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Recent Blog Posts
What Can I Do if I Got Caught With Oxycodone or Other Opioids in Illinois?
Getting caught with illegal drugs carries serious penalties in Illinois, especially as the attention of courts and society at large is drawn towards the dangers of the opioid pandemic. In general, more dangerous drugs carry more serious penalties, and while people may disagree with the classifications, drugs are nevertheless divided into strict classes that make determining criminal punishments easier.
The least serious drugs are classified as Schedule V drugs, which includes things like cough syrup and other substances that are unlikely to be abused. On the other end of the spectrum are Schedule I drugs, including heroin, ecstasy, and, on the federal level, cannabis. Oxycodone is a Schedule II drug, and along with other opiates, it has a high potential for addiction and abuse. If you have been charged with possession or distribution of Oxycodone or another illegal drug, it is important to get the help of an Illinois criminal defense attorney.
How Can I Post Bail in Will County, Illinois?
Much has been made in recent years of necessary reforms to the criminal bail system. Nevertheless, until bail is no longer required or there is another way to ensure people charged with crimes appear in court, bail will continue to plague people who have yet to be proven guilty. If you or a loved one has been arrested and charged with a crime in Illinois, you should know as much as you can about how the bail system works.
What is Bail?
When someone is accused of a crime in Illinois, the state has several options. Depending on the severity of the crime, the alleged perpetrator may be kept in jail, released on bail, or released without having to post bail. If someone has enough money to pay the full amount of bail with cash, he or she can do that. If not, a jail may allow a surety bond, which lets the defendant out of jail after 10 to 15 percent of the bail is posted. No matter what happens, the defendant never gets back the 10 percent of a surety bond because the court keeps it as a fee.
Will I Go to Jail for Getting My First DUI in Will County, Illinois?
It is the morning after a fun night with friends. You wake up, your head hurts, and then your stomach sinks as you remember - you were arrested last night for driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol. This happens to about 35,000 people every year in Illinois and even though you may have never thought it would happen to you, now you have to deal with the consequences.
Will I go to jail? Will I lose my license? All of these are questions we frequently hear from first-time DUI clients. While the specific punishments can depend on the case and your previous criminal record, it is important to take your first DUI seriously and hire an Illinois DUI defense lawyer so you can make the appropriate amends and avoid harsher sanctions in the future.
What Are the Penalties for a First-Time DUI in Illinois?
Someone’s first DUI offense is a Class A misdemeanor. Class A misdemeanors are the most serious misdemeanor charges and one could land you in jail for up to a year, along with up to $2,500 in fines. For strictly first-time DUI offenses, it is rare to be hit with the harshest penalties available - more often, there will be a mandatory $500 minimum fine, probation, and possibly substance abuse counseling.
Help! I’ve Been Accused of Child Endangerment for Running Errands With My Child in the Car
As any parent of a young child knows, sometimes running errands while constantly buckling a tantruming or sleeping child in and out of a car seat is simply too much to ask. Frustrated and exhausted, parents will often lock a child in a car and quickly run into the grocery store or post office, complete their business, and hurry back out to find all is well.
Unfortunately, even if the parent feels the child is safe, this may result in criminal charges. Under certain circumstances, Illinois law prohibits leaving young children unattended in a vehicle because doing so can place a child at significant risk. If you have been charged with child endangerment for leaving your child in a car, read on.
Is Leaving a Child in a Car Really Child Endangerment?
Many parents, especially those living in rural areas who grew up with plenty of independence, have a hard time understanding how a cautious parent who leaves a sleeping child in a car could be guilty of child endangerment. Yet a child left alone in a car is subject to many hazards, including:
What Happens if I Carry a Gun in Will County Without a Concealed Carry Permit?
Having a gun on your person or in your car in Illinois without a concealed carry permit is a gun crime. Illinois does not allow open carry, which is the practice of openly having a firearm in public. Therefore, in order to go anywhere with a gun outside of your home, you must have a concealed carry permit in Illinois (excluding transportation of firearms, which only requires the gun to be contained in an enclosed case).
Only people who are 21 and older, who have completed the appropriate training course, and who have a Firearm Owners Identification Card (FOID) may have a concealed carry permit, and only handguns may be concealed. While following these rules may seem onerous, they are absolutely essential for preventing criminal charges. If you have been charged with a concealed carry permit violation, you may want the help of a criminal defense attorney.
Can I Refuse a Field Sobriety Test in Joliet, Illinois?
