Somehow, the probation officer figured it out. Now, you are facing a violation on your original case as well as a new felony. The violation alone means you can be resentenced on the original case, and in certain circumstances, you may be charged with a Class 2 felony, punishable by 3 to 7 years in prison.

What can you do?

First, it is imperative that you hire an experienced attorney who is respected at the court house and familiar with the court officials involved. It is usually difficult to defend these cases on the facts alone, which are usually pretty clear. A good working relationship between your attorney and the court can be essential in negotiating a more favorable plea agreement. Furthermore, an attorney can help you present evidence of your otherwise good character.

If you have questions about this or another related Illinois criminal or traffic matter, please contact Matt Keenan at 847-568-0160 or email matt@mattkeenanlaw.com.

(Besides Skokie, Matt Keenan also serves the communities of Arlington Heights, Chicago, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glenview, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect, Niles, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Rolling Meadows, Wilmette and Winnetka.)

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Kratom is derived from the Mitragyna speciosa, a tree native to Thailand. Its effects are similar to morphine or opium.

The new law makes it a Class B Misdemeanor, punishable by 180 days in jail, for a minor to knowingly purchase or possess the substance. Other persons may not knowingly sell or distribute Kratom to a minor or buy the drug on their behalf. Minors may also be penalized for using fake identification to obtain the drug.

If you are charged under the new law, contact an experienced criminal law attorney immediately. Do not speak with the police or other third parties about your offense. Your attempts to talk your way out of the situation may end up digging you in deeper and limiting any defense you might otherwise have.

An experienced attorney can review your case for your best options. Perhaps you did not knowingly possess the drug. Or perhaps the police acted improperly when they arrested you. Even if the evidence against you is overwhelming, an attorney who is respected in the courthouse may be able to negotiate a more favorable plea agreement than you could on your own.

If you have questions about this or another related Illinois criminal or traffic matter, please contact Matt Keenan at 847-568-0160 or email matt@mattkeenanlaw.com.

(Besides Skokie, Matt Keenan also serves the communities of Arlington Heights, Chicago, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glenview, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect, Niles, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Rolling Meadows, Wilmette and Winnetka.)

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What can happen to you? What can you do?

For starters, if found guilty, you can be resentenced on the original offense as well as on the violation. You should contact an experienced criminal law attorney immediately to evaluate your options. (See our related post In Trouble Again: When You Have Violated Your Probation or Supervision.) Even if your options for fighting the violation are limited, however, you may be eligible for the Cook County Drug Court Treatment Program.

Enrollment in the Program is not automatic. It requires approval of the prosecutor and the judge. Your attorney can help you obtain the approval and negotiate the terms.

The Program is intended to help nonviolent felony drug possession offenders stay clean. If eligible, you could receive two years of probation instead of a trip to jail. You can only participate in the program if you admit you have a problem and show willingness to get treatment. Your offense cannot involve violence, and you may not have any convictions for violent crime within the last 10 years.

The Program’s requirements are rigorous and take place in four phases with different requirements for each phase. You must obtain treatment, submit to frequent urinalysis testing, participate in treatment, appear frequently in court and check in regularly with your probation officer. You may have to perform community service. Once successfully completed, you can participate in a graduation ceremony and your probation will be terminated as satisfactory. If you fail to complete the program, however, you can be penalized severely.

For more information on the program, see Drug Court Treatment Program.

If you have questions about this or another related criminal or traffic matter, please contact Matt Keenan at 847-568-0160 or email matt@mattkeenanlaw.com.

(Besides Skokie, Matt Keenan also serves the communities of Arlington Heights, Chicago, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glenview, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect, Niles, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Rolling Meadows, Wilmette and Winnetka.)

The post HELPING REPEAT DRUG POSSESSION OFFENDERS: THE COOK COUNTY DRUG COURT TREATMENT PROGRAM appeared first on A SKOKIE CRIMINAL LAWYER EXPLAINS THE LAW 1-847-568-0160.

Here are some factors that can affect the severity of the charges against you:

1) Selling to Minors: If you are an adult and you sell to a minor, you may be sentenced to twice the maximum prison term and twice the maximum fine. (720 ILCS 570/407.)

2) Using Minors to Sell: If you use your underage friend to make your deal, you can face three times the maximum prison term. (720 ILCS 570/407.1)

3) Pregnant Women: If you know she’s pregnant, you can get double the time depending on the type of drugs. (720 ILCS 570/407.2.)

