Posted on April 30, 2018 in Uncategorized

You probably already know many of the rights a defendant in a criminal court case has. Things like the right to counsel, the right to remain silent, or the right to a prompt trial are guaranteed to everyone regardless of the charges brought against them. Witnesses in a criminal case also have certain rights and responsibilities.

Types of Subpoenas

If you have received a subpoena or witness summons, you are required to either provide information or be present for some type of legal proceeding. A “subpoena ad testificandum” is a witness summons that orders an individual to testify during legal proceedings. On the other hand, a “subpoena duces tecum” orders an organization or individual to bring physical evidence before the ordering authority. Often, this is subpoena is used for requesting copies of documents important to the case.

Can Witnesses Decline to Speak?

If you have received a subpoena to either testify or provide evidence, you are required to show up and/or provide the information needed. However, the Fifth Amendment gives you the right to refuse to answer questions which will incriminate you. This is colloquially called “pleading the Fifth.” The husband-wife privilege also gives witnesses the right to refuse to testify against their spouses. It is important to note that if you do choose to testify, you are required by law to tell the truth. Anyone answering questions in front of a grand jury, on the witness stand at trial, or during a deposition is under oath, so lying could be considered perjury.

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 Posted on April 27, 2018 in Uncategorized

Effective July 1, 2018, Illinois residents will have greater protection against state confiscation of cars and other assets used in connection with criminal charges such as Aggravated DUI and narcotics possession.

Illinois Residents Forfeit Over $70 Million in Assets Annually

Over $30 million dollars worth of cars, boats, and other assets were seized in 2015 under Illinois’s civil forfeiture laws, namely:

• The Illinois Drug Asset Forfeiture Act, which authorizes the seizure of assets used in, or acquired with funds generated by, drug crimes.
• Article 36 of the Illinois Criminal Code: Seizure and Forfeiture of Vessels, Vehicles and Aircraft, which authorizes the seizure of assets used in the commission of other serious crimes such as aggravated DUI, drive-by shootings, and child pornography.

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 Posted on April 26, 2018 in Uncategorized

You might think you are safe to do what you please when you are out in the woods or on the lake. But you would be wrong, as evidenced by some of the citations issued and arrests made by the conservation officers of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Some of these stories will sound amusing, but the criminal charges are nothing but serious.

Drunk Snowmobile Driver Gets Caught in a Crash

In February 2018, an Illinois conservation officer followed up on a snowmobile crash in which the operator was injured. The crash investigation had resulted in the operator being cited for snowmobile DUI. The operator pled guilty to both charges. He was assigned court supervision, ordered to pay a fine and court costs totaling $1,190, and required to undergo drug and alcohol treatment.

Do Not Pee in Public by Your Pick-Up

A conservation officer driving along a highway observed a stopped pickup truck whose driver was outside the truck urinating. When the driver noticed the CO approaching, he quickly re-entered his vehicle and tossed a beer can behind his seat. The CO performed field sobriety tests, which the driver failed. A deputy with the county sheriff’s office was summoned to transport the driver to jail. The driver was charged with DUI (he had a blood alcohol level of 0.65%), illegal transportation of alcohol, and improper parking on the roadway.

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 Posted on April 24, 2018 in Uncategorized

In 1993, police stumbled upon a situation which would be the source of much controversy and disagreement regarding exactly when a person is drunk driving. On a very early June morning, two Naperville police officers found a person asleep in his car, which was parked in an apartment complex parking lot. The car’s engine was running but the car was in park. The sleeping defendant was laying across the two front seats.

The police initially struggled to wake the defendant, but when they did he admitted to sleeping in his car because he had consumed too much alcohol to safely drive home. The police officers subjected the defendant to a field sobriety test that indicated to them that he was, in fact, intoxicated. The defendant was arrested, and a later breathalyzer test showed that the man had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.18 percent.

Defendant Claimed to Only Have Been Using the Heater

While there was no doubt that the man had been under the influence of alcohol, there was doubt as to if he should be considered a drunk driver when he had not actually driven the vehicle. The defendant argued that he only had left the car’s engine running because he needed the heater to make it through the cold night. The Illinois Vehicle Code states that a person should not "drive or be in actual physical control of any vehicle" while under the influence of alcohol. The prosecution argued that the defendant was both under the influence of alcohol and in actual physical control of the vehicle. Despite protest from the defendant and his legal counsel, the man was eventually found guilty of driving under the influence—a conviction that was upheld by the Illinois Supreme Court. He was sentenced to one year of court supervision and had to pay a $250 fine.

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 Posted on April 23, 2018 in Uncategorized

When law enforcement officials are investigating a crime or pursuing a suspect, they tend to expect complete cooperation from those they detain and/or question during the course of that investigation. When someone attempts to repel police orders or questions, whether by physical force, being misleading, or withholding information, they could very easily find themselves facing charges of obstructing justice or resisting arrest.

