Posted on December 29, 2015 in Criminal Defense

Countless innocent individuals are wrongly accused because they are mistakenly identified as the person who committed the crime. When this is the case, criminal defendants can and should raise mistaken identity as a defense to the criminal charges that they face. Mistaken identity can be a good defense and it is a defense of innocence.

Every defense strategy that is available to you should be utilized when defending against a crime you did not commit. Mistaken identity defenses should be raised in addition to other defenses that support your position and your criminal defense lawyer should attempt to discredit eyewitness’ identification of you, as well as refute the evidence against you.

Why Does Mistaken Identity Happen in the First Place?

Sometimes an eyewitness is available in a criminal case who swears that the defendant is the person he or she saw commit the crime. While the witness’ belief is completely wholehearted (meaning the witness does not believe that he or she is wrong and that the witness is not lying), the witness’ recollection of the defendant simply might be mistaken. A number of factors can affect a witness’ ability to recall what criminal perpetrator looked like. For instance:

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 Posted on December 24, 2015 in Criminal Defense

The Illinois State Legislature has had a busy 2015. There have been several criminal law changes that are scheduled to take effect January 1, 2016. Many of these changes work in the favor of criminal defendants.

Aggravated Speeding

Illinois is still fine-tuning its aggravated speeding law. Currently, if you are driving faster than 26 miles per hour over the speed limit, but less than 35 miles per hour of the speed limit, you can be convicted of a Class B misdemeanor. The current maximum penalty is six months in jail and a $2,500 fine. You are also left with a criminal record.

The new law has given judges the ability to sentence defendants guilty of this Class B misdemeanor to Court Supervision. This means that the defendant will have to report to the court regularly and meet other requirements, including not getting into any more trouble, for a period of time. If the defendant complies the charges are dismissed after the period of supervision is over. When Court Supervision is successfully completed, there is no criminal conviction.

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 Posted on December 23, 2015 in Uncategorized

Law enforcement in Illinois takes driving under the influence of alcohol very seriously. Police regularly conduct DUI checkpoints, and pull over drivers who are suspected of operating a vehicle while under the influence. Before making an arrest, officers generally will ask a suspected drunk driver to participate in field sobriety testing, in accordance with 625 ILCS 5/11-501.2(a-5).

What Are the Standard Field Sobriety Tests in Illinois?

Many people have heard of field sobriety tests, but are not clear on what these tests are or what they entail until they are faced with them while pulled over on the side of the road. The standard field sobriety tests (FST) were developed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and consist of three tests designed to present indicators of intoxication of an individual. The tests include:

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 Posted on December 22, 2015 in Child Custody

Beginning in 2016, divorced, separated, and unmarried parents in Illinois will witness the dawning of a new era regarding the legal responsibilities they will be expected to assume for their children. Thanks to a major overhaul of the state’s family law provisions, families will no long be defined by terms such as sole or joint custody, which have proven to be rather divisive over the last several decades. Instead, parents will be expected to develop a plan for a more fluid allocation of parental responsibilities, allowing the process to remain focused on the best interests of the child.

Significant Decision-Making Responsibilities

For many years, the concept of child custody—especially legal custody—has referred to the authority of each parent to make important decisions regarding the child’s upbringing. Sole custody meant that one parent was fully responsible for such decisions, while joint custody required the parents to work together. The new law essentially creates a new “default” position of the court, which presumes the parents will cooperate in making decisions about education, religious training, medical care, and extracurricular activities for their child.

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 Posted on December 21, 2015 in Criminal Defense

Criminal charges are based on some sort of evidence that was found at the scene of the crime, that tends to point to a particular person. The evidence might not necessarily confirm that a suspect committed the crime, but the evidence suggests that the suspect has some relationship to the crime, such as having been present at the scene of the crime at some point in time or that the suspect had ties to the victim, etc. Alibis are a powerful tool for criminal defense as they can refute criminal accusations.

What Are Alibis?

When a suspect has an alibi, it means that the suspect was somewhere else, doing something else, or was with someone else at the time the alleged crime was committed. A valid and confirmable alibi provides evidence that the suspect/defendant is not the person who committed the crime because he or she was somewhere else or doing something else. An alibi is not an affirmative defense in Illinois, meaning even if the criminal defendant can prove the alibi, the jury is still tasked with making the decision as to whether to convict or not. However, a strong alibi is difficult for the prosecution to refute and the jury to ignore.

