After a DUI arrest, the Illinois Secretary of State suspends your driver’s license beginning on the 46th day after your arrest. An attorney can petition the court to overturn (or rescind) that suspension on certain grounds. To succeed, however, you must act quickly.
Illinois law requires that you receive a hearing on your petition on your first court date or within 30 days of filing your petition, whichever is later. Your petition must be granted if you do not receive a hearing on time as long as you did not cause the delay.
By filing your petition promptly, your odds of success improve dramatically. Hearing may be delayed because the officer needed to testify is not in court, or the state is not otherwise ready. In a recent Illinois case, People v. Stoffle, the court granted a petition after the state failed to provide defendant with the names of necessary witnesses until the last day that a timely hearing could be held. The defendant had filed certain requests for that evidence along with his petition.
If you are arrested for DUI, you should contact an experienced attorney immediately. The sooner the attorney can file your petition, the better your chances of retaining your driver’s license.
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.)
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Illinois Jurisprudence: Criminal Law and Procedure. Vol. 1. (LexisNexis 2014).
Illinois Jurisprudence: Criminal Law and Procedure. Vol. 1. (LexisNexis 2014).