NOTE: This article has been updated to reflect the law as of 2020. The penalties listed pursuant to 625 ILCS 5/11-501 include all the newest penalties for driving with THC (Cannabis/marijuana) in your system. You are heading home from having a couple drinks with friends . . . and you see flashing lights behind you. […]
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People in Illinois can have suspensions and revocations on their licenses. A driver can get suspended or revoked for a variety of reasons, such as accumulating traffic convictions, a DUI conviction, or other specific traffic offenses that can lead to such a penalty on their own. This article explores the differences between informal and formal […]
It has long been Illinois policy that any amount of cannabis in the blood or urine of a driver can be the basis for a DUI charge. As of January 2014, Illinois updated the DUI laws in response to its new medical marijuana law. Under the new law, a qualifying patient under the Medical Cannabis Pilot […]
The nation’s highest court gave police broad powers to stop vehicles based on anonymous tips in a recent opinion. In the Navarette v. California case, the United States Supreme Court ruled that the police can pull over a vehicle based on an anonymous tip that the driver is intoxicated without observing any traffic violations themselves, […]
Governor Pat Quinn was in Tinley Park on August 22, 2012 for a bill-signing ceremony hosted by the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police (ILACP). He signed legislation from the General Assembly that directs funds received from DUI convictions to local law enforcement agencies for alcohol-related crime prevention and enforcement. The bill Gov. Quinn signed […]
Any person who operates a commercial motor vehicle on Illinois roadways without the required license commits a crime. By statute, it is a Class A misdemeanor offense to drive a CMV without a CDL. The Illinois vehicle code prohibits the operation of a commercial motor vehicle without a CDL under section 625 ILCS 5/6-507. The […]
The Illinois Secretary of State recently published its annual DUI Fact Book. The DUI Fact Book for 2012 is available for download here. Most of the information provided by the Secretary of State remains unchanged. The reason is rather few laws were passed during the last legislative session that will go into effect in the […]
State lawmakers changed the Illinois Vehicle Code for 2012 to regulate how municipalities tow vehicles after an arrest for driving under the influence. The police practice of towing a vehicle after a DUI arrest has been generally unregulated by state law until now. In the past, each city had its own procedures for towing, the […]
Call the cops on a drunk driver, win $100. This is the Drunk Busters program in Illinois sponsored by the Alliance Against Intoxicated Motorists (AAIM). Drunk Busters started in Illinois in 1990 and has spread nationwide. AAIM promises to pay $100 to anyone who calls 911 to report an intoxicated driver and later the call […]
Every person who is arrested for driving under the influence goes through the same process of evaluating what happened, and then deciding how to respond. On the day following the arrest, the first priority is usually getting the vehicle out of impound. After that comes the unpleasant experience of explaining the situation to a spouse, […]
