7 New Illinois Laws You Should Know for 2015

1. The liability of parents for underage drinking no longer only applies to residences or private property. State law will be expanded in 2015 to penalize parents who allow those under the age of 21 to consume alcohol in vehicles, trailers, campers or watercrafts under their ownership or control. Parents will face a fine of up to $2,000. If a death results, parents can face a felony charge.

2. The Illinois Tollway Authority will now have the authority to increase the speed limit to 70 mph on interstates in urban areas. The law previously passed in 2013 allowed for a 70 mph speed limit only in rural areas.

3. Individuals, including children, who suffer from seizures will be permitted to be treated with medical marijuana. Although the specific rules and regulations regarding children are not finalized, it is likely that the child will be required to obtain written certification from two doctors.

4. Photo lineup procedure will change in order to help reduce wrongful convictions. The procedure will no longer allow the lineup administrator to know the identity of the suspect. An independent administrator, automated computer program, or a random folder lineup method will be among the permitted photo lineup procedures. Instead of viewing all individuals in the lineup at the same time, the new legislation will allow police departments to present each individual in the lineup separately.

5. Police department ticket quotas will be prohibited.

6. Juvenile arrests that did not result in the filing of a delinquency petition will be automatically expunged when the minor turns 18 only if the minor was not arrested within six months of the minor’s most recent arrest.

7. A request for a search warrant can be made to a judge by simultaneous audio and video transmission, such as Skype. The transmission must be filed and retained in a way determined by the Chief Judge or Presiding Judge in the issuing jurisdiction.

New year brings numerous new laws to Illinois, www.buglenewspapers.com, December 29, 2014 Teen drinking, medical pot, speed limit, beer among new Illinois laws in 2015, www.rrstar.com, December 29, 2014