Posted on March 12, 2019 in Uncategorized

Both the state of Illinois and the U.S. Supreme Court have taken action recently to protect citizens from the unreasonable seizure of personal property allegedly used in the commission of or obtained with the profits of criminal activities such as drug possession and sales. The Illinois law took effect July 1, 2018, while the U.S. Supreme Court ruling was handed down on February 20, 2019.

These reforms are a welcome response to widespread concerns that law enforcement agencies have abused the power given to them by civil asset forfeiture laws at both the state and federal levels. These laws permit a law enforcement agency to seize private property involved in a crime even though the owner of the property has not yet been convicted or even charged with a crime. In some cases, the property owner was not even aware that their car or home was in any way associated with the commission of a crime.

In many cases, the assets seized by police are excessive relative to the severity of the crime. Is it fair, for example, for the police to seize a $40,000 car used to transport and sell $400 worth of drugs when the maximum fine for this crime is $10,000? In Illinois alone, asset seizures have reportedly exceeded $30 million per year.

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 Posted on March 11, 2019 in Uncategorized

Thanks to a new federal law that took effect in December 2018, hemp has been officially removed from the federal controlled substances list. This means that you no longer need to worry about being charged with illegal drug possession for using cannabidiol (CBD) oil made from hemp in Illinois nor in any other state in the US. Under both federal and Illinois state law, hemp is defined as a cannabis plant that contains cannabinoids such as cannabidiol (CBD) but no more than 0.3 percent THC, the psychoactive compound in marijuana.

However, CBD oil derived from marijuana plants with more than 0.3 percent THC is still classified as an illegal Schedule I drug under federal law. It is legally available in Illinois only to registered medical marijuana patients.

2018 Farm Bill Legalizes Commercial Hemp Production

The 2018 Farm Bill, signed into law on December 20, 2018, took hemp off the Schedule I controlled substances list and allowed hemp to be regulated by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). Hemp can now be grown under an approved state program or a federal program yet to be developed by the USDA. This legislation, officially known as Public Law 115-334, the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, opens critical doors to interstate commerce and bank financing for hemp farmers—considerations that are not yet open to marijuana producers.

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 Posted on March 09, 2019 in Uncategorized

Contrary to what some people may believe, driving is very much a privilege and not a right. There are actually quite a few ways in which an Illinois driver can lose his or her driving privileges in Illinois. Not paying child support, being convicted of DUI, not obeying a court summons, and not paying traffic tickets or fines are all ways that you can lose your driving privileges in Illinois. There is also another way you can lose your driving privileges: accumulating too many points on your Illinois driving record.

Illinois’ Driver’s License Points System

Like almost all states, the state of Illinois has a points system in place that applies to each and every driver in the state. Traffic violations are each assigned a points value and every time you commit a traffic violation, the number of points corresponding to the specific violation will be added to your driving record. The number of points that are assigned to a specific traffic violation depend on the severity of the violation - more serious violations will have a higher point value, while lesser violations may only carry a few points. Common traffic violations and the points they carry include:

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 Posted on March 08, 2019 in Uncategorized

In a recent post on this blog, we discussed the basics of Illinois DUI law as well as possible defenses to DUI charges. Being accused of driving under the influence can have life-altering consequences. It is crucial that anyone charged with a DUI knows what their rights are as a criminal defendant as well as their legal options moving forward.

Refusing a Breath Test Does Not Prevent License Suspension

If you are pulled over on suspicion of DUI, police officers will ask you to submit to chemical BAC testing. While you technically have the option to refuse a breath test, doing so can have serious punitive consequences. Illinois has an “implied consent law” which states that anyone who drives a motor vehicle on public roads is considered to have given consent to a chemical blood alcohol content test. Refusing a breathalyzer or other BAC test after a DUI arrest results in the suspension of the suspect’s driving privileges. The summary suspension for the first refusal is a one-year license suspension. Refusing a breath test a second time within five years of the first refusal results in a three-year license suspension. Even if a suspect is eventually acquitted of DUI charges, you still have to contest the license suspension of your license to avoid these suspensions.

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 Posted on March 06, 2019 in Uncategorized

If you have been charged with driving under the influence, you may be lost and unsure of what to do next. Penalties for an Illinois DUI can include the suspension of your driver’s license, hefty fines, and possible jail time. Subsequent DUI arrests can result in felony DUI charges and potential imprisonment. As with any criminal charge, the first step is to educate yourself about the law you have allegedly broken and to reach out to an experienced local DUI attorney. An experienced attorney will know how to form a solid defense against the charges.

Police Always Ask You to Take a Chemical Test

Many DUI cases can hinge on the results of a blood alcohol content (BAC) chemical test. There are a few different ways law enforcement can test a suspect’s BAC level. In Illinois, urine, blood, and breath are the most common ways, with a breath test being the most common. Blood screenings for BAC are considered more invasive, so they are only used when there is reason to believe a breath test won’t suffice; for example, if there is an allegation of drug use a blood or urine test would likely be requested. Another example of when a blood test might be requested is if there was grave injury done to another driver or individual due to your operation of a motor vehicle.

