Cassie Weathersby, 30, of the West Side is facing a lot more than a driving under the influence charge after an allegedly drunken joy ride yesterday, reports CBS Chicago.
Police say she got behind the wheel of a Chicago Fire Department ambulance that was parked at the Saint Bernard hospital in South Side. She took off and made it about a mile before she crashed it into a few parked cars.
Under the Illinois Implied Consent Law, motorists who are suspected of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs are required to submit to either a blood, breath, or urine test of their blood alcohol concentration. The "implied consent" is a condition to getting a license. Refusal will result in a loss of that license.
So, what do you do? You've had a drink or two, but you totally were good to drive. The two most common tests are blood or breath, so we'll narrow it down to those for now.
Hanin Goma confessed, and now she'll probably be facing significant time behind bars, reports the Chicago Sun-Times. Much like the story we brought you yesterday, Goma was allegedly under the influence of marijuana while driving when she caused a chain reaction crash that led to the death of 8-year-old Carter Vo in Skokie.
She confessed to investigators that she had smoked earlier that day. Her confession was corroborated by another witness. Now, she has been charged with one count of aggravated DUI resulting in death and one count of driving under the influence of drugs.
A possibly-preventable tragedy struck on the Southwest Side last Saturday, and now Gustavo Pichardo, 20, has been charged with four counts of felony aggravated DUI resulting in death, reports the Chicago Tribune.
Pichardo was headed northbound on Kedzie Avenue in a 1997 Mercury Mountaineer. He allegedly blasted through the red light, possibly clipped a semi-trailer, and wrapped the vehicle around a traffic light pole.
On Wednesday, the mother of a man who was killed by a drunk driver filed a lawsuit in Cook County Circuit Court against the driver and the bar that served him the alcohol, the Chicago Tribune reports.
In her lawsuit, Judy Feil claims that Sam Cafi negligently drove while under the influence of alcohol, causing a car crash that killed her son, Ryan Osowski. The suit serves as a reminder that driving drunk can not only subject you to criminal penalties but civil suits as well.
On Monday, an appellate court in Elgin asked to hear oral arguments in an appeal filed by an Aurora woman who was convicted of aggravated DUI for a drunken crash that killed five Oswego teens in 2007, the Chicago Tribune reports.
Sandra Vasquez is currently serving a 15-year prison sentence for the conviction. Vasquez’s appeal contends that the state’s aggravated DUI law contains overly vague language.
Early Friday morning, a driver was arrested on suspicion of DUI after crashing into a marked police car in the South Loop, the Chicago Tribune reports.
According to police, 37-year-old Junior Hernandez was charged with driving under the influence and failure to yield the right-of-way while making a left turn.
On Wednesday, a Lake County Judge threw out the results of Mark Ditka’s Breathalyzer test results at a pretrial hearing for Ditka’s DUI charges, the Chicago Tribune reports.
Ditka was arrested on suspicion of DUI while driving in Deerfield on Sept. 24. Ditka is the younger son of former Chicago Bears Coach Mike Ditka.
Last month, a 24-year-old Chicago woman reportedly tried to bribe an Orland Park police officer with a $20 bill while being arrested for DUI, the Chicago Tribune reports.
While speaking with an officer, the woman allegedly handed him a $20 bill along with her insurance card. Apparently $20 wasn't enough, as the woman was charged with DUI and driving on a suspended license.
Last week, police arrested a 29-year-old woman for a DUI accident that killed a pedestrian in the Bucktown neighborhood on Christmas Eve, the Chicago Tribune reports.
Christine Ahn has been charged with aggravated DUI resulting in death and two counts of misdemeanor DUI, according to police.
Police have charged a Southwest Side man with DUI after he allegedly ran a red light and struck a police car early Wednesday morning, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. The Chicago police sergeant driving the squad car was reportedly injured in the crash.
Roland Robledo was charged with a laundry list of crimes, including felony aggravated DUI, misdemeanor DUI, driving with an open container, driving without insurance, failure to stop at a red light, failure to reduce speed, failure to carry a valid ID, and criminal damage to government property.
Cinco de Mayo may not be Mexico’s independence day, but it’s a great time to celebrate Mexican culture and heritage with tamales and tequila shots. Like St. Patrick’s Day, Cinco de Mayo is often accompanied by a spike in DUIs and other alcohol-related offenses.
Below, we’ve included some of Illinois’ most important alcohol-related laws to help keep you on the right side of the law while celebrating on May 5.
