Chicago DUI lawyer says finally State Legislators realize you can't keep raising fees on motorists

This Chicago DUI lawyer has posted on traffic cameras here and here. Now comes the news of legislation that actually makes sense. A decrease in the maximum fines for motorists.

From HB4686

96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2009 and 2010
HB4686


Introduced , by Rep. Jack D. Franks


SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

625 ILCS 5/11-208.6
Amends the Illinois Vehicle Code. Decreases the maximum civil penalty for an automated traffic law enforcement system violation and failure to pay such a violation from $100 to $50.

Can you believe it, an actual decrease in maximum fines from these revenue garnering cameras?

Chicago DUI lawyer comments on memory, driving, and talking

This Chicago DUI lawyer has posted here, and here on distracted driving. Now comes news that memories decrease if you talk on your phone while driving.

January 22, Champaign, Il

It is well known that having a conversation (for example on a cell phone) impairs one’s driving. A new study indicates the reverse is also true: Driving reduces one’s ability to comprehend and use language.

The findings, from researchers at the University of Illinois, appear in the journal Psychonomic Bulletin & Review.

This is the first study to find that driving impairs language skills, said Gary Dell, a psycholinguist in the department of psychology at Illinois and corresponding author on the study. Two previous studies had reported that driving did not impair the accuracy and comprehension of speech.

“The previous findings made no sense to those of us who have studied language,” Dell said. “You might think that talking is an easy thing to do and that comprehending language is easy.

But it’s not. Speech production and speech comprehension are attention-demanding activities, and so they ought to compete with other tasks that require your attention – like driving.”

Well, looks like we are already moving in the direction of not talking and driving. Even Oprah has gotten on the bandwagon.

From Oprah.com:

I pledge to make my car a No Phone Zone. Beginning right now, I will do my part to help put an end to distracted driving by not texting or using my phone while I am driving. I will ask other drivers I know to do the same. I pledge to make a difference.

Hat tip to Shelley Blair.

Chicago DUI lawyer predicts new laws banning cell phone use while driving (even if it's hands-free)

This Chicago DUI lawyer has posted here, here, and here about distracted driving. Now comes news, from the Secretary of Transportation no less, suggesting it's time to banned talking on phones and driving, even if it is hands-free.

From Fast Lane:

A new study out today irresponsibly suggests that laws banning cell phone use while driving have zero effect on the number of crashes on our nation’s roadways.

At this early stage in our work against distracted driving, no one should be discouraging strong nationwide efforts to make our roadways safer. When it comes to distracted driving, we are only at the starting gate.

If anything, the study suggests we need even tougher protections. Adrian Lund, president of both the HLDI and IIHS, said, "Drivers in jurisdictions with such bans may be switching to hands-free phones because no U.S. state currently bans all drivers from using such phones." But, he wisely cautions, "We know that people talking hands-free are really not much safer than people talking on handhelds."

From CSMonitor.com:

Here's a shocker: That Bluetooth appendage in your ear isn't doing anything to make you safer. This comes from the Highway Loss Data Institute, which studies such things. More precisely, its study found that crash rates in places with bans in place – California, Connecticut, New York, and Washington D.C. – stayed the same when those bans were implemented.

"The laws aren’t reducing crashes, even though we know that such laws have reduced hand-held phone use, and several studies have established that phoning while driving increases crash risk," said Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and HLDI president Adrian Lund in a press briefing.

The National Safety Council earlier this month found that one in four US car crashes involves cell phone distraction. At the start of this year, Illinois joined the list of states that have banned texting behind the wheel, but with these new findings, are such laws enough? Digital distraction behind the wheel has been called a safety epidemic – should bans go all the way and ban all in-car cell phone use?

Oh-no! I suspect the cell phone industry is about to start lobbying Congress to avoid the ban of cell phones while driving.

Chicago DUI lawyer comments on texting being illegal for truck & bus drivers

This Chicago DUI lawyer has posted here, here, and here about texting and driving. Now comes news that commercial drivers will be treated like the rest of us.

Press Release from the Department of Transportation

U.S Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood yesterday announced federal guidance to expressly prohibit texting by drivers of commercial vehicles such as large trucks and buses. The prohibition is effective immediately and is the latest in a series of actions taken by the Department to combat distracted driving since the Secretary convened a national summit on the issue last September.

