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Typical facts in an Illinois DUI

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What Happens During a DUI Arrest in Illinois

• An officer stops a vehicle at a roadside safety check or for probable cause, reasonable suspicion or unusual operation.  We can contest these "safety checks" in court to ensure that your rights weren't violated.
• The Illinois officer observes the driver and requests a driver's license, vehicle registration and insurance card.  Often, the officer will indicate that the driver "fumbled" through his wallet while looking for his or her Illinois license.  This is an indicator of DUI according to the National Highway Transportation Association and can be contested and contradicted at trial through the use of video and / or audio tapes.
• The officer will ask the driver if he has had anything to drink?  This is the ultimate Catch-22.  If the driver says yer, he gives the officer probable cause for more sobriety testing.  If the driver answers no, the officer will indicate that the driver's response to the question was slurred and slow.  If the officer asks have you had anything to drink, he has typically made up his mind that he is going to arrest you.
• If the officer suspects the driver is under the influence, the driver is requested to submit to field sobriety tests.  If these tests (the HGN / eye test) are performed while the driver is in the car it will hurt the prosecutions case against you.
• If the officer does not suspect the driver is under the influence, the driver is released with any applicable violations.  But you wouldn't be on this site if that happened would you?
• The next test is typically the ABC test.  The officer will ask to recite the ABCs without the driver "singing" them.  This is not a standardized field test and can be eliminated from evidence based on the fact that there is no correlation between failure of that test and intoxication.
• After the ABC test, the officer will often ask the driver to count backwards from 67-58.  Again, this test can be precluded from being admitted into evidence due to the fact that it is not a standardized field sobriety test.
• The big field sobriety tests are the one leg stand test and the walk and turn test.
• The officer will often not give complete instruction on the walk and turn test or will have the driver perform the walk and turn test using an invisible line on the ground.  The field testing manual requires a designated line on a flat surface.  If the tests were not performed in the required way, they can be prevented from being used against the driver.
• The one leg stand test is the final standardized test that is normally given.  Officers routinely fail to give proper instructions on this test.  When they do, we can attack it.
• If the officer has probable cause based on the field sobriety tests, the driver is placed under arrest for DUI and taken to the nearest police station in Illinois. The driver is requested to submit to a chemical testing of breath, urine or blood.
• If the chemical test determines the driver is not under .08, we have seen drivers who are still charged with DUI - even as low as a .05.
• If a tested driver's BAC is more than .05 but less than .08 percent and no drugs are found in the system, no Statutory Summary Suspension should apply. However, in at least three cases of our we have found that the Secretary of State attempted to improperly suspend the license of our client despite blowing under .08.  We were able to correct the record and keep our clients driving.  
• If the driver refuses or fails to complete testing, the Statutory Summary Suspension will apply. In Illinois, a repeat DUI offender who refuses testing will not be eligible for a MDDP (Monitoring Device Driving Permit) during the 12 months to three year suspension. A repeat offender who takes the test and fails is not eligible for an RDP during the 12-month suspension.  This is why it is so important to contest the validity of the suspension as soon as possible.  Every day you wait is a day that could be working for you to contest the suspension.
• If the driver's test results show a BAC of .08 percent or more, or any trace of a drug, illegal substance or intoxicating compound, the driver will be issued a law enforcement sworn report notifying the driver of a Statutory Summary Suspension.
• If the driver's license is valid, a receipt is issued that will allow driving for 45 days.
• A driver may obtain additional testing at his/her own expense; the results are admissible in Illinois court.  
• The offender is required to post bond in and may be detained in Illinois until bond is posted.

Contact us immediately to contest the suspension of
your Illinois Driver's license at 888-DUI-IL-14.

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