Whenever anyone has his or her driver's license issued by the State of Illinois, they are considered to be an Illinois driver. Lots of us in Illinois travel to other states and many people wind up getting a DUI in another state.
DUI's in other states are just like they are in Illinois. There are multiple kinds of dispositions a person could be sentenced after pleading or being found guilty. Like Illinois, other states have dispositions for first offenders, repeat offenders, habitual offenders, and so on. The reality is that there are lots of variations between states. Court supervision for a DUI offense in Illinois is considered a non-conviction disposition—that is, a sentence that does not count or is not considered to be a conviction. Other states have the same kind of disposition available, but they refer to it under different names.
Unfortunately, the reality of Illinois law when it comes to out-of-state DUI's is a difficult thing. Illinois law and the administrative rules of the Illinois Secretary of State (Illinois' driver's license issuing body) govern how Illinois will treat DUI offenses, regardless of where they occur. In Illinois, whatever the sentence an Illinois driver received for a DUI in another state, the State of Illinois treats that DUI as a conviction.
The consequences for a conviction are the revocation of the person's Illinois driver's license. This occurs even when a non-conviction disposition was entered in the other sate, and it occurs even when the other state has taken no action whatsoever against a person's driver's license.
Any Illinois driver who is revoked will then be eligible to apply for reinstatement, although when a person is eligible can depend on a lot of different factors. Even a DUI that was not a "conviction" in the state in which it occurred will require the Illinois driver to petition in order to even get a permit, much less full reinstatement. Even getting a permit will require the Illinois driver to have a hearing at the Secretary of State's office. The type of hearing and the location of it will depend on different factors as well.
Seeking reinstatement after the Illinois Secretary of State has entered a conviction for a DUI offense is not an easy process. It can be fraught with trouble, headache, and fatigue. Simply navigating the next steps in order to get either a permit or full reinstatement can be daunting. In the end, we see our job as getting people reinstated. We get people their driver's licenses all the time, and our success speaks for itself. We are available to speak with anyone about getting reinstated, so if you or someone you know is revoked, have them contact us today.
Copyright © 2017 by Brendan Bukalski
The information provided in this article is general in nature, and should not be relied upon as legal advice or interpreted as creating an attorney-client relationship. As a general rule, all specific legal problems should be handled by an individual's attorney. All rights reserved. Any copying, duplication, or commercial use of the information contained in this column is strictly prohibited without prior permission.