Suppose you finally make it home after a night out with friends, shut the door, and breathe a sigh of relief as you assume you are in the clear. Then you hear a knock at your door, and an officer is standing outside asking about whether you were driving earlier. Most of us assume that a DUI can only happen while you are actually driving, during a roadside stop or at a DUI checkpoint. Unfortunately, this is not always the case.
Illinois law allows DUI charges even after you have arrived at your home, parked your car by the side of the road to “sleep it off,” or hours after you stopped drinking, have slept, and are on your way to work. As long as the prosecutor can demonstrate that your impairment happened when you were in control of the vehicle, you could receive an “after-the-fact” DUI, which could be the result of a welfare check at your home, the police responding to a disturbance, or a crash report.
The officer might ask you whether you drove earlier, and a simple admission of “Yes, I just got home” can lead to a full criminal investigation and potential DUI charges. It is extremely important that you understand exactly how Illinois courts handle delayed DUI investigations, since these cases rely heavily on circumstantial evidence – and can often be aggressively challenged. Having an experienced Arlington Heights, IL DUI lawyer by your side is the best step you can take to protect your future.