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Recent Blog Posts
New BAIID Requirement for Second or Third DUI Convictions
A charge of driving under the influence (DUI) is always serious. The impact to your life can be tremendous, even if you are able to avoid a conviction, as you may still need to contend with financial penalties, diversionary programs, and the suspension of driving privileges. A conviction, of course, will result in additional consequences, including possible jail time. For a second or third DUI conviction, the penalties are even more severe. Getting back on the road following a second or third DUI can be particularly challenging, but a recent law change clarifies some of the requirements for getting your driving privileges restored.
Five Years of Restriction
According to the law in Illinois, a person who has been convicted of a second DUI charge within 20 years will have his or her driving privileges revoked for a minimum of five years. A third conviction results in a revocation of driving privileges for at least ten years. To have driving privileges restored, an offender must apply for reinstatement with the Secretary of State’s office. In the past, the criteria for license restoration was relatively subjective, and each case was handled on individual basis.
Budget Issues, Increased Awareness of Wrongful Conviction Fueling "Softer" Penalties across the Country
Over the last few decades, heavy-handed, no-nonsense criminal justice policies have run rampant in America. Hundreds have been wrongfully convicted, and others have been prosecuted far beyond what should be deemed reasonable. However, budget issues and an increased awareness have recently forced lawmakers to reconsider their approach to crime, conviction, and even the penalties they dole out. Some may call the new approach "soft," but experts say it may not only be less expensive, it could prove to be more effective.
America Loves a Great Crime-Fighting Slogan
In the early 1970s, we fell in love with the "War on Drugs." In the 1990s, we incorporated the "three strikes and you are out" an "adult time for adult crime" policies. Each slogan carried with it a certain amount of enthusiasm and led to the swift and often wrongful conviction of thousands. Before long, America found itself with more incarcerated criminals than any other country and more prisons than colleges. Budgets began to crash and lawmakers began to realize that we had, essentially, painted ourselves into a corner.
Guidance and Tips for Illinois Crime Victims
Whether you have somehow been involved or associated with the sale or transport of illegal drugs, are a victim of domestic violence, or have the unfortunate experience of being exposed to a child abduction case, there are countless resources for Illinois crime victims. When you are victim of a crime, however, it is easy to feel overwhelmed and unsure of where to turn for help. In the most unfortunate situations, you could even find yourself being charged in connection with the crime, making your life even more difficult.
In certain areas of the law, it is easy to caught up in a world of trouble, despite being a victim or innocent bystander, including:
Illegal Drugs
One of the most prevalent crime battles in Illinois is monitoring the growth and sale of illegal drugs, such as marijuana. State police are constantly on guard to protect residents and enforce laws that prevent the cultivation and distributon of this and other drugs. Should you find yourself in the presence of an illegal drug, you can do the following to protect yourself from prosecution and help assist police:
Facing Criminal Charges for Assault?
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, colloquial meaning. The primary reason for this phenomenon 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 expect.
What Is 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 definition is pretty clear.
Marijuana Decriminalization Goes Back to Governor
For the second time in two years, Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner will have to decide whether or not to approve legislation that would make low-level possession of marijuana a civil offense rather than a crime. Last summer, the Republican governor used his amendatory veto authority to rewrite the proposed decriminalization measure, reducing the amount of marijuana to be considered low-level and increasing the punitive fines. Last year’s bill eventually stalled before making it back to the governor’s desk, but this year’s version also includes the changes Rauner made a year ago.
Current Legal Guidelines
Under existing Illinois law, if you possess or use marijuana, you are subject to criminal prosecution unless you have been formally approved for participation in the state’s medical cannabis pilot program. While many people may not think of marijuana possession as a serious crime, possession of up to 2.5 grams is a Class C misdemeanor, and up to 10 grams constitutes a Class B misdemeanor. Anything more than 10 grams is a may be prosecuted as a felony depending upon your conviction history, and potential penalties are increased if you are found to have intent to deliver.
Understanding the Link Between Criminal Law and Civil Forfeiture
Most people understand that in the United States you cannot be sentenced for a crime until you have either entered a guilty plea or been convicted after a trial. However, in the case of civil forfeiture, you can be punished, even if you are not convicted or formally charged.
