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The answer is not necessarily.

If you were pulled over for DUI based on speeding, then the police likely have the probable cause they need to stop you, and you would not be able to fight the stop itself.  But the good news is that speeding doesn’t necessarily equal impaired driving.

To convict you of DUI, the state must prove that 1) you drove and 2) your driving was impaired by drugs or alcohol.   If you otherwise drove safely, performed well on field sobriety tests and spoke clearly and intelligently to police, you may be able to win a not guilty verdict on your DUI.

If you have been charged with DUI or a similar offense, contact an experienced attorney immediately.   The attorney can request copies of the state’s evidence including any body cam or squad car videos of your stop and testing.  An attorney can review the state’s evidence to see if you have a chance of winning at trial.  If the evidence is clear that you’ve had a few too many, an attorney who is respected in the courthouse may still 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.)

Many years ago you were young and reckless.  You got arrested in Illinois.  You wanted to pretend your case didn’t exist, so you skipped out on your court date and eventually moved out of state.  Older and wiser, you worry that a routine traffic stop will send you back to Illinois in handcuffs.

Now, you are ready to deal with your past, clear the warrant and deal with the underlying case.  Can you put it behind you?

The answer is very likely yes.  An attorney can bring your open warrant before your original court to ask a judge to vacate or set it aside.  You would likely have to appear in person for a hearing on this procedure, but you may even be able to make later court appearances on zoom.

Once the warrant is set aside, you now have to settle the underlying offense,.   An attorney can help negotiate a plea agreement or take your case to trial.  If you have been gone a long time, the evidence against you may have grown cold.  Therefore, it may be more difficult for the state to try your case. In rare cases, if the offense is very old and relatively minor, the judge might even be willing to dismiss it.

If you have questions about this or another related Illinois criminal or traffic matter, please contact Matt Keenan at 847-568-0160 or 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 Illinois, you have a legal duty to remain at the scene of an accident, provide information and render aid.  Failing that, you have a duty to report it.

Leaving the scene of an accident involving death or personal injury is a Class 4 felony.  If your accident resulted in personal injury and you failed to report it within half hour of either the accident or your discharge from a hospital, your offense becomes a Class 2 felony. Your offense is a Class 1 felony if it resulted in death.

You may also be subject to testing for alcohol or drugs in which case you may also be charged with DUI.

If you are charged with aggravated leaving the scene, contact an experienced criminal or traffic law attorney immediately.  An attorney can review your case for your best possible defense.  As with most criminal offenses, the state must prove all the elements of your offense beyond a reasonable doubt.  An attorney can probe for weaknesses in the state’s case.  Can the state prove you were the driver rather than someone else in the car? Did you know that an accident had occurred?  Was it physically impossible for you to report the accident within the time limits?  Even if the evidence against you is overwhelming, an attorney who is respected in the courthouse may be able to negotiate a more favorable plea bargain than you can 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.

Reference:      625 ILCS 5/11-401

(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.)

The answer is not necessarily.  Although blood testing for marijuana is available, it is unlikely your blood would be tested if you did not end up in the hospital due to an accident.

However, there are other ways that the state can seek to prove you were under the influence of cannabis.  Police have specialized field sobriety tests for marijuana that are separate from the field tests for alcohol.  For example, the Romberg test examines if you can maintain your balance with your eyes closed.  Another example is the horizontal gaze nystagmus test which tests whether your eyes bounce up and down when following an object from side to side. This later test is often used for alcohol DUI.

If you are charged with a cannabis-related DUI or similar offense, contact an experienced attorney immediately.  An attorney can review your case for your best possible defense.  Was the officer certified as a drug expert?  Are there other reasons that you might have performed poorly on the test?  Was any cannabis recovered from you or the car?  Even if the evidence against you is overwhelming and nearly impossible to challenge, 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.)

In criminal or traffic law, the outcome of your case often comes down to how your particular judge sees all the facts in your particular situation.  One example of this can be found in People v. Hall, which involved obstructing a peace officer.

In that case, an officer had received notice of a possible domestic disturbance or kidnapping.  The officer stopped defendant and asked for his identification, which the defendant refused. Officers then questioned a woman in defendant’s car. Defendant swore at police, yelling for them to get away from his car.

To convict under 720 ILCS 5/31-1(a), the State was required to prove that (1) defendant knowingly obstructed a peace officer, (2) the officer was performing an authorized act, and (2) defendant knew the officer was a peace officer. The law’s focus is on the tendency of a defendant’s conduct to create an obstacle that hinders the officer in performing authorized duties.

The State argued that defendant’s actions in failing to obey the officers’ lawful commands went beyond being merely argumentative. Defendant ignored multiple orders to stop his walking towards the vehicle where the possible kidnap victim was located. Thus, the state claimed that these events hindered the officers’ investigation into whether defendant was the person involved in the possible kidnapping.

The trial court found the evidence compelling enough to convict the defendant. However, the appellate court disagreed. While defendant was uncooperative and argumentative, such conduct did not necessarily violate the law. Further, the appellate court did not find that defendant’s refusal to provide identification had hindered the officer’s investigation. Thus, his conviction was reversed.

If you have been charged with a criminal offense, contact an experienced criminal law attorney immediately. An attorney who is familiar with your courthouse may be able to present your facts in the light most likely to persuade your particular judge.

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

A charge of reckless driving can be a kind of catch-all offense for police. It can cover everything from excessive speeding to swerving around corners to weaving in and out of traffic. Although less serious than a DUI, it can still have significant consequences.

In Illinois, the most common definition of reckless driving is someone who uses or drives a vehicle “with a willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property.”  (See 625 ILCS 5/11-503.)  A secondary definition is using an incline such as a railroad crossing or hill to make your car  airborne.

Reckless driving in Illinois is a Class A Misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail and a $2,500 fine. If your driving injures a child or a school crossing guard, however, you can be charged with a Class 4 Felony, punishable by 1 to 3 years in jail.

If your driving causes great bodily harm or permanent disability to someone, you can be charged with Aggravated Reckless Driving, also a Class 4 Felony. If great bodily harm occurs to a child or school crossing guard, then the Aggravated Reckless can be enhanced to a Class 3 Felony, punishable by 2 to 5 years in jail.

If you are charged with reckless driving or a similar offense, contact an experienced traffic law attorney immediately. An attorney can help determine the most effective strategy for your defense. As with most crimes, the State must prove all the elements of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt.  Was your driving really willful and wanton, or were you swerving to avoid an accident? Did anyone witness your driving, or did the officer arrive after  an accident?  Even if 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.)

The answer is that it’s possible.  By the same token, you may still be found guilty of DUI if your blood alcohol was below .08.

Your blood alcohol reading leads to a presumption that you were or weren’t driving under the influence.  If your reading is under .05, the presumption is that you were not driving under the influence.  If it is between .05 and .08, the presumption can go either way.  If you are over .08, the presumption is you are guilty.

But a presumption can be overcome by other evidence.

Your driving is the most important factor that a court considers when rejecting a presumption that you were DUI.  If your driving was safe and you generally did well in handling yourself with officers and in field sobriety tests, you could win a not guilty even if you blew over .08.  On the other hand, if you were swerving all over the road and falling out of the car, you could still be convicted with a breathalyzer below the legal limit.

There is one exception to this rule.  If you were specifically charged with driving under the influence with breathalyzer over .08, you can be convicted on that count no matter how well you drove or behaved.  An attorney can still possibly challenge the accuracy of the breathalyzer result or the legality of the police stop.  If all else fails, a experienced attorney may be able to negotiate a plea bargain to a reduced charge such as reckless driving.

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