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 Posted on March 05, 2019 in Uncategorized

In today’s digitally connected world, people are constantly sharing videos of virtually everything from their child’s school plays to funny moments with pets to a variety of “challenges” to raise money for charity. It is nearly impossible to go anywhere without seeing at least one person on some sort of device filming themselves or the things going around them. While making and sharing such videos are usually little more than a form of entertainment, things become much more serious when citizens attempt to film police officers as the officers carry out their duties. In many cases, those attempting to film the police have been threatened with arrest, and some have even been taken into custody for refusing to stop filming. If you have been arrested simply for filming the police in a public setting, there are some things that you should know about your rights.

A High-Profile Example

Early last year, an attorney in North Carolina was stopped by police while he was working his side job as an Uber driver. It seems that he had picked up a passenger from a known drug house, and the police stopped the vehicle to detain the attorney’s passenger. During the course of the stop, the driver began filming the police as they milled about his car deciding what to do next. In the video—which eventually went viral on social media and is currently available on YouTube—one of the officers can be seen and heard threatening to arrest the driver unless he stopped filming. The officer even claimed that there was a new law in North Carolina that prohibited the filming of the police. (There was not then and is not now such a law.)

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 Posted on March 02, 2019 in Uncategorized

For many people, an occasional traffic ticket is viewed as little more than one of the costs of a driving a car. They make their car payments, pay their insurance premiums, and, once in a while, pay a fine for speeding or running a red light. Others, however, take traffic violations much more seriously, and, to a certain extent, rightly so. Accumulating too many citations can lead to the suspension of your driving privilege, creating serious challenges to your ability to work, travel, and care for your family. It is important to understand your rights and responsibilities when you have been issued a traffic citation, and a defense attorney can help you through the process.

Sign and Drive

Prior to 2015, being cited for a traffic violation meant that you could be forced to surrender your driver’s license to the issuing officer as security that you would respond to your ticket. Your license would be returned if and when you paid your fine, appeared in court to dispute the citation, or provided a cash bond at the police station in place of your license.

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 Posted on March 01, 2019 in Uncategorized

When you drive on Illinois roads and highways, you assume certain responsibilities for following the rules of the road and protecting the safety of those around you. As you know, law enforcement officials are regularly on the lookout for those who may be driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. If you have been pulled over by police for any reason, and the officer has a reason to believe you may be impaired, he or she will probably ask you to submit to a chemical test that measures your blood-alcohol content (BAC). While refusing a BAC test is an option, it’s important to understand the State’s potential penalties for doing so.

Preliminary Breath Tests and Post-Arrest Breath Tests

If you are asked to submit to a chemical test, a breathalyzer is the most common form. During a DUI investigation, that is while the officer is evaluating you during a traffic stop, a PBT or preliminary breath test might be offered to you if he suspects you have been drinking. While this type of breath test is deemed unreliable by criminal courts, officers can still request that you take this test and they will use it in making a determination of whether you are under the influence of alcohol. You have every right to politely decline a PBT, with no direct consequences of your license. In fact, if you have had too much to drink, it is advisable that you refuse this test.

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 Posted on February 27, 2019 in Uncategorized

One of the most confusing aspects of the law is the way in which certain words are used. In many instances, the legal definition of a word may be very different from its everyday meaning to the average person. The primary reason for this reality is that, under the law, words must be defined very carefully and in such a way that they can be understood throughout a given jurisdiction. Failure to do so can cause significant confusion for law enforcement, judges, attorneys, juries, and defendants. A common example of a word used differently in casual conversation and legal terminology is the word “assault.” The meaning of assault according to the Illinois Criminal Code is not exactly what you might think it is.

Defining Assault

When you talk about an assault in a normal conversation, you are most likely referring to a situation in which one party—an individual, military squad, or other group—attacked and inflicted violence on another party. “I saw the man assault that girl.” “The SWAT team conducted a nighttime assault on the suspect’s compound.” In most cases, its intended definition is pretty clear.

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 Posted on February 26, 2019 in Uncategorized

When you decide to get behind the wheel after you have been drinking, it is a losing situation for everyone involved. Most DUI charges will end up being a misdemeanor, albeit a very serious misdemeanor, but if you were charged with a DUI and a death resulted from that DUI, your charges will automatically be increased to felony charges. You could also face other charges such as reckless homicide. What you think is a tragic accident, Illinois courts may see as a preventable crime and you could be punished accordingly. Considerations change when a death or great bodily harm results from a DUI case.

Illinois Man Receives 15 Years in Prison for Aggravated DUI Charges

When a DUI crash involves death or great bodily harm, the charge is classified as an aggravated DUI, which is a felony charge. A Lake County man was recently sentenced to 15 years in state prison for a DUI crash that killed an Arizona woman who was visiting family for Thanksgiving in 2017. The man, whose BAC that night was .30, was facing up to 27 years in prison, but because of a negotiated plea deal, was able to negotiate the sentence to 15 years for charges of aggravated DUI and failing to report a crash. The man was also charged with reckless homicide but was able to have those charges dropped as a part of the plea deal.

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