My adult son was driving on a suspended license when he was arrested for DUI. It has been an on going, in and out of court for more than a year ordeal, just trying to get a sentence date. The state was originally trying for a 180 day stay, but it was later agreed on a 10-15 day stay, which was noted in writing in my son's file. The night before my son's sentencing date, he was with family and friends eating and drinking. When he was signing in for court in the morning, the bailiff asked him if he had been drinking, thinking she smelled alcohol. He of course stated that he had not, but they took him into another room anyway and had him blow. He blew a .062. The judge immediately sentenced him for 10 straight for this. The next time I saw my son was 8 days later in court, where his court appointed lawyer tried again to get him a sentence for his crime of driving on a suspended license and DUI. After sitting in the court room for over 2 hours he was finally heard by the judge and... suprise! My son's file was missing. "lost" by the state. The file on which was written the agreement to do 10-15 days instead of 180. Now, because of this mess the judge sets another court date. But this time it's set for the following week, another 6 days away, meaning now my son sits for 14 days in jail instead of the 10 he was given by the judge because the state screwed up!. Can the courts just hold him indefinately now? What's really going on?
1 Answer from Attorneys
You have a couple issues here. First, driving on a suspended license and DUI are, at a minimum, Class A misdemeanors in Illinois, punishable by up to 365 days in jail on each count, i.e., up to 2 years for both. Your son is fortunate to have been in jail for only 14 days, with the prospect of being release shortly.
Second, your son went to court with a BAC of .06, so the court has determined that your son was not deserving of additional breaks by the court and incarcerated him, likely as a either a violation of his sentence, or for contempt of court.
Of course he cannot be held indefinately. He will likely be sentenced appropriately at the next date. However, the court does not have to abide by the agreed-upon disposition and, from what you have related regarding your son's conduct, may not follow such a lenient sentence, for 1) driving on a suspended sentence; 2) driving while under the influence of alcohol; and, 3) appearing in court with a BAC of .06. "What is really happening here", as you ask, is that your son has made a few mistakes and must now answer for them.
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