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Recent Blog Posts
Warrenville Man Gets Six Years Following Fatal DUI Crash
A fatal drunk driving accident in Illinois has led to a six-year prison sentence for a man from Warrenville. This case is a prime example of how drunk driving crashes involving serious injuries or death can result in severe consequences. As such, it is crucial that the accused seek counsel from a DuPage DUI attorney. This can ensure the defendants rights are protected, and may even result in a decreased sentence or a dismissal of all charges.
About the Accident
According to authorities, the Warrenville man lost control of his vehicle and swerved off the road into a bank of trees on the night of April 25th, 2013. His passenger suffered a critical injury to the head, as well as other injuries, and later passed away in the hospital. Another woman, also from Warrenville, was also fatally injured in the crash.
DUI Charges Do Not Have to Result in a Suspended License
In Illinois, drivers arrested on DUI charges face an automatic suspension on their license. Otherwise known as a statutory summary suspension, this remains in effect until the suspension period has ended (one year for a first-offense), until the driver obtains driving relief through a Monitoring Device Driving Permit (MDDP), or unless the charges are mitigated or dismissed. Ideally, the final option is the one you should pursue. The following covers the why and how of fighting a DUI charge, and explains where you can find experienced assistance.
Taking a Look at the Bigger Picture
If you know you were driving intoxicated - perhaps because of a temporary lapse in judgement or because you suffer from a chronic illness (i.e. alcoholism) that makes it difficult for you to make sound decisions while intoxicated - you may be tempted to just live with the consequences of your charges. After all, it does seem like the responsible thing to do. Unfortunately, when you look at it this way, you may not be looking at the bigger picture.
Social Media Activity During a Crime Can Be Used Against You
In many ways, social media has been a positive step forward for mankind. It has given people the ability to connect and converse with others all around the world and brought families and friends closer. There is a drawback, however. Law enforcement has taken to social media platforms to find, charge, and even convict alleged suspects. Learn what you need to know about how your social media activity could negatively affect your life, and how you can protect your rights if you are currently facing criminal charges for your behavior on social media.
Drunk Driving and Social Media
While most people use social media to share their evening out with friends, a day at the beach, or a recent engagement, others have used it to boast about driving while under the influence. Unfortunately, many of them have been arrested because of that over-sharing of information. Even worse, their social media boast is often used as evidence against them.
Illinois Law Enforcement Planning a “Final Push” for Road Safety Over New Year Holiday
This year is coming to a close, and another one will soon begin. As per the annual tradition, many will be ringing in this new year with their friends, family, coworkers, and acquaintances at parties, events, and get-togethers. Knowing this - and the propensity for people drink at these gatherings - Illinois law enforcement is planning to make a “final push” for road safety over the New Year. Learn what you need to know about DUI checkpoints, DUI testing, and your right to quality legal defense with help from the following information.
DUI Checkpoints This New Year’s
According to the Illinois Department of Transportation and Illinois State Police, there will be more than 200 law enforcement agencies across the state engaged in this final push for road safety. They will be running seat belt checks, DUI checks, and setting up DUI checkpoints. That means almost any driver - intoxicated or not - could be at risk for a traffic stop. If suspected of a DUI, these extra stops could also place numerous people in jail over the holiday season - some of which may not have even been intoxicated at the time of their stop.
DUI Involving the Death of a Passenger Can Result in Felony Charges
Typically, the people that are with us when we are out on the town, visiting family, or running errands are close to us. If these same people happen to be in a vehicle during a crash, their lives are at risk. Should that risk become a reality, it can devastate the one driving. This is especially true when alcohol is involved. Guilt, grief, and loss in such situations can be overwhelming. Yet these are not the only consequences of a DUI crash.
Loved ones of the fatally wounded victim may blame the driver. Even the law may hold them responsible for the victim’s death. In fact, in some cases, it could result in a felony charge. If you or someone you love is facing such a tragedy, the following information can help you move forward and may assist you in putting your life back together.
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Driving on a Suspended License in Illinois – Understanding the Potential Consequences
Driving on a suspended license is a punishable offense in the state of Illinois. Unfortunately, determining the severity of that punishment is not always a straightforward process. There may be extenuating circumstances that may have led to the suspension that can work as aggravating factors. Further, if someone is injured or killed by someone driving on a suspended license, the consequences could change. Learn what you need to know about the potential consequences of driving on a suspended license in Illinois, and how you may be able to avoid them.
