Minooka DUI: Three Small Problems That Raise the Charge

The three paperwork facts

The Vehicle Code lists these among the facts that make a DUI aggravated (625 ILCS 5/11-501(d)(1)):

• Suspended or revoked license. The driver was in a period of suspension or revocation that came from a DUI, from a summary suspension under section 11-501.1, from reckless homicide, or from an offense under paragraph (b) of section 11-401.
• No license or permit. The driver had no driver's license, no restricted permit, no judicial driving permit and no monitoring device driving permit.
• No insurance. The driver knew or should have known the vehicle was not covered by a liability policy.

Aggravated DUI under this subsection is a Class 4 felony unless another rule says otherwise. A person who gets probation or conditional discharge must serve at least 480 hours of community service or 10 days in jail (11-501(d)(3)).

Why these facts arrive with the arrest

None of these three depends on the roadside tests. They come from records: the license status check, the insurance card, the registration. The village's own Minooka Police Department is the department the village website describes. Whatever agency made the stop, the paperwork facts are written into the report, and a fix made after the stop does not change what the license and the policy showed on the date of it.

This is a fair place for Jeff to be careful. Where a policy was in force, or a license was valid, the documents that show it are the thing to bring. Bring paper, not only your recollection.

Which county

Minooka is split among three counties. Most of the village is in Grundy County, heard in Morris. A part is in Will County, heard at the Will County Courthouse in Joliet. A smaller part is in Kendall County, heard in Yorkville. The citation names the court. Jeff takes cases in Will County. For Grundy or Kendall dates, call first so he can say whether he can take the case.

The rest of the aggravating list

The three paperwork facts are not the whole list. The statute also makes a DUI aggravated for a third or later offense, for driving a school bus with passengers aboard, for a prior conviction of reckless homicide in which impairment was an element, and for transporting passengers in a vehicle for hire (625 ILCS 5/11-501(d)(1)(A), (B), (D) and (L)). A third violation is a Class 2 felony. Other pages here cover crash and child passenger facts. The point of this list is simple: the charging paper names the subsection, and the subsection tells you what the state must prove.

Questions to answer before the call

When did your license last show as valid? Is there a notice from the Secretary of State in the last year? Who is the insurer, and what is the policy number? Was the car yours, a friend's or an employer's? Jeff asks these because each answer either supports or removes one of the three paperwork facts.

Pages that go with this one

The aggravated DUI page lists every aggravating fact. The driving while revoked page covers the underlying license charge. The felony DUI page covers the felony levels, and the reinstatement page is for fixing a license after a case. If this is your first charge with no paperwork problem, read the after a DUI arrest page. More about the village is on Areas We Serve: Minooka.

Reviewed by Jeff McCarthy, Attorney, Inspired Law Group, 136 E 9th St, Lockport, IL 60441.