Being Excused from State Criminal Court
Defendants often want to be excused from attending court. This might be, for example, because they must drive for hours (or even days) to reach the courthouse or they don’t want to miss work or school....
View ArticlePaying Fines in Coles County
Whenever possible, I recommend that defendants pay their fines and court costs by money order, cash, or check. This is because substantial fees are charged for credit card payments. But, it is better...
View ArticleIllinois Zero Tolerance Penalties
What are the suspension periods for drivers under 21 who violate the zero-tolerance law? 1st failure of testing: 3 months 1st refusal: 6 months 2nd failure of testing: 1 year 2nd refusal: 2 years...
View ArticleTaking a Road Trip
Today, while reading a police report in a DUI case, I tried to decide if the traffic stop preceding the DUI arrest was lawful. After some brief legal research, I jumped in my truck and took off down...
View ArticleAnatomy of an Illinois Statutory Citation
To the uninitiated, the citation form for Illinois statutes can be mystifying. For example, the citation for the per se DUI offense in Illinois is 625 ILCS 5/11-501(a)(1). But, after you understand the...
View ArticleQuotes for Lawyers
Lawyers put some thought-provoking quotes in their emails — often in a signature block. Here are a few favorites of mine that I have seen. I have not verified the accuracy of the attributed sources...
View ArticleOUI vs. DUI: More Differences
In a previous post on watercraft OUI vs. motor vehicle DUI, I discussed some differences between the two offenses. Here are a few more differences: Second OUI Is a Felony, but Second DUI Is a...
View ArticleOn Being Treated Unfairly
Some potential and current clients I talk to feel the police and the state’s attorney’s office are treating them unfairly. This is frequently not the case. If a guilty person wrongly feels the State...
View ArticleConfidentiality of Consultations
During initial (usually free for most cases) consultations, some potential clients will ask if consultations are confidential. The short answer is “yes.” Even though these people have not become...
View ArticleMailing Address Change
The Charleston Post Office is moving all post office boxes to the new post office location in town. Due to the move, they are downsizing the number of available post office boxes. The post office is...
View Article2010 Stats In Review (Post Generated by WordPress.com)
The stats helper monkeys at WordPress.com mulled over how this blog did in 2010, and here’s a high level summary of its overall blog health: The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads This blog is doing awesome!....
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