No more Court Supervision for "Excessive Speeding"

Julie's Law and its effect on Illinois Motorists

On July 20th of this year, Governor Pat Quinn signed into law, "Julie's Law", which prohibits courts from granting supervision to any defendant charged with operating a vehicle on a highway at a speed greater than 30 mph over the posted speed limit, or in excess of 25 mph in an urban district. This law was named after Julie Gorczysnki who was killed after being struck by a driver going 76 mph in a 40 mph zone. The offending driver had been placed on court supervision seven times for "Excessive Speeding." "Julie's Law" will go into effect on July 1, 2013.

To read the full article, click here.

Currently, Illinois law provides that you cannot receive more than two supervisions for moving violations within a 12 month period. Further, for speeds in excess of 40+ mph over the limit, you cannot receive court supervision at all. The intention of this new legislation is to suspend the driver's license of those individuals who are charged with "Excessive Speeding" by eliminating the discretion of Judges and prosecutors when assigning a disposition in these traffic matters.

For a more thorough discussion on Speeding offenses and the "Points" system, click here.

My concern about this new legislation, is that it will unfairly punish the infrequent "Speeder" with a clean driving record, when it is actually intended to target the habitual offender. As a result, many average drivers may face driver's license suspensions, which could in effect, destroy their livelihood. For many individuals, a valid driver's license is critical to remaining gainfully employed.

Now more than ever, it will be imperative for drivers charged with "Excessive Speeding" to hire an attorney to hopefully avoid receiving a conviction and/or suspension of their driver's license.

Though the intention of this new legislation is admirable, I believe the result will do more harm than good. Every situation is unique, and when the legislature takes away the discretion of our Judiciary, we are required to group all individuals together, regardless of the facts and circumstances surrounding the case. As a result, there will be a greater number of individuals contesting these matters because their livelihoods will be at stake.