A sharply divided Illinois Supreme Court (4-3), issued an important and useful Speedy Trial decision on 2/20/09 in a DUI case written by Justice Freeman. The DUI arose in Champaign County when defendant Larry Van Schoyck was issued tickets/citations for a DUI by Champaign County Sheriff J.P. Reifstock. A written speedy trial demand was made by counsel on the first court date. Several court dates later the local prosecutor dismissed the tickets and recharged the defendant, by information,with a felony DUI based on driving on a revoked license.
After 160 passed from the filing of the Speedy Trial Demand on the tickets, defendant moved to dismiss based on an Illinois statutory speedy trial violation. The motion was denied; defendant went to trial and lost (shocking), and received a six year IDOC sentence (not so shocking in Champaign County).
Our Supreme Court reversed on Speedy trial grounds finding that “defendant’s speedy-trial demand filed with respect to the offense charged by complaint [the tickets] was applicable to the same offense refiled by the State in its information….The circuit court therefore incorrectly denied defendant’s motion to dismiss.”
Lesson learned…demand trial on those traffic court DUIs, and look for other areas this case may apply to.
People v Larry Van Schoyck, Docket No. 105632, 2/20/09