“We want the drivers of big rigs and buses and those who share the roads with them to be safe,” said Secretary LaHood. “This is an important safety step and we will be taking more to eliminate the threat of distracted driving.”

The action is the result of the Department’s interpretation of standing rules. Truck and bus drivers who text while driving commercial vehicles may be subject to civil or criminal penalties of up to $2,750.

"Our regulations will help prevent unsafe activity within the cab,” said Anne Ferro, Administrator for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). “We want to make it crystal clear to operators and their employers that texting while driving is the type of unsafe activity that these regulations are intended to prohibit."

Phew, finally some equity in treatment, assuming it really is safer to not text while driving.

Chicago DUI lawyer comments on the rights of the accused to drive

This Chicago DUI lawyer has posted here, here, and here about the mandatory license suspension for everyone in Illinois charged with a DUI. Now comes news that it doesn't work that way everywhere.

January 26, Raleigh, N.C.

By law, the magistrate has very little authority to keep an accused drunken driver off the road. He or she is entitled to bond. Plus, the statute focuses on convictions, not pending cases.
"It's not specifically listed in the statute that they're to consider the dangerousness to the community," Willoughby said. "That, I think, is a shortcoming."
Willoughby believes the law should change so that someone considered a danger could be automatically detained on pending DWI cases.
"Here's a dangerous situation," Willoughby said. "The courts need to address it quickly."
Defense Attorney Whit Powell, who isn't involved in the Eason case, agrees that pending arrests should be considered to force faster judgments.
"You watch those cases and make sure that a person doesn't just rack up cases without ever going to court," Powell said.
He argues, however, that holding suspects without with a conviction crosses the line.
"Don't forget the Constitution," he said. "A man or a woman is innocent until proven guilty."
Craig Lloyd, executive director of North Carolina's MADD chapter, believes it is only matter of time before repeat offenders hurt someone. He suggests impounding vehicles or requiring an ignition interlock system after multiple arrests.

One word for Mr. Lloyd, balderdash! I have numerous clients who will not drive while their license is suspended for a DUI arrest and by the way, they tend to be found not guilty of the offense.

Chicago DUI lawyer says NHTSA finally gets a new Administrator

This Chicago DUI lawyer has posted here and here about the opening for the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Now comes news that a less controversial Administrator, one without insider ties to MADD, has been selected.

From the Fast Lane:

It is an absolute pleasure to introduce Fast Lane readers to NHTSA's new Administrator, David Strickland.


If you've been involved in consumer safety in the last eight years, then David is probably a familiar name. As the Senior Counsel for the Senate's Consumer Protection Subcommittee, he was the lead staff member overseeing NHTSA, the Federal Trade Commission, and the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

That job made him quite the watchdog, and President Obama and I know he's ready to continue that role here at DOT.
It's also worth noting that David has demonstrated his ability to work with both Democrats and Republicans. For example, as former NHTSA Administrator David Kelly noted, David successfully worked automobile safety measures into law in 2005: "Even though the Republicans were in control, he was one of the main guys getting auto safety provisions in that bill."

NHTSA has an important role to play in both safety and environmental protection, and David Strickland has demonstrated his commitment to both while not antagonizing either the auto industry or consumer and environmental advocates.

Let's hope he's not a Prohibitionist like the former nominee and current CEO of MADD Chuck Hurley.

Chicago DUI lawyer comments on another DUI on a bicycle

This Chicago DUI lawyer has posted here, here, and here about DUI's that were not in cars. Now comes news of yet another person charged with a DUI on a bicycle.

January 25, Naples, FL

A 55-year-old man who was riding a bicycle on Sunday faces DUI charges when he refused to take a sobriety test during a traffic stop.

Deputies pulled over Tommy Miller for riding his bike without lights on US-41 towards Collier Boulevard at 7:19 p.m.

According to deputies, during questioning Miller couldn't explain why he was going to Collier County.

The deputy noticed his eyes were bloodshot, and that he had two cans of beer in his bike basket, according to reports.

Miller reportedly was asked to take a sobriety test, but denied the request.

He was arrested and taken to Naples Jail Center.

I'm a bit surprised by this DUI so I did look up Florida statutes and found this definition of a vehicle:

VEHICLE.--Every device, in, upon, or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn upon a highway, excepting devices used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks.

Well, with that definition of vehicle, it looks like one could be charged with a DUI on horseback, golf cart, or mini-bike.