Accidents

A motor vehicle accident generally will require an appearance in traffic court. If you plead guilty, or are found guilty, of a vehicle code offense related to an accident, you could have your driver’s license suspended or revoked, and you could be sued for damages.

New law proposed to allow police to tow and impound vehicle for driving without insurance

March 17, 2013
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Lawmakers in the House of Representatives will vote soon on a bill that allows police officers to tow and impound vehicles for driving without proof of insurance. Proposed by Representative Joe Sosnowski, R-Rockford, the bill would amend 625 ILCS 5/4-203. This is the statute that authorizes law enforcement to tow and impound vehicles abandoned on [...]

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Red-light cameras don’t reduce fatal accidents: villages decide against traffic cameras

October 30, 2012
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Once seen as a means of improving public safety and increasing village revenues at the same time, traffic cameras are not so popular anymore. In fact, some villages in Illinois are deciding against red-light cameras despite the revenue they produce. “I think they reduce accidents, but I have concerns about citing people for turning right [...]

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Reckless driving in Illinois: the law and penalties

June 26, 2012
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A traffic ticket for reckless driving in Illinois can cause serious problems. First, the police officer can decide to, rather than ticket the offender, make an arrest and take the driver into custody. If this happens, the police officer will have the vehicle towed. The driver will have to pay a fee to get it [...]

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New law in legislature would ban talking on cell phones while driving in Illinois

February 29, 2012
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The Illinois legislature is currently debating a bill that would prohibit the use of cell phones while operating a motor vehicle. At the present time, nine states in the country have already banned cell phone use while driving. However, hands free cell phone use is still legal in all those nine states. It is expected [...]

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Grounds for disqualification of Illinois commercial driver’s licenses

February 11, 2012
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The Secretary of State can take away a commercial driver’s license for traffic violations. While a driver’s license can be suspended or revoked, a CDL is cancelled. A person whose CDL is cancelled usually can still drive a non-commercial motor vehicle. The fact that a CDL is cancelled does not automatically take away that person’s [...]

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New Illinois law makes seat belts mandatory for all passengers

February 9, 2012
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Illinois lawmakers passed a bill that makes an important change to the vehicle code this year. Starting January 1, 2012, anyone who drives or rides in a motor vehicle in the state of Illinois will be required to wear a seat belt. In the past, a backseat passenger was not obligated to wear a seat [...]

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Failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident: an issue of fault

February 7, 2012
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In the seconds after a traffic accident, most people’s thoughts are to check that no one is injured. There is something altruistic in human nature that causes us to look out for the safety of others in a crisis. But as long as no one is hurt, that altruistic feeling passes quickly. The next thought [...]

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