Losing Your Assets Before Your First Court Date
Civil forfeiture laws allow law enforcement to seize property suspected to have been used in the commission of a crime. It is called civil forfeiture because the process is independent of the criminal justice system. While under criminal law, a prosecutor must demonstrate guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, all law enforcement has to do to keep property it has seized is to show that the property was used in the commission of a crime by a preponderance of the evidence.
A preponderance of the evidence is a much lower standard of proof than "beyond reasonable doubt." In effect, this means that you can actually be found not guilty of a crime, but still lose your assets to civil forfeiture.
Supreme Court to Rule on Criminal Penalties for Refusing a Warrantless BAC Test
As we have previously discussed on this blog, refusing to comply with a law enforcement’s officers request for a blood-alcohol content (BAC) test subsequent to a DUI arrest will result in administrative penalties for the arrested driver. Illinois law makes it very clear that these consequences are not criminal charges but are administrative in nature and affect only state-issued driving privileges. In 13 other states, however, including neighboring Indiana, a refusal to submit to BAC chemical test is a crime and may be prosecuted. While the laws may be well-intentioned—reducing drunk driving is a good thing—they are being challenged in a matter now before the United States Supreme Court. Specifically, the Court must decide if refusing a warrantless chemical test should be punishable with criminal consequences.
Search and Seizure Laws
Commission Finds Troubling Data on Juvenile Arrest Expungements
Research requested by Illinois lawmakers has produced very concerning information regarding the way in which the state handles juvenile criminal records and expungements. The report went so far as to suggest that the laws regarding such matters in the state are "among the worst in the nation." Current regulations and bureaucratic red tape, the authors of the report indicate, tend to trap young offenders in a vicious cycle, often struggling with issues such as education, employment, and housing.
Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission
In a 2014 joint resolution, the Illinois General Assembly called for a review of the state’s juvenile justice system and the process of expungement by the Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission. The Commission exists primarily to provide independent research and recommendations to the governor and state lawmakers on matters related to juvenile crime, punishment, and rehabilitation. At the request of the legislature, the Commission reviewed records related to more than 1.8 million juvenile arrests between 2004 and 2014 in Illinois.
Attorney General, State’s Attorney Promise Focus on Reducing Rape Kit Backlog
In the saccharine world of television procedural dramas, forensic investigations into criminal activities take a matter of days if not mere hours to pinpoint a suspected perpetrator. While everyone knows that an episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is hardly a depiction of reality, many are often surprised to find out that the processing of forensic evidence, including rape kits and other samples related to sex crimes, often take weeks and months to be processed in a police crime lab. Around Illinois, and in the Chicago area especially, police labs are overwhelmed by a backlog of work that is creating serious problems for prosecutors and sex crime victims.
Thousands of Untested Rape Kits
According to the director of the Illinois State Police crime laboratory, the lab is severely understaffed and currently faces a backlog of biological evidence involving almost 2,200 sexual assault cases. Authorities in Chicago report that, on average, DNA test results from a rape kit take about a full year to come back from the lab. In the meantime, victims are left trying to put their lives back together without being able to move forward in the case against the perpetrator. Police and prosecutors are equally frustrated, as the results of rape kit testing often provide much-needed direction for their investigations.
Does New Bill That Would Make Uploading a Video of a Fight a Crime Go Too Far?
All over the nation, videos of teens and young adults fighting have been uploaded to various websites. There has been growing concern that this practice encourages violent behavior and acts of violence. Recently, one Illinois lawmaker proposed a bill to make the practice illegal.
What the Proposed Bill Would Do
While the proposed bill itself is only a paragraph long, it has several different components. The measure would categorize several different types of behavior under the Class A misdemeanor of disorderly conduct.
In order to qualify as a crime of disorderly conduct, the person would first have to knowingly upload a video to a social media website or a social networking website containing footage of:
- A crime being committed;
- A gang-related fight;
- A battery committed with the intent to cause a person to become unconscious; or
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