What Determines How Severe a DUI Sentence Is?
By Dan Noll on October 1st, 2015 in
In Illinois the legislature has promulgated or created certain punishments for each DUI offense. Normally speaking, the punishment is based on the number of DUIs the individual has had, whether there was any injuries or death related to the DUI, and the status of the individual’s driver’s license. For example, if they were revoked for a prior DUI, that can affect the sentencing for a person’s DUI case.
The most common DUI is what we call the first offender. That’s where the individual, there was no accident, no death. Technically speaking, there can be an accident, but barring any death, it’s just a person’s first DUI. They were pulled over for speeding and the officer arrested them for DUI subsequent to that. In that case, an individual is eligible for court supervision should they meet certain requirements. Court supervision is very important in terms of of DUIs because it prevents a conviction from being entered on your driving abstract. If that conviction hits your driving record, your license will be revoked for a minimum of one year, meaning that you would need to go to the secretary of state and apply to get that license back.
In terms of first DUIs, most people aren’t looking at jail time. They’re looking at fines, fees, court costs, hopefully supervision. They are also looking at they need to obtain an alcohol evaluation by a state certified alcohol evaluator, which will also include a certain amount of alcohol counseling that the person would be required to complete. They would also need to attend a victim impact panel. That victim impact panel is put on by Mothers Against Drunk Driving in Springfield or Sangamon County. That normally occurs one time a month and you are directed through the probation office to attend that victim impact panel.
When you get past a first offender, it can really depend on the natures and circumstances of the offense. For more details on that you can look at our website. We lay that out pretty well for people. If you have any questions about any particular sentence you may be facing, feel free to give us a call. We’d be happy to give you a free consultation and discuss your case with you.