4) Truck Stops or Rest Areas: Your prison time and fine can be doubled for dealing within 1,000 feet of a truck stop or rest area if you have a prior conviction for the same offense. (720 ILCS 570/407)

5) Public schools, parks, property owned by a public housing agency, nursing homes, churches, synagogues, senior centers: Delivering drugs within 1,000 feet of any of these facilities can upgrade your crime. For example, a Class 1 offense, for possessing less than 15 grams of heroin with intent to deliver, can become a Class X felony with increased prison time and double the fines. It does not matter if school was out and no kids were in sight. (720 ILCS 570/407.)

6) Subsequent offenses: A second or later conviction can double your prison term and fine. (720 ILCS 570/408.)

If you are charged with a drug crime, contact an experienced criminal law attorney immediately. Do not discuss your case with anyone, especially not the police. Trying to talk your way out of the situation might end up giving the prosecution the evidence they need to convict you.

An attorney can review your case for its best possible defense. Did the police have probable cause to stop you? Was the search that uncovered the drugs legal? If not, an attorney may have grounds to challenge your arrest and hopefully get the evidence against you suppressed. Did you knowingly intend to deliver the drugs? As with most crimes, the state has the burden of proving you guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. You may have divided the drugs into separate parcels, but can the state prove you were preparing to sell? An attorney can look for holes in state’s evidence in the hope of winning an acquittal.

Even if the evidence against you is overwhelming, an attorney who is respected in the courthouse may help negotiate a more favorable plea agreement than you could on your own. If you have questions about this or another criminal or traffic matter, please contact Matt Keenan at 847-568-0160 or email matt@mattkeenanlaw.com.

(Besides Skokie, Matt Keenan also serves the communities of Arlington Heights, Chicago, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glenview, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect, Niles, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Rolling Meadows, Wilmette and Winnetka.)

The post FROM BAD TO WORSE: AGGRAVATING FACTORS FOR DRUG DEALING CRIMES IN ILLINOIS appeared first on A SKOKIE CRIMINAL LAWYER EXPLAINS THE LAW 1-847-568-0160.

Illinois law bars you from knowingly possessing a controlled substance. The degree of the charges and the punishment depend on the type of drug and the amount. (720 Illinois Compiled Statutes 570/402).

If you possess less than 15 grams of heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, morphine or LSD, you can be charged with a Class 4 felony, punishable by 1 to 3 years in jail and fined up to $25,000. More than 15 grams of these substances or more than 200 grams of barbiturates, amphetamines or peyote is a Class 1 felony. Your sentence can increase according to the amount you possess. Up to 100 grams is punishable by 4 to 15 years in prison while more than 900 grams is punishable by 10 to 50 years. In addition, if you possess with intent to deliver more than 100 grams, you may be fined up to $200,000 or the full street value of the drugs.

If you are charged with a drug crime, contact an experienced criminal law attorney immediately. Do not discuss your case with anyone, especially not the police. What you think is a reasonable explanation might be used against you as an admission of guilt.

An attorney can review your case for its best possible defense. Did the police have probable cause to stop you? Was the search that uncovered the drugs legal? If not, an attorney may have grounds to challenge your arrest and hopefully get the evidence against you suppressed.

Did you knowingly possess the drugs? As with most crimes, the state has the burden of proving you guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Maybe other people had regular access to the closet where the drugs were found. An attorney can look for holes in the state’s evidence in hope of winning an acquittal. For more information regarding the type of evidence needed for a conviction, see our blog at The Drugs Aren’t Mine: When You Are Charged With Possession of Narcotics.

Even if the evidence against you is overwhelming, an attorney who is respected in the courthouse may help negotiate a more favorable plea agreement than you could on your own. If you have questions about this or another criminal or traffic matter, please contact Matt Keenan at 847-568-0160 or email matt@mattkeenanlaw.com.

(Besides Skokie, Matt Keenan also serves the communities of Arlington Heights, Chicago, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glenview, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect, Niles, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Rolling Meadows, Wilmette and Winnetka.)

The post “IT’S JUST FOR ME.”: THE CRIME OF POSSESSION OF A CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE IN ILLINOIS appeared first on A SKOKIE CRIMINAL LAWYER EXPLAINS THE LAW 1-847-