Sadly, the answer is yes. If you blow 0.08 or more on a breathalyzer or refuse to blow into the breathalyzer, your license will be automatically suspended for 6 months (.08 or over) or 12 months (if you refuse to blow).

If you have a prior DUI, the length of the suspension could be as long as 3 years!

Any blood test taken from someone charged with DUI can be used against them in court, including any blood samples taken by a doctor or nurse.

In addition, the officer can request the motorist to submit to another blood test that is sent to the State crime laboratory for further testing.

Yes. You can install a state approved breathalyzer (known as a BAIID) in your car. Then, you will have to blow into the BAIID to start your car and periodically blow into it again while you’re driving the car.

However, if you have a previous DUI within five years of your current arrest, you cannot get a BAIID device to drive during your suspension.

Yes! The law adopts the philosophy of “shoot first, ask questions later” when it comes to taking away your driver’s license after a DUI arrest. But you have THE RIGHT to contest your suspension and win your license back!

The sooner you hire a lawyer to do it, the better chance you have at beating your summary suspension!

It is not easy. It starts with filing a special type of motion called a “Petition to Rescind the Statutory Summary Suspension.” After that, it takes a knowledgeable defense lawyer to strategically find the best way to win the license back.

Some examples include:

1. Challenging whether the officer had the right to stop your car.
2. Challenging whether the officer had the right to even arrest you for DUI.
3. Challenging whether the officer read the necessary “Warning to Motorist” to you.
4. Challenging whether they offered you a breathalyzer test.
5. Working out deals with the prosecutor to convince them to give you back your license.

An experienced lawyer will help you find the best strategy to beat your suspension, but time is of the essence, so be sure to act QUICKLY!

Maybe. It all depends on many different factors involved with your case. If it’s your FIRST dui in your lifetime, and no one was injured, you won’t do any jail time (although there are no guarantees…).

However, if it’s NOT your first DUI, then the probability for jail goes up. For example, on a second DUI, if convicted, a person must do a minimum of 5 days of jail (or 240 hours of community service). If you had a breathalyzer test of 0.16 or above, the law adds an automatic 2-day jail sentence.

Although it is extremely rare to receive jail for a first DUI, the likelihood of jail time increases which each new DUI arrest.

Don’t forget it, if you win your DUI case at trial, or it’s dismissed, then you’ll never do jail on a DUI!

If you’re convicted of a DUI, then the DMV “revokes” your driver’s license indefinitely; this means that the DMV does not give you a future date when you can drive again.

Therefore, in order to drive again, you must undertake the arduous “reinstatement” process to get your license back. Depending on your driving history, you will have to complete dui classes, maintain sobriety, get character references, and be interrogated by a representative from the DMV.

Since the whole process requires specific answers and prep work, it’s highly recommended that you hire a lawyer to assist you.

While applying for full reinstatement of your driver’s license, you can get a “hardship license” called a Restrictive Driving Permit (RDP), which will allow you to drive for work, school, or medical purposes with the use of a breathalyzer device on your car.

The RDP is often given instead of your regular driver’s license after a license reinstatement hearing as a “trial” period before you get your full license back.

An order of protection is often called a “restraining order.” It is a civil protection document that prohibits a person from going to someone’s house, contacting them, or going within a certain distance of the protected person.

If the order of protection is violated, then the police can arrest you for violating an order of protection and charge you with a misdemeanor.

Yes. If an Order of Protection is entered against you, it does go on your records, and you can never remove it through expungement or sealing.

If you believe an Order of Protection was wrongfully entered against you, you must challenge it in court to get it removed from your record. Even if the order was entered without your presence in court, you still have up to 30 days to ask to have it removed.

UUW stands for Unlawful Use of a Weapon. A person is charged with UUW when they possess a firearm illegally. It is often charged as a felony, called Aggravated UUW.

Here are a few ways a person can be charged with UUW:

1. You possess a gun but do not have a Firearm Owners Identification Card (FOID).
2. You possess a FOID, but you are possessing a firearm in a restricted area.
3. You possess a FOID, but do not properly transport your weapon in a car (uncased, unloaded, and out of reach of the driver and passengers).

Both expungement and sealing involve the act of filing a petition to hide your criminal record.

Expungement means that your criminal records are destroyed and removed from the criminal index system.

Sealing means that your records are hidden from the public; only law enforcement officials and some employers can see your records. The types of employers that can view sealed records are some governmental agencies or other employers that require fingerprints before hiring.

Regardless if your case has been expunged or sealed, you are not required to disclose an expunged or sealed case on a job application.

Expunging your records in Illinois is a fairly straight forward process. The expungement procedures vary from county to county and district to district (i.e. in Cook County). For example, if you want to expunge (or seal) a charge from Chicago (1^st District), you must first obtain a criminal history from the Chicago Police Department; this form is called a “Rap Sheet,” and must be filed along with the petition to expunge.

Whether you can expunge depends on how the charge ended (i.e. what was the “disposition”)? Only charges that ended in a dismissal, acquittal (not guilty), supervision, or special “qualified probations.”

If your charge ended in a dismissal or an acquittal, then you can expunge your charge immediately.

If your charge ended in supervision, you must wait 2 years after the supervision ends. Most supervision periods last between 1 to 2 years.

If your charge ended in a “qualified probation,” then you likely have to wait 5 years after the qualified probation ends. Some examples of qualified probation are 410 (aka 1410) probation, TASC, First Offender Gun Program, or Second Chance Probation.

If you want to expunge a drug case, you must submit a negative drug test along with your petition (weed is ok! 😉).