DuPage County, Naperville, Illinois Criminal Defense Blog

In Illinois, driving under the influence can subject a driver to significant penalties, including fines and jail time. Several aspects of a case can escalate the penalties a person faces for DUI. A person with a prior conviction may face more serious penalties. Those with a blood alcohol content of .16 or higher can receive extra jail time, fines or community service obligations. Another potential escalator is driving under the influence with a child under the age of 16 in the car. A recent case involving the arrest of a Chicago limo driver may involve one of more of these escalators.

Twenty-three teenagers were traveling in a limo to their high school prom. Several of the students became concerned about the driver's conduct and called their parents. Their parents telephoned the police. The driver was met by DuPage County Sheriff's deputies upon arrival at the prom venue. There, they arrested him for driving under the influence of alcohol and reckless conduct.

An officer who was once considered the top enforcer of DUI laws in Chicago may cost the city hundreds of thousands of dollars because of police misconduct. The officer was accused by prosecutors or falsifying police reports. He was also accused of beating a suspect and falsely accusing him of drinking and driving before handcuffing him to a bar. The officer was relieved of his duties as a police officer, though he now has a job with the police records department. The case led the City Council Finance Committee to recommend a $325,000 settlement to complete the matter.

The officer lost his police powers in 2008. Just last year, he pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice. He was given one-day of suspension and returned to work. In total, nine lawsuits have been filed against the former officer and the city in connection with his actions.

Did you know that in DuPage County there were over 4,000 people arrested for DUI last year alone? While the vast majority of DUI arrests are not on the major holiday weekends, You should know that there are many additional DUI patrols issued and out on the streets during those major holiday weekends, especially Memorial Day weekend.

As a DUI attorney in DuPage County including Naperville, Carol Stream, Bensenville, and Addison, I have represented hundreds if not thousands of DUI clients in DuPage County and many of those arrests were on Memorial Day weekend. The best bet is to be safe on these weekends and not drink and drive at all. However, if you are arrested for DUI in DuPage County you will need competent representation once your case is scheduled for a court date after the DUI arrest. You should contact my office anytime if you have been arrested for DUI in any town In DuPage County or feel free to look at some of the cases we have resolved successfully in DuPage county.


- Posted by DUI Lawyer, John W. Callahan

Location:Addison, Illinois

Breathalyzers are widely used by law enforcement as a fast and easy way to judge a person's blood alcohol content. While breathalyzer tests have many deficiencies, law enforcement generally regards them as excellent evidence that a person has been drinking and driving. A new device developed in Sweden may soon expand the use of breathalyzers into the arena of driving under the influence of drugs. The new test can supposedly detect whether a driver has any one of twelve drugs in his or her system. If the test is approved here, it could greatly expand the use of breathalyzers on Illinois motorists.

The new device claims to be able to identify controlled substances such as marijuana, cocaine, heroin, morphine and methamphetamine by analyzing the breath of a user. Currently, police officers require blood or urine samples to identify which drivers have controlled substances in their systems. While those methods of testing also have their drawbacks, they are currently the methods by which driving under the influence of drugs is determined.

Teen drivers suffer from highly elevated car accident rates, including a much higher rate of fatal crashes. A recent survey conducted by Liberty Mutual Holding Co. indicates that teen drivers may not appreciate the danger of a particular form of impaired driving: driving under the influence of marijuana. The survey questioned teen drivers about their understanding of the impact of alcohol and marijuana on the ability to drive safely. The survey revealed that a startling percentage of teens believe that marijuana either helps them drive or has no impact on their driving ability.

The data was gathered from more than 1,700 juniors and seniors in high schools all over the United States. While the majority of teens, nearly three quarters, acknowledged that driving while on marijuana is distracting, those who do it do not seem to appreciate the danger. Among the teens who have driven high, 34 percent felt it made them better drivers and an additional 41 percent felt it made no difference.

The Supreme Court recently considered the question of whether or not a warrant was required before law enforcement officials could draw blood from someone suspected of drunk driving. The question arose from a Missouri case in which a man who refused to take a breath test, or consent to a blood test, was subjected to the test even though no warrant had been obtained. While the Supreme Court did not declare that a warrant was needed in every case, the ruling did uphold the Missouri court's decision suppress the evidence.

The decision laid out several factors for deciding when a warrantless blood test of a DUI suspect might be acceptable. The issue largely depends on whether it is possible to obtain a warrant in the time frame necessary to get a meaningful blood sample. The opinion states that cases are to be judged individually, based on the "totality of the circumstances" involved. The processes by which various law enforcement bodies obtain warrants may become an issue.

I recently bumped into a situation in DuPage County where we were offered a rescind for plea deal by the prosecution. A "rescind for plea" means that the state or local prosecution will remove the statutory summary suspension from the defendants record in exchange for a plea to the DUI. This is often done in situations where the defendant has an advantage over the prosecution in the suspension phase but not in the case in chief. For example, let's say that the matter is set for a hearing on a summary suspension and the prosecution is not able to proceed that day even though the defendant submitted to a BAC over .08. The prosecution may see that they will lose the suspension hearing on a procedural basis so they will offer a rescind for plea deal. This way, the defendant gets the suspension off his or her record and the prosecution gets a plea on the DUI.


- Posted by DUI Lawyer, John W. Callahan

Location:Wheaton, Illinois

As lawyers who handle driving while under the influence charges in Carol Stream and Naperville, Illinois, as well as all of DuPage County, both Norris & Callahan are repeatedly asked what happens if the police officer fails to appear at the DUI trial. It depends.

When facing DUI charges in DuPage county, the police officers typically are not required to appear until the day of trial once the statutory summary suspension is resolved. But if the police do not show up when the matter is set for trial, the judge will typically give the State a second and often a third chance to get the officer in to testify on the DUI charge.

With that said, we recently had a case dismissed after pushing the State repeatedly to trial when the cop did not appear in court. The judge got sick of it and denied the state their request to continue the DUI trial in DuPage County.

Case dismissed.

- Posted by DUI Lawyer, John W. Callahan

Location:Carol Stream, Illinois

As a criminal lawyer in Kane County and DuPage County we are asked the question as to whether you have to go to jail or the penitentiary for stealing from an employer or other white collar crimes. The answer is often NO! Recently, we saw a situation where an employee of a school district stole more than $40,000 from the district. The client was terrified after being told that the only option was prison by her first attorney.

Common sense said that there was a way out of prison through another means of negotiating with the State's Attorney. Although it took a significant amount of time considering the magnitude of the charges, we were able to get the felony case reduced to a misdemeanor. Our client was extremely happy because the case ended with a misdemeanor probation disposition. No jail.

Obviously, every situation is different but an aggressive white collar defense lawyer can often help prevent the need for you to go to prison.

Posted by criminal defense lawyer John Callahan

Location: Geneva, Illinois