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The answer depends on your specific circumstances.

Did your driving show impairment?  Did you behave in a calm and controlled manner with police?  Were you stumbling to get out of the car?  Is your voice slurred on the evidence video?

On or about your first court date, your attorney will request any evidence that the state may have on you.  The evidence will likely include a video of your arrest.  The video should show what happened during the police stop and may even show your driving.  After viewing the video, your attorney can better assess if the state will be able to prove all the elements of the DUI beyond a reasonable doubt.  If not, you may want to take your case to trial.

Bear in mind  if the police later obtain a blood or breath test showing you were above the .08 limit, the lack of field sobriety tests might not matter. However, an attorney can also evaluate whether police had probable cause to stop or arrest you.  If not, the attorney can bring a motion to suppress the evidence from your stop, which, under limited circumstances, may result in the judge dismissing your case.

If you have questions about this or another related Illinois criminal or traffic matter, please contact Matt Keenan at 847-568-0160 or email  matt@mattkeenanlaw.com.

(Besides Skokie, Matt Keenan also serves the communities of Arlington Heights, Chicago, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glenview, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect, Niles, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Rolling Meadows, Wilmette and Winnetka.)

Zoom Court was first initiated in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.  Court business could thus continue, while keeping everybody safe.  Now, effective New Years Day, 2023, the Illinois Supreme Court has made remote hearings permanent.  Revised Illinois Supreme Court Rule 45 governs the use of Zoom going forward.

For criminal or traffic matters that do not involve the possibility of jail or prison time, you may be able to attend all court hearings on zoom, except for: (i) evidentiary hearings, other than ex parte evidentiary hearings (such as emergency order of protection hearings); (ii) settlement conferences; (iii) bench trials; (iv) jury trials; and (v) any type of case or proceeding exempted from remote participation.

In criminal cases (including DUI) involving the possibility of jail or prison time or juvenile delinquency, you may appear by zoom without advance court approval for: (i) initial appearances; (ii) initial or subsequent appearances in juvenile delinquency matters at which continued detention of a minor will be determined; (iii) status hearings; (iv) waiver of a preliminary hearing; (v) arraignments on an information or indictment at which a plea of not guilty will be entered; (vi) presentation of a jury waiver; (vii) non-evidentiary hearings; and (viii) hearings conducted under the Sexually Violent Persons Commitment Act (725 ILCS 207/1 et seq.) at which no witness testimony will be taken.”

In criminal cases involving the possibility of jail/prison time or juvenile delinquency, you must appear in person unless the judge approves otherwise for:  “(i) Negotiated pleas; (ii) Evidentiary hearings; (iii) Sentencing hearings; (iv) Probation revocation hearings; (v) Arraignments or other proceedings or appearances at which a plea of guilty will be entered; (vi) Hearings conducted under the Sexually Dangerous Persons Act (725 ILCS 205/0.01 et seq.); (vii) Bench trials or stipulated bench trials; and (viii) Any case type or proceeding type exempted from remote participation in accordance with paragraphs (b)(2) and (b)(7).”

Jury trials must also be in person, except witnesses in certain situations may be allowed to testify on zoom.

The chief judge of your county may exempt particular types of cases from zoom court as he or she deems necessary.  A judge may also require you to appear in person for reasons special to your case.  The judge must then inform you on the record that you are required to do so.

If you have questions about this or another related Illinois criminal or traffic matter, please contact Matt Keenan at 847-568-0160 or email matt@mattkeenanlaw.com.

(Besides Skokie, Matt Keenan also serves the communities of Arlington Heights, Chicago, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glenview, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect, Niles, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Rolling Meadows, Wilmette and Winnetka.)

Before you can be arrested for DUI, police must have probable cause.  But at what point are you considered under arrest?

In Illinois, you are under arrest when your freedom of movement has been restrained by means of physical force or a show of authority. To determine when that happened, a court looks at: (1) the officer’s intent to make the arrest, and (2) your understanding, based on an objective standard of reasonableness, that you were under arrest. Probable cause cannot be justified by the evidence found after your arrest.

For example, in People v. Workheiser, the defendant took one field sobriety test but refused others, at which point, the officer handcuffed him and told him he was under arrest.  The defendant then agreed to perform the other tests. The court held that the results of testing after the arrest could not be used to determine probable cause.  Unfortunately for the defendant, the court still found probable cause for the arrest based on his poor driving, slurred speech, admission of drinking and fumbling and dropping his wallet.

If you have been charged with DUI or similar offense, contact an experienced attorney immediately.  An attorney can review your case for your best possible defense.  Did police follow procedure during your arrest?  If not, an attorney can bring a motion to suppress the results of an illegal arrest. If successful, the court could, in limited circumstances, dismiss your DUI.

If you have questions about this or another related Illinois criminal or traffic matter, please contact Matt Keenan at 847-568-0160 or email matt@mattkeenanlaw.com.

(Besides Skokie, Matt Keenan also serves the communities of Arlington Heights, Chicago, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glenview, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect, Niles, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Rolling Meadows, Wilmette and Winnetka.)

