DUI/Traffic Lawyer

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PENALTIES 

Sec. 11-501.  Driving while under the influence of alcohol, other drug or drugs, intoxicating compound or compounds or any combination thereof.
(a) A person shall not drive or be in actual physical control of any vehicle within this State while:
 (1) the alcohol concentration in the person's blood, 

other bodily substance, or breath is 0.08 or more based on the definition of blood and breath units in Section 11-501.2;

(2) under the influence of alcohol;
 (3) under the influence of any intoxicating compound 

or combination of intoxicating compounds to a degree that renders the person incapable of driving safely;

(4) under the influence of any other drug or 

combination of drugs to a degree that renders the person incapable of safely driving;

(5) under the combined influence of alcohol, other 

drug or drugs, or intoxicating compound or compounds to a degree that renders the person incapable of safely driving;

(6) there is any amount of a drug, substance, or 

compound in the person's breath, blood, other bodily substance, or urine resulting from the unlawful use or consumption of a controlled substance listed in the Illinois Controlled Substances Act, an intoxicating compound listed in the Use of Intoxicating Compounds Act, or methamphetamine as listed in the Methamphetamine Control and Community Protection Act; or

(7) the person has, within 2 hours of driving or 

being in actual physical control of a vehicle, a tetrahydrocannabinol concentration in the person's whole blood or other bodily substance as defined in paragraph 6 of subsection (a) of Section 11-501.2 of this Code. Subject to all other requirements and provisions under this Section, this paragraph (7) does not apply to the lawful consumption of cannabis by a qualifying patient licensed under the Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Pilot Program Act who is in possession of a valid registry card issued under that Act, unless that person is impaired by the use of cannabis.

(b) The fact that any person charged with violating this Section is or has been legally entitled to use alcohol, cannabis under the Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Pilot Program Act, other drug or drugs, or intoxicating compound or compounds, or any combination thereof, shall not constitute a defense against any charge of violating this Section.
(c) Penalties.
 (1) Except as otherwise provided in this Section, any 

person convicted of violating subsection (a) of this Section is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.

(2) A person who violates subsection (a) or a similar 

provision a second time shall be sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of either 5 days of imprisonment or 240 hours of community service in addition to any other criminal or administrative sanction.

(3) A person who violates subsection (a) is subject 

to 6 months of imprisonment, an additional mandatory minimum fine of $1,000, and 25 days of community service in a program benefiting children if the person was transporting a person under the age of 16 at the time of the violation.

(4) A person who violates subsection (a) a first 

time, if the alcohol concentration in his or her blood, breath, other bodily substance, or urine was 0.16 or more based on the definition of blood, breath, other bodily substance, or urine units in Section 11-501.2, shall be subject, in addition to any other penalty that may be imposed, to a mandatory minimum of 100 hours of community service and a mandatory minimum fine of $500.

(5) A person who violates subsection (a) a second 

time, if at the time of the second violation the alcohol concentration in his or her blood, breath, other bodily substance, or urine was 0.16 or more based on the definition of blood, breath, other bodily substance, or urine units in Section 11-501.2, shall be subject, in addition to any other penalty that may be imposed, to a mandatory minimum of 2 days of imprisonment and a mandatory minimum fine of $1,250.

(d) Aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol, other drug or drugs, or intoxicating compound or compounds, or any combination thereof.
 (1) Every person convicted of committing a violation 

of this Section shall be guilty of aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol, other drug or drugs, or intoxicating compound or compounds, or any combination thereof if:

(A) the person committed a violation of 

subsection (a) or a similar provision for the third or subsequent time;

(B) the person committed a violation of 

subsection (a) while driving a school bus with one or more passengers on board;

(C) the person in committing a violation of 

subsection (a) was involved in a motor vehicle accident that resulted in great bodily harm or permanent disability or disfigurement to another, when the violation was a proximate cause of the injuries;

(D) the person committed a violation of 

subsection (a) and has been previously convicted of violating Section 9-3 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012 or a similar provision of a law of another state relating to reckless homicide in which the person was determined to have been under the influence of alcohol, other drug or drugs, or intoxicating compound or compounds as an element of the offense or the person has previously been convicted under subparagraph (C) or subparagraph (F) of this paragraph (1);

(E) the person, in committing a violation of 

subsection (a) while driving at any speed in a school speed zone at a time when a speed limit of 20 miles per hour was in effect under subsection (a) of Section 11-605 of this Code, was involved in a motor vehicle accident that resulted in bodily harm, other than great bodily harm or permanent disability or disfigurement, to another person, when the violation of subsection (a) was a proximate cause of the bodily harm;

(F) the person, in committing a violation of 

subsection (a), was involved in a motor vehicle, snowmobile, all-terrain vehicle, or watercraft accident that resulted in the death of another person, when the violation of subsection (a) was a proximate cause of the death;

(G) the person committed a violation of 

subsection (a) during a period in which the defendant's driving privileges are revoked or suspended, where the revocation or suspension was for a violation of subsection (a) or a similar provision, Section 11-501.1, paragraph (b) of Section 11-401, or for reckless homicide as defined in Section 9-3 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012;

(H) the person committed the violation while he 

or she did not possess a driver's license or permit or a restricted driving permit or a judicial driving permit or a monitoring device driving permit;

(I) the person committed the violation while he 

or she knew or should have known that the vehicle he or she was driving was not covered by a liability insurance policy;