Being pulled over on the suspicion of driving under the influence (DUI) can create a situation where people feel the need to prove their innocence then and there. In doing so, they may think that they have no choice other than to complete a field sobriety test when prompted by the officer who pulled them over.
While the logic makes sense, in all actuality, you do not have to agree to a field sobriety test in Illinois. Many people are not aware of this, but that is often because officers do not offer up that information unprovoked because it is not in their best interest to do so.
However, knowing your rights is in your best interest, including the right to refuse a field sobriety test in Illinois.
What is a Field Sobriety Test?
A field sobriety test is often referred to as a singular test, but this is misleading as there are actually three field sobriety tests, all of which serve a singular purpose. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there is the one-leg stand test, the horizontal gaze nystagmus test, and the walk-and-turn test.
Can I File a Lawsuit With Uber if a Driver Hits My Vehicle?
The process of filing claims or lawsuits after a car accident can be overwhelming. When another driver hits you, the process of exchanging information, contacting a lawyer, and filing a lawsuit or personal injury claim may sound straightforward. But what do you do if the driver who hits your vehicle is an Uber driver who is on the clock? Is the process of filing a lawsuit involving a rideshare driver different?
Determining Liability in Ridesharing Accidents
To start with, it is imperative to determine liability, which is not always easy to decipher. You will have a perspective in terms of who you believe is at fault for the accident, but in order for your viewpoint to be recognized as a fact, negligence needs to be proven on part of the rideshare driver.
Not only is negligence a difficult factor to prove, but there are also opposing parties who may have different recollections as to what happened. If you have a dashcam or a nearby witness captured footage of the crash, this visual documentation of events as they unfolded is invaluable.
Drunk Driving Laws and Penalties in Illinois
Driving while drunk is a criminal offense in the state of Illinois. As such, if you are pulled over because you have been found to be operating a motor vehicle with alcohol in your system, you could be subjected to an array of penalties for breaking the law.
Illinois Laws Regarding Driving While Drunk
In Illinois, operating a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol content (BAC) equal to or greater than 0.08% is considered intoxicated per se. In other words, anyone driving a vehicle with a blood-alcohol concentration that exceeds 0.079% is considered to be driving while drunk. However, it is possible to face arrest for driving under the influence even if your BAC is under the legal limit. It is also illegal to operate a vehicle if you are impaired by prescription medications or controlled substances.
Individuals who are operating commercial vehicles, such as school bus drivers, with a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.04% are also legally drunk in the eyes of Illinois law. If you are under the age of twenty-one and operating any type of motor vehicle in Illinois, you can face penalties under the Illinois Zero Tolerance policy if your blood-alcohol concentration exceeds zero.
3 Winter Car Accident Dangers to Avoid in Joliet
The winter months are upon us, and this is the perfect time of year for anyone who thrives in colder temperatures. From snow and sleet to ice, the winter season can be very enjoyable when you are prepared. Similarly, driving in the wintertime is manageable when you are properly equipped for the road conditions. But if you do not know what to expect and you head out on the road without preparation, you risk getting injured in a car accident.
Invisible Ice, Snow, and Sleet on the Road
It is imperative to practice safety measures all year, but prioritizing safety is especially important during the winter months. The weather plays a key role in many seasonal accidents, particularly when it comes to sleet, ice, and snow on the road.
As a driver, not all of these conditions are easy to detect, namely black ice and sleet. It is advisable to look into proper protocol when it comes to driving along ice, sleet, or snow. For instance, do you know what to do in the moment if your car begins sliding along a sheet of ice?
Truck Accidents Caused by Spilled Cargo
Trucks play a critical role in U.S. commerce. In fact, it could be said that if trucks ground to a halt, the American economy would grind to a halt as well. Although the economic benefit is undeniable, there are negative externalities to having so many large trucks on the road. For example, thousands of Americans are injured or killed in large truck accidents annually. Of course, many of these crashes involve a truck colliding with another vehicle. However, in other instances, the damage is not caused by the rig itself, but by what is inside of it. Semi-truck cargo spills are responsible for serious traffic accidents on Illinois roads every year. When a truck loses the cargo it is hauling, the potential for destruction is immense. The cargo could pose a hazard to other vehicles, and the truck may become imbalanced and either tip over or enter a jackknife. Victims are often left with debilitating injuries and may take months or even years to recover from. Additionally, they could face other obstacles, like medical debt and job loss. Although their circumstances are often dire, they may have legal recourse if the crash was a result of negligence or wrongdoing.
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