A new Illinois law makes it tougher to ignore those routine traffic tickets.
Before the new law, your ticket could be dismissed even if you didn’t show up for court. As long as the arresting officer or complaining witness were absent, the judge could throw out your case.
As of January 1, 2015, however, you will no longer be able to roll the dice. Under the new law (625 ILCS 5/6-308), if you fail to appear at your court date, the clerk will send you notice of a new court date. If you still don’t show, the court will issue an order that you failed to appear unless you show good reason why you couldn’t attend.
And this is the real bite: The court will tell the Secretary of State that you failed to appear. As a result, your driver’s license will be immediately suspended until you clear up your traffic violation.
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).