Chicago DUI lawyer provides an update on the nail painting fatal accident

Last month I posted on a tragic accident involving a driver who was painting her nails. Some believe that the new texting while driving ban will prevent accidents and I used this specific case to highlight that there were plenty of other activities that people do while driving that could cause accidents. I noted that there was no need for this additional ban since I believe it creates the need for the legislators to spend time highlighting a laundry list of other activities to ban while driving, e.g. nail painting, reading, drinking and then spilling hot coffee, etc. Additionally, there are already sufficient laws in place to address so called "distracted driving." Looks like the prosecutors in Lake County agree:

June 8, Waukegan, Il

Lake County prosecutors who are considering upgraded charges threw out a traffic violation against Lora Hunt, who police say hit and killed a motorcyclist as Hunt painted her fingernails while driving last month.

“We’re investigating to determine whether more serious charges can be filed,” said Michael Waller, Lake County state’s attorney.

Hunt was scheduled to be in traffic court Monday. Had she pleaded guilty to the traffic violation, prosecutors might not have been able to pursue more serious charges against Hunt because of the double jeopardy statute, where a person cannot be tried twice on the same set of facts.

The 48-year-old grandmother from south suburban Morris was ticketed on May 2 for failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident. Lake County Sheriff’s police said Hunt was painting her nails while driving her Chevrolet Impala when she struck motorcycle rider Anita Zaffke, 56, at a Wauconda intersection. Hunt was bringing a crib from one daughter’s house to another daughter’s house when she collided with Zaffke, her attorney previously said.

I am guessing one of the charges that could possibly be filed is Aggravated Reckless Driving. It is a Class 4 felony. A Class 4 felony carries a minimum of one year and a maximum of 3 years in prison upon conviction. I guess we will have to see if the Lake County prosecutors find the current Illinois Criminal Code and Illinois Motor Vehicle Code sufficient to mete justice.