In our April 20, 2021 post, we discussed People v. Pearson in which the court held that police could not search a defendant’s hospital room without a warrant because the defendant had a reasonable expectation of privacy in his hospital room.  (Can Police Search My Hospital Room Without a Warrant?)

But a later Illinois Appellate case shows how specific facts viewed by a particular judge can reach a different outcome.  This is why it is important to hire an experienced attorney who is familiar with your courthouse and can present your facts in their best possible light to your specific judge.

In  People v. Turner, after discussing the Pearson case, the court concluded that defendant Turner did not have a reasonable expectation of privacy in his hospital trauma room. Thus, police could seize any evidence in plain view without a warrant.

The Turner court looked at many of the same factors set out in our April 20 post. But in this case, the court decided that while defendant was legitimately present in the trauma room to seek medical treatment, none of the other factors weighed in his favor.  The defendant did not own or have a possessory interest in or have prior use of the trauma room.  The hospital, rather than the defendant, had control over the room and the ability to exclude others from it.  Defendant was in the trauma room for two hours to be medically assessed. All told, this did not establish a legitimate expectation of privacy.

A slight change in the facts or a different judge hearing the same facts might have come to a different conclusion.

If you have questions about this or another related Illinois criminal or traffic matter, please contact Matt Keenan at 847-568-0160 or email matt@mattkeenanlaw.com.

(Besides Skokie, Matt Keenan also serves the communities of Arlington Heights, Chicago, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glenview, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect, Niles, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Rolling Meadows, Wilmette and Winnetka.)

There are a host of offenses that can be either a Class A Misdemeanor or a Class 4 felony if you knowingly possess or display a fictitious or unlawfully altered driver’s license or permit.  (See 625 ILCS 5/6-301.1).  Simply possessing such a license is a Class A Misdemeanor on a first offense and a Class 4 felony on a later offense.

It is also a Class 4 felony if you possess or display that altered license under any of the following circumstances:

• You wanted to obtain an account, credit, credit or debit card from a bank, financial institution or retail store
• You committed any other crime which can be sentenced to more than one year in prison.
• You intended to commit a theft, deception, or credit or debit card fraud in violation of any law of this State or any law of any other jurisdiction;
• You did so while in possession without authority of any document, instrument, or device capable of defrauding another;
• You did so intending to acquire any other identification document;
• to knowingly issue or assist in the issuance of any fictitious driver’s license or permit;
• You knowingly alter or attempt to alter any driver’s license or permit;
• You knowingly manufacture, possess, transfer, or provide any identification document whether real or fictitious for the purpose of obtaining a fictitious driver’s license or permit;
• You purchase or attempt to purchase any ticket for a common carrier or to board or attempt to board any common carrier;
• You have a license that is suspended or revoked.

Later violations of the above are a Class 3 felony.

If you are charged with a fictitious driver’s ID or similar offense, contact an experienced criminal law attorney immediately.  An attorney can review your case for your best possible defense.  As with most crimes, the state must prove you guilty of all elements of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt.  Was the search that uncovered the ID legal?  Did you commit the offense knowingly?  Even if the search was legal and the evidence against you was overwhelming, an attorney who is respected in the courthouse may be able to negotiate a more favorable plea agreement than you could on your own.

If you have questions about this or another related Illinois criminal or traffic matter, please contact Matt Keenan at 847-568-0160 or email matt@mattkeenanlaw.com.

(Besides Skokie, Matt Keenan also serves the communities of Arlington Heights, Chicago, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glenview, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect, Niles, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Rolling Meadows, Wilmette and Winnetka.)

When you were very young, you got caught driving while intoxicated and pled guilty to DUI.  That was more than 20 years ago.  Now you have been arrested for a second DUI.

Does the first one still count?

The answer is yes.  The DUI law does not limit the amount of time the state can look back in order to enhance your punishment for a second-time DUI or upgrade you to an Aggravated DUI for a third or later offense.

Is there anything you can do?  First contact an experienced DUI attorney.  The attorney can review your case for your best possible defense.  While you can’t undo the earlier DUI, you may be able to fight the current one.  Did the police have probable cause to stop you?  Can the state prove you guilty of all the elements of the DUI beyond a reasonable doubt?  Can the state prove you were driving?  The state has to prove you were the driver as well as that you had control of the car.  How was your driving? Did you handle yourself well during the police stop? Did you perform well on any field sobriety tests?  If not, can your performance be explained by something besides alcohol or drugs? Is the breathalyzer, if any, below or not very much over the legal limit?  Even if the police followed procedures and the evidence against you is overwhelming, an attorney who is respected in the courthouse may be able to negotiate a more favorable plea agreement than you could on your own.

If you have questions about this or another related Illinois criminal or traffic matter, please contact Matt Keenan at 847-568-0160 or email matt@mattkeenanlaw.com.

(Besides Skokie, Matt Keenan also serves the communities of Arlington Heights, Chicago, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glenview, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect, Niles, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Rolling Meadows, Wilmette and Winnetka.)