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 Posted on December 17, 2015 in DUI

Thanks to a new law signed last month by Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner, the fourth time may be the charm for some of the state’s repeat DUI offenders. Beginning January 1, 2016, those who have been convicted four times for driving under the influence may still be able to obtain a restricted driving permit and get back behind the wheel. The measure has been met with mixed reactions, as many believe that a four-time offender has already squandered his or her opportunities.

Thousands Possibly Impacted

According to recent estimates, there are currently more than 5,000 residents of Illinois who have been convicted of DUI on four separate occasions. Thus, when the measure goes into effect, a significant number of families could potentially be affected. Under current law, a four-time offender is prohibited from legally driving again, making it very difficult to continue working and to provide properly for his or her family. With at least the chance to obtain a restricted driving permit, an offender’s family may not be forced to bear the brunt of his or her actions forever.

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 Posted on December 17, 2015 in DUI/DWI

Many people who are charged with DUI under Illinois law are first-time offenders, and they have no idea what the DUI trial process will be like or even how it should be approached to either get the case dismissed or get the charges reduced. An experienced DUI criminal defense attorney with many years of trial experience can acquaint you with the process, and after developing an understanding of the facts about your specific DUI case, your attorney will be able to help you develop the best strategy for your trial.

The fines and penalties for a DUI conviction are significant and cannot be taken lightly, so presenting your best possible defense to the charges you face is in your interest. You want your DUI charges to go away, and a skilled and experienced criminal defense attorney will be able to evaluate the options that are available. to you. There are a number of strategies you may be able to utilize. For instance, you may present any of the following:

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 Posted on December 15, 2015 in Criminal Defense

Criminal charges need to be brought as soon as possible in order to expedite justice and to ensure that critical components of the crime, such as evidence and witnesses’ recollections of the events that took place, are fresh and viable. But that is not to say that some charges cannot be brought against an accused many months or years after the actual crime took place. As such, one question remains: is there any limit on how long after a crime that charges can be brought?

Most criminal charges are subject to a statute of limitations, which is a window of opportunity in which charges for a crime must be brought against the accused or else they will be time barred, at which point a court will no longer hear the case against the accused. A statute of limitations begins either after the crime is committed or a victim learns that a crime has been committed against him or her. The statute of limitations forces the state’s prosecutors to move forward on a criminal case in a timely manner.

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 Posted on December 10, 2015 in Criminal Defense

One of the most important and difficult decisions to make in many criminal trials is whether or not the defendant should testify. There are many strategic and ethical factors that go into this decision. Before you and your lawyer decide what is best for you case, you need to understand what goes into making the choice.

Your Constitutional Rights

Under the United States Constitution, you have a right to testify on your own behalf in a criminal trial. Neither a judge nor the prosecutor can prevent you from testifying.

You also have a constitutional right not to testify in a criminal trial. This is different than almost any other kind of case. In a civil trial you can be ordered to testify. But, when you are a criminal defendant no one can order you to testify.

There is also an added layer of protection. A judge or a jury cannot make any assumptions about what it means that you did not testify. They cannot assume that means you are guilty. Otherwise, it would impact your right not to testify.

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 Posted on December 10, 2015 in DUI/DWI

In Illinois, if you use the highways or roadways, you are considered to have given consent to chemical testing if you are arrested for driving under the influence under Illinois’ implied consent laws. A chemical test can either be a breath test, blood analysis, or a urine test, all of which are used to determine the blood alcohol concentration of a suspected drunk driver. You have a right to refuse to submit to chemical testing, but there are consequences for doing so, such as the automatic suspension of your driver’s license for refusal under 625 ILCS 5/6-203.1.

You would think that if you have not been drinking, then you would have nothing to fear in submitting to a chemical test, but this is not necessarily the case. There are a number of substances you can legally consume that can produce a false positive on your chemical test. Even if you have not been drinking alcohol, a false positive will cause you to be arrested for driving under the influence.

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