Actions (and Words) Have Consequences

While it is up to the prosecution to prove charges of resisting arrest or obstruction of justice, a conviction on either charge can have serious repercussions for the defendant. Knowing the difference between the charges and working with an attorney who has experience defending against criminal charges can help a person avoid severe punishment. These charges differ in the following ways:

• Resisting arrest generally is applied when a person applies some sort of physical force in attempting to avoid being detained by police. Whether a person runs away, pushes or bumps an officer, or even simply pulls their arm away when grabbed by an officer, any of these actions can result in a charge of resisting arrest.

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 Posted on April 20, 2018 in Uncategorized

Perhaps you have heard the saying that “ignorance of the law is not a defense.” While that may be true, there are a number of legally sound strategies a competent and practiced criminal defense attorney might use to aid clients who may or may not have a full understanding of the law. If one feels justified in having committed a certain act, it is important to have an experienced legal professional implement a strong and legal defense strategy on their behalf.

Presenting Your Defense

Although this list is not considered final or complete, it does represent some common defense strategies frequently employed every day on the behalf of criminal defendants:

• Necessity – This strategy is employed when a defendant wishes to plea that the act for which they are being tried was committed due to extraordinary circumstances. Commonly accepted criteria include averting a greater evil or lack of any other legal recourse.
• Duress – This defense is used when the accused claims any illegal act which they have committed was done so under threat of death or great bodily harm by another individual.

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 Posted on April 19, 2018 in Uncategorized

After enjoying a few drinks at Happy Hour, three adult friends got into one’s car. Can you fill in the rest of the story? In the best case scenario, they had been drinking responsibly, the driver was not impaired, and all got home safely.

But what if their driver had had one or two drinks too many? Whose responsibility was it to make sure that driver was not impaired? Obviously, if you feel impaired, you should not get behind the wheel. But what is your responsibility as a passenger or bystander if someone is driving under the influence ?

Adult Passengers Have No Legal Responsibility for Others’ DUI

Under Illinois law, you have no legal responsibility to stop another adult (over age 21, that is) from driving their own vehicle while intoxicated, unless you were involved in selling them the alcohol which caused them to become impaired. So, if you suspect a driver is legally intoxicated, you commit no crime if you let them drive away or if you ride along as a passenger in their car. Even if they end up arrested for DUI, you will not be charged with a crime, as long as you were just a law-abiding passenger.

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 Posted on April 18, 2018 in Uncategorized

When a driver is arrested for DUI, their vehicle-for obvious safety reasons-must be moved from the roadside where the traffic stop took place. Illinois police have four options for dealing with a DUI-involved vehicle, ranging from releasing the vehicle immediately to seizing it and selling it.

Best Case Scenario: Sober Passenger Drives

If the drunk driver had a sober passenger in the vehicle, the police may allow that person to drive the car, saving the driver from towing and administrative fees.

Police Call Local Towing Company; Immediate Retrieval Possible

Most commonly, the police will have the vehicle towed to a local impound lot. The owner of the car will have to pay towing and storage fees to the towing company, and possibly an additional administrative fee to the city or county where the DUI arrest took place. In Chicago, the administrative fee to release a DUI-involved car from impound starts at $2,000. In the Will County suburbs, the administrative fee for a DUI impoundment ranges from $300 to $500.

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 Posted on April 17, 2018 in Uncategorized

An incident of kidnapping frequently conjures thoughts of ransom notes or phone calls from an individual using some device to disguise their voice. However, more and more cases of kidnapping involve disputes between parents that result in Amber Alerts and loss of visitation privileges or worse.

Parental Kidnapping

In many cases involving divorce and child custody arrangements, emotions run high, and one party or the other may feel that they received less than fair consideration when it comes to the custody or visitation rights of their children. However, parental kidnapping is not something that is limited to the non-custodial parent.

While there are cases in which a non-custodial parent may attempt to flee the state with their child, even the parent who is awarded primary custody may be charged with parental kidnapping if they deprive the other parent of lawful access and visitation. No matter the situation, consulting with an attorney is a far better alternative than attempting to take the law into one’s own hands.

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 Posted on April 13, 2018 in Uncategorized

There is little question that the public’s attitude toward the use of marijuana has begun to shift substantially in recent years. Many states, including Illinois, now have a medical cannabis program, and several states have gone so far as to legalize recreational marijuana use. While the long-term effects of smoking marijuana may be similar to those associated with smoking tobacco, federal safety officials have yet to find a single recorded instance of a marijuana overdose death.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of “synthetic marijuana,” which has recently been linked to at least two deaths and many other cases of serious internal bleeding in the Chicago area. This week, federal drug enforcement officials say they traced the source of the product to a convenience store on Chicago’s west side and that three men have been arrested in connection with distributing the substance.

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