Monroe Mcward Is Your Experienced Sangamon County Dui Attorney

Oftentimes police pull people over for crossing over the fog line lane marker and subsequently gather enough information to charge that driver with DUI or DWI.

In Illinois this issue has been addressed and the Appellate Court there has held this to be an improper basis for a stop. In the case of People v. Leyendecker, 272 Ill.Dec. 543, 787 N.E.2d 358 (2 Dist. 2003), the Defendant driver crossed the fog line on the right edge of the roadway for just a brief period of time. A police officer pulled him over and gathered evidence to be used against him in court for the offense of Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol (DUI), also known as Driving While Intoxicated (DWI).

The driver"s attorney did not believe this was a good or proper stop under the constitution and brought a 4th Amendment challenge to the stop. Typically, a police officer needs probable cause to stop a driver before investigating for DUI or DWI. This usually comes from violations of a state"s vehicle code. Traffic violations such as Speeding, Failure to Signal or Reckless Driving usually amount to this qualified probable cause.

With the driver charged with DUI in the Leyendecker case, the appellate court approved of the ruling by the trial judge who stated that a brief crossing of the fog line was not enough to give an officer "reasonable suspicion" that the driver had violated the vehicle code. As a result, the charge of DUI had to be dismissed because the stop by the police officer was found to be improper.

If you are ever charged with a DUI or a DWI, the first point of inquiry for your attorney should be whether the officer had "probable cause"or a "reasonable suspicion" to pull you over in the first place. A serious charge like DUI or DWI must begin with a serious and valid basis for a stop, and, sometimes as we"ve seen in the Leyendecker case, officers don"t always have those reasons. Your Sangamon County DUI Attorney will be able to assist you.

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