Minimum Consequences for Driving on a Suspended License
In the state of Illinois, driving on a suspended license is considered, at minimum, a Class A misdemeanor offense. This is the most serious form of misdemeanor, and it can lead to incarceration of up to one year. Convicted offenders may also face monetary fines, a longer suspension period, community service, extra points added to their record, and other possible consequences. Keep in mind, however, this is just the minimum consequence. Any aggravating factors can increase your penalties.
DUI Consequences for Underage Illinois Drivers
Drinking and driving can have serious consequences for any driver, but those under the age of 21 have the additional burden of a zero tolerance law. Underage drivers also have slightly different (and more severe) penalties than adults if they are caught driving while intoxicated. The following explains the potential consequences of an underage DUI. It also provides some valuable information on how they might be avoided, should an arrest occur.
What is the Zero Tolerance Law?
For non-commercial drivers over the age of 21, the legal limit of intoxication is a BAC of 0.08 or higher. Drivers under the age of 21 are held to a much higher standard because they are not of legal age to drink. This standard, which is known as the zero tolerance law, states that they can be penalized with a DUI if they have any trace of alcohol in their system. In other words, they cannot surpass a 0.00 BAC.
Understanding the Consequences of Child Pornography Charges in Illinois
Sex crimes, in general, are severely punished in the state of Illinois. However, those that pertain to children often receive the heaviest of consequences. This includes (but is not limited to) the possession, distribution, and production of child pornography. Of course, not all cases are as clear-cut as they seem. So, if you or someone you love is up against child pornography charges, learn the consequences, along with what you may be able to do to protect yourself from them.
What Constitutes Child Pornography?
The term child pornography is a broad one, covering all types of media that depict a child (anyone under the age of 18) or disabled person engaging in a sexual act or a simulated sexual activity, including any acts involving penetration, oral sex, masturbation, sexual touching or fondling, and/or urination or excretion of a sexual nature. Owning, distributing, purchasing, possessing, creating, sharing, or selling any such content is illegal in the state of Illinois. So is the act of coercing, soliciting, persuading, enticing, or forcing a child or severely intellectually disabled person to create any such content.
Impending Holiday Season Means DUI Checkpoints – What You Should Know
The holidays are just around the corner. There will be turkey and stuffing, family and friends, spiked eggnog and wine. To keep everyone safe, there will also be DUI checkpoints. Able to put you or someone you love in jail when you should be spending time together, these calculated stops to check for intoxicated drivers are the thorn of the holiday season. The following information can help you avoid this frightening and unfortunate fate this year.
Are DUI Checkpoints Constitutional?
One of the most common questions asked about DUI checkpoints is whether they are considered Constitutional or not. After all, at first glance, it appears that they directly violate the Fourth Amendment, which protects citizens from unreasonable searches and seizures. However, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled otherwise. DUI checkpoint stops remain Constitutional if they are conducted legally and not done arbitrarily, or for purposes other than those pertaining to government (i.e. keeping the roads safe). It is also important to note that they may not violate any other rights of citizens.
What the State Does Not Want You to Know About Sobriety Testing
When you are arrested on a DUI (driving under the influence), your license is automatically suspended unless you choose to fight back. Would you really fight, though, if you know that you did drink, got behind the wheel, and tests showed you to be over the legal limit? Maybe not. In fact, many drivers in the same situation simply accept their “punishment.” Yet some of these drivers may not have ever been over the legal limit. The test may have simply been inaccurate. Sounds crazy, right? It is actually more common that you might think.
Field Sobriety Tests
Field sobriety tests have long been the standard test for establishing reasonable suspicion of intoxication while driving. What officers will not tell you is that this test is not easy to complete, even when you are sober. In fact, a couple of years ago, NBC asked some people walking around the mall to do the field sobriety test. All of them failed in one area or another. Some were just not very balanced people. Others were just too tired to focus enough mental energy on the verbal aspects of the test. Add in nervousness and a late-night stop into the mix, it is no wonder so many people fail this test.
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