ABOUT ME
Matt Keenan
Se habla español.
A criminal and school law attorney with over 24 years of experience, I have successfully represented clients all over the Chicago area. My practice includes DUI, felony, criminal, misdemeanor, homicide, internet crime, retail theft, traffic offenses, cyberstalking, drug crimes, weapons violations, domestic battery and juvenile crime. I also represent families involving school cases. My clients come from all over the Chicago area including Skokie, Wilmette, Niles, Northbrook, Glenview, Evanston, Winnetka, Highland park, Northfield, Park Ridge, Des Plaines and Mount Prospect. I am a member of the ACLU, Illinois State Bar Association.
We wrote the chapters on DEFENSES and ARRESTS AND INVESTIGATORY STOPS.
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Illinois Jurisprudence: Criminal Law and Procedure. Vol. 1. (LexisNexis 2014).We wrote the chapters on SEARCH and SEIZURE, MOTIONS AND DISCOVERY, and EVIDENTIARY MATTERS GENERALLY.
Illinois Jurisprudence: Criminal Law and Procedure. Vol. 1. (LexisNexis 2014).
Category Archives: DUI evidence
THE AUTOMATIC DUI SUSPENSION OF YOUR DRIVER’S LICENSE: WERE YOU ON PUBLIC OR PRIVATE PROPERTY?
(Last updated March 12, 2019) If you are charged with DUI in Illinois, the Secretary of State can automatically suspend your driver’s license—but only if you were on a “public highway.” The law defines a “public highway” as “The entire … Continue reading
Posted in DUI evidence, secretary of state, suspensions
Tagged private highway, public highway
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CAN THEY TAKE MY BLOOD WITHOUT A WARRANT? THE U.S. SUPREME COURT SAYS “NO.”
In a recent decision, Birchfield v. North Dakota, the U.S. Supreme Court held that a state cannot require you to take a blood test in order to enforce its drunk driving laws. Subject to certain exceptions, the police must get … Continue reading
Posted in breathalyzer/field sobriety test, DUI evidence, DUI testing
Tagged blood test, breath test, breathalyzer, search warrant
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WERE YOU DRIVING A MOTOR VEHICLE UNDER ILLINOIS DUI LAW?
To be convicted of DUI, the state must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you were operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of drugs or alcohol. But what exactly is a motor vehicle? Naturally, a car, a truck … Continue reading
Posted in DUI evidence
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DOG SNIFFS AND THE UNDULY PROLONGED TRAFFIC STOP
In 2005, the United States Supreme Court changed the law regarding police stops. Before Illinois v Caballes, police needed specific and articulable facts to change the nature of a stop. After 2005, an officer could change the nature of the … Continue reading
Posted in DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE, DUI evidence
Tagged arrest, canine sniff, dog sniff, drug evidence, drug stop, narcotic stop, search and seizure, seizure, stop
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SPECIAL DEFENSES FOR ILLINOIS DUI
Despite what you hear about criminal defendants “getting off on a technicality,” that really doesn’t happen very often. Most appellate courts are reluctant to let an otherwise guilty defendant go free if they can find any way to uphold the … Continue reading
Posted in breathalyzer/field sobriety test, DUI evidence
Tagged breathalyzer certification, police video
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DO I HAVE TO TAKE A PRELIMINARY BREATH TEST IN ILLINOIS?
If you are stopped for a traffic violation and the officer suspects you of DUI, he or she might ask you to take a preliminary breath test (PBT). Can you refuse? Under Illinois statute, if an officer has a reasonable … Continue reading
Posted in breathalyzer/field sobriety test, DUI evidence
Tagged breathalyzer, preliminary breath test, rights
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IT’S ALL ABOUT THE DRIVING: DUI EVIDENCE IN ILLINOIS
To be convicted of DUI in Illinois, the state must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you were in physical control of a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or another drug. To determine if a defendant was really … Continue reading
Posted in DUI evidence
Tagged driving, field sobriety tests, squad car video, tesitmony, video, video evidence
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PROPOSED ILLINOIS LAW TAKES MARIJUANA OUT OF THE DUI TRACE LAW
A proposed Illinois law would resolve some of the conflict between liberalized marijuana laws and their impact on DUI. Under a current Illinois law, known as the “trace law,” you may be convicted of DUI if you have any unlawful … Continue reading
Posted in aggravated dui, breathalyzer/field sobriety test, DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE, DUI evidence, DUI testing, prescription medication
Tagged aggravated dui, blood testing, evidence, marijuana trace law, medical marijuana, trace law
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“BUT I WASN’T NEAR MY CAR!”: THE “DRIVING” IN ILLINOIS DUI
If you are walking down the street, it seems reasonable to assume that you aren’t in the act of driving. Yet, under Illinois law, you can be charged with drunk driving even if you are nowhere near your car. How … Continue reading
Posted in DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE, DUI evidence
Tagged driving, physical control
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PROVING THE BREATHALYZER IN ILLINOIS
You had always heard that if you were stopped for DUI, you should refuse to take a breathalyzer. But when the time came, you went right along with police and blew over the limit. What can you do? When you … Continue reading
Posted in DUI evidence
Tagged breathalyzer, portable breathalyzer
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