Lawyers Foresee Problems with New DUI Law
By Gerri L. Elder
As Illinois rang in the new year, a new DUI
law went into effect. The law requires first-time DUI offenders to have ignition interlock devices installed
on their vehicles, or in any vehicle that they wish to drive, during the
license suspension period. Any person caught driving while their license is
suspended for DUI without an ignition interlock device can be charged with a
Class 4 felony.
The State Journal-Register reported that Illinois DUI Lawyers are skeptical about how the law can be implemented. Many believe that it is only a matter of time before the new law is challenged in court.
Budget shortfalls are a major concern. The division within the Illinois Secretary of State's office that is in charge of the ignition interlock program had hoped to have around 30 employees by Jan. 1. However, budget cuts made by Gov. Rod Blagojevich last year took more than $3 million from the program's budget and the division has only six employees.
The division has not run into problems yet, but may by
mid-March. Summary license suspensions take effect 45 days after a DUI arrest.
Under the new law, there is no driving during the first 30 days of a summary
suspension. Therefore, the soonest that anyone arrested for DUI in 2009 could
get a permit to drive with an ignition interlock device would be around the
middle of March. At that time, the understaffed division may run into problems.
The Breath Alcohol Ignition Interlock Device (BAIID) Program
requires drivers to submit a breath sample to be tested for alcohol content. If
the breath sample registers a .025 percent or higher blood alcohol level, the
car will not start. The ignition interlock device also requires drivers to
submit to breath
tests at random intervals in order to continue driving.
DUI offenders who participate in the program will be
required to pay approximately $100 to have the ignition interlock installed and
an $80 per month rental fee. A $30 per
month monitoring fee, payable to the secretary of state's office, is also
required.
The law requires an indigency fund for offenders who can't
afford to pay for the ignition interlock device. This fund is to be created
from a surcharge that will be added to paying offenders' installation and
rental fees. Indigent offenders will be responsible for paying the $30 per
month monitoring fee.
The indigency fund creates another hurdle for the law to
overcome. There have not been any indigency guidelines established, so judges
will have to make the determination about indigency. Since the ignition interlock
devices will be cost-prohibitive for many people, there are likely to be many
more indigency requests than can be granted.
There are approximately 40,000 first-time DUI offenders in
Illinois each year. Lawyers who are skeptical of the new law say that there are
simply not enough workers or funding for the BAIID program to run smoothly.
