually will allow a reasonable time for you to pay the fine if you are unable to pay it immediately.
Motion for Continuance
A "Motion for Continuance" may be filed by the State or you attorney moving the court to adjourn or postpone the hearing, trail, or other proceedding to a later day or the court to adjourn or postpone the hearing, trail, or other proceeding to a later day or time.
First Offender Status
If you receive court Supervision on the DUI, it will go on your record as a court supervision. You will never be able to get court supervision on a DUI in Illinois again, You will not receive a conviction however. What is confusing is that after 5 years, you will again be a first offender for the purposes of the length of the suspension as a result of a DUI arrest. You still will not be eligible for supervision however. If your prior conviction is more than 5 years ago, then the period of your suspension will be less and the possible penalties less. If you blow above a 0.16 there will be increased penalties regardless of whether or not you get supervision on a DUI.
Insurance
Insurance companies do not get routinely advised of DUI arrests or convictions. They may find out through a variety of means, including the newspaper. If they find out about your DUI arrest your rates will often go up regardless of whether or not you were convicted or received court supervision. One method by which insurance companies find out about a DUI arrest and/or supervision is if you change insurance companies and they run your record. If you have insurance and get a DUI, I do not recommend you canging it for a period of three years from the time your case is over.
Supervision
A judge may grant you "Court Supervision" as a method of disposing of the case. The court is under no obligation to grant supervision to a first offender. The judge may order supervision when the court is of the opinion that:
1.
The offender is not likely to commit further crimes;
2.
The defendant and the public would be best served if the defendant were not to receive a criminal record; and
3.
In the best interests of justice, an order or Court Suspervision is more appropriate than a sentence otherwise permitted under Unified Code of Corrections.
The status of your case under an order of supervision is in the nature of a continuance, until the conclusion of the period of supervision. The court will discharge the defendant and enter a judgment dismissing the charges, If the defendant has successfully complied with the conditions of supervision.
How drunk or high does someone have to be before he can be convicted of driving under the influence?
In most states, it's illegal to drive a car
while "impaired" by the effects of alcohol or drugs (including
prescription drugs). This means that there must be enough alcohol or
drugs in the driver's body to prevent him from thinking clearly or
driving safely. Many people reach this level well before they'd be
considered "drunk" or "stoned."
How can the police find out whether a driver is under the influence?
Police typically use three methods of determining whether a driver has had too much to be driving:
- Observation. A police
officer will pull you over if he notices that you are driving
erratically -- swerving, speeding, failing to stop or even driving too
slowly. Of course, you may have a good explanation for your driving
(tiredness, for example), but an officer is unlikely to buy your story
if he smells alcohol on your breath or notices slurred words or
unsteady movements.
- Sobriety tests.
If an officer suspects that you are under the influence, he will
probably ask you to get out of the car and perform a series of balance
and speech tests, such as standing on one leg, walking a straight line
heel-to-toe or reciting a line of letters or numbers. The officer will
look closely at your eyes, checking for pupil enlargement or
constriction, which can be evidence of intoxication. If you fail these
tests, the officer may arrest you or ask you to take a chemical test.
- Blood-alcohol level.
The amount of alcohol in your body is understood by measuring the
amount of alcohol in your blood. This measurement can be taken
directly, by drawing a sample of your blood, or it can be calculated by
applying a mathematical formula to the amount of alcohol in your breath
or urine. Some states give you a choice of whether to take a breath,
blood or urine test -- others do not. If you test at or above the level
of intoxication for your state (.08 to .10 % blood-alcohol
concentration, depending on the state), you are presumed to be driving
under the influence unless you can convince a judge or jury that your
judgment was not impaired and you were not driving dangerously. Defense
attorneys often question the validity of the conversion formula when
driver's alcohol levels are based on breath or urine tests.
Do I have to take a blood, breath or urine test if asked to do so by the police?
No, but it may be in your best interests to
take the test. Many states will automatically suspend your license for
a year if you refuse to take a chemical test. And if your drunk driving
case goes to trial, the prosecutor can tell the jury that you wouldn't
take the test, which may lead the jury members to conclude that you
refused because you were, in fact, drunk or stoned.
Copyright 2005 Nolo
- Brian Lewis: You should consult an attorney for individual advice regarding your own situation.
Return to Illinois DUI Lawyers
|