Articles Posted in DUI

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Governor Rauner has signed into law a change to the Illinois DUI law involving driving while under the influence of cannabis (marijuana).

Until this change, it was illegal to drive with any amount of cannabis in a person’s system. It did not make any difference if the person was under the influence or impaired by the drug. Additionally, the law did not distinguish between the active ingredient in cannabis (THC) and the inactive ingredient (THC-COOH). It is only the active ingredient that causes impairment. This law was commonly referred to as a ‘zero-tolerance’ DUI law.

Under the new law, it is no longer illegal to drive with cannabis in your system unless you are impaired (under the influence) by the substance. Basically, there are two ways a person can be found guilty under the new law:

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On August 26, 2015, Public Act 099-0467, eliminating statutory hard times, was signed into law by Governor Rauner. The legislation was sponsored by Rep. John D’Amico and will become effective January 1, 2016.

The legislation eliminates all ‘hard times’ under current law. Simply put, these are statutory periods during which a driver could not obtain relief from certain periods of a statutory summary suspension (‘SSS’) or DUI revocation. This includes:

1. First offender SSS – Drivers will be eligible for a Monitored Device Driving Permit (MDDP) from day 1 of the suspension (currently cannot obtain a permit until the 31st day of the SSS);

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A Chicago Tribune investigation revealed that federally backed DUI patrols and sobriety checkpoints in Illinois usually result in ticketing drivers for minor infractions rather than drunk driving. Of the 270,000 citations issued across the state through these patrols, 93% were for less serious offenses than DUI. Records from 2008 to 2013 reveal that ten police agencies throughout the state accounted for more than half of the citations issued by these patrols. These agencies include Chicago, Skokie, Elgin, Will County, Waukegan and Illinois State Police.

The Skokie Police Department logged 14,000 citations through their drunk driving patrols, but only about 3% of the citations were for DUI. The Elgin Police Department issued around the same number of citations, but arrested more than twice as many drunk drivers as Skokie. About 7% of Will County’s citations through these patrols were for DUI and about 11 percent of Waukegan police’s citations were for DUI.

Last year, a Des Plaines commander padded the number of DUI arrests made by his department in an effort to collect federal grant money. At his sentencing hearing, his attorney spoke of the pressure the commander was under in meeting the department’s quotas.

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For the last several years, Larry Davis has been engaged in negotiations on behalf of the Illinois State Bar Association (‘ISBA’) and the Illinois Lawyers and Substance Abuse Counselors Association (‘ILSACA’) with the Office of the Secretary of State (‘SOS’) regarding several proposed changes to the Illinois driver licensing laws as well changes in the Illinois DUI laws with other interested parties.

We are pleased to advise you that the SOS Traffic Safety Advisory Committee has voted to approve many these proposals. The accepted proposals include the following:

Elimination of all ‘hard times’ under current law. Simply put, these are statutory periods during which a driver could not obtain relief during certain periods of a statutory summary suspension (‘SSS’) or revocation. These include:

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An Aurora man was arrested on suspicion of drunk driving after allegedly threatening to fight a customer in the McDonald’s drive-thru line.

Just after midnight on Monday, Aurora police were called to a home after reports that someone was playing music too loudly in a maroon Jeep. When police arrived, they found Daniel Garibay sitting in the vehicle. Police reports indicate that Garibay appeared to be drunk and that officers warned him not to drive. Officers then left the residence and believed the incident to be over.

However, about an hour later, a McDonald’s employee called police, stating that someone in a maroon Jeep was being disruptive in the drive-thru line. The same officers that had responded to the earlier call arrived at McDonalds and quickly realized that this was the same man they had earlier warned not to drive. Besides threatening to fight another customer, the restaurant manager stated that she believed Garibay to be drunk after he seemed confused and had trouble speaking when ordering.

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A Tribune investigation revealed that the driver’s licenses of thousands of drunk drivers have not been suspended because the arrests of these drivers are not being logged into state computers. While state officials blame the police for failing to send their reports to the Illinois Secretary of State, the police departments say that they put all necessary paperwork in the mail. While the root of the problem is relatively unclear, the Tribune noted that the mistakes appear to be widespread. In fact, since 2010, more than 3,000 Chicago area drivers’ arrests were not logged and as many as one in 15 DUI defendants do not have suspended licenses in DuPage County.

Police in other states are permitted to log arrests electronically, making the process more efficient and reliable. However, Illinois has not yet made this change and does not expect to for at least a year or likely longer.

In Illinois, the suspension process begins with paper forms that the officers fill out by hand which are mailed to a state office building in Springfield. The state workers then enter the information into the computer, which requires deciphering the officers’ handwriting. There are many opportunities for mistakes to occur, such as the use of improper forms, forms getting lost in the mail or in Springfield and illegible handwriting.

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According to the Alliance Against Intoxicated Motorists (“AAIM”), a non-profit citizens action group that has tracked Illinois DUI arrests since 1982, Lake County made the most DUI arrests in the state in 2013. The 233 officers averaged 1.49 arrests per officer, bringing the total number of arrests to 348. Right behind Lake County was Cook County. However, Cook County has more officers in their force. The statistics state that Cook County’s 487 officers made 306 arrests, which is an average of .63 arrests per officer.

AAIM determined that the Chicago Police Department, with roughly 12,000 officers, made approximately 3,400 DUI arrests. The rate of .28 arrests per officer pales in comparison to Lake County.

DUI fatalities in Illinois were down 38% from the last decade. However, the seemingly sharp decline in drunk driving may be due to the lack of arrests by some police departments. Although there is a decrease in DUI fatalities, drunk driving is still a major problem in the United States. One person was killed every 52 minutes due to DUI-related accidents in 2013 across the country.

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A Florida attorney has a recommendation for dealing with DUI checkpoints. He says that individuals should place their license and registration up to their window with a flyer saying that they have no comment, will not permit a search, and want a lawyer.

Warren Redlich and an associate, Jeff Gray, have created a website, posting videos of their interactions with police at DUI checkpoints. The video from December 31, 2014, has been viewed more than 2 million times. It was filmed at a checkpoint in Levy County, Florida. The video shows Gray stopping at the checkpoint and displaying a flyer stating, “I remain silent. No searches. I want my lawyer,” along with his license, registration and insurance card in a plastic bag dangling out of the barely open window. The officer examines the documentation with his flashlight and allows Gray to drive through the checkpoint. The Broward County Sherriff’s Office stated that Gray was allowed to go through the checkpoint because “he clearly was not driving while intoxicated.”

Police are unhappy with the tactics being used by Redlich, and insist that drivers must speak with police at the checkpoints. However, Redlich is not backing down and has created flyers for 10 states, each slightly different due to differences in DUI laws. He says there are more flyers on the way.

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The question of whether medical marijuana cultivation centers and dispensaries will receive their licenses has been put into the hands of the new governor, Bruce Rauner. Governor Pat Quinn left office without issuing the contemplated licenses and it is unclear whether Rauner will issue them. Rauner showed his opposition to medical marijuana during his campaign but sources indicate that he may be reconsidering his position. A Rauner spokeswoman said his administration is “in the process of reviewing it.”

While the decision to issue licenses has not been made, on Monday morning, Governor Quinn signed into law changes to the current medical marijuana program in Illinois. One significant change is that patients charged with driving under the influence of medical cannabis will have their medical marijuana card revoked and their driver’s license suspended.

Also, state regulators will have the authority to fine and suspend individuals for violating existing law. Before this change, the only penalty was to revoke a violator’s license. Additionally, fingerprints of owners, investors, and employees of cultivation centers and dispensaries as well as patients and caregivers will be checked against state and federal databases.

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As part of its DUI statute, Illinois has a provision that provides that any amount of cannabis or controlled substance in a driver’s system may be the basis for a DUI charge. This is the only part of Illinois DUI law that permits a charge of driving while under the influence – even if there is no evidence that the person was impaired or intoxicated.

The most commonly cited example of the law is the person who may have smoked marijuana days or weeks earlier and then is stopped for a minor moving violation or as a result of an accident. If the officer has any reason to believe that the person had smoked marijuana at some point, the officer may seek testing. Often the situation arises in the case of an accident where the person was injured, taken to a hospital and testing is conducted, revealing the presence of a by-product of marijuana, called a ‘metabolite’.

The most recent example of the absurdity of the law is the case of Scott Shirey. In December 2011, Mr. Shirey was driving with his two young twin sons in his car. While driving, he was broad-sided by another vehicle and one of his children was killed and his old child was severely injured.

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