Chicago DUI lawyer comments on roadblocks, High-lidays, and drugs

This Chicago DUI lawyer has posted here, here, and here about Driving Under the Influence of Drugs. This particular offense is far easier to prove than Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol.

From chicagopolice.org:

“The program is designated to apprehend drivers who are operating vehicles while
under the influence of alcohol or drugs,” said Superintendent Jody Weis. “It also offers an opportunity to issue citations to drivers who are otherwise a hazard to themselves and others on the public way.”

If you provide the police with blood or urine and any amount of an illegal drug or even many prescribed drugs shows up you are going to have an uphill battle in winning a DUI case. I’m fully aware that earlier this week, some may have celebrated 4/20 High-liday. Here’s the kicker. While all of us would agree, that if you consumed Kush on April 20th you wouldn’t be under the influence of it tonight, but that’s not what Illinois law says:

Sec. 11 501. Driving while under the influence of alcohol, other drug or drugs, intoxicating compound or compounds or any combination thereof.
(a) A person shall not drive or be in actual physical control of any vehicle within this State while:
(6) there is any amount of a drug, substance, or compound in the person's breath, blood, or urine resulting from the unlawful use or consumption of cannabis listed in the Cannabis Control Act, a controlled substance listed in the Illinois Controlled Substances Act, an intoxicating compound listed in the Use of Intoxicating Compounds Act, or methamphetamine as listed in the Methamphetamine Control and Community Protection Act.

Perhaps, you were prescribed a painkiller by your physician and you’ve completed your course of treatment a week ago, that doesn’t mean that painkiller isn’t going to show up now if you decide to submit to blood or urine testing based on a DUI charge.

In other words, if you don’t know, to a scientific certainty, what’s apt to show up in your blood or urine you probably don’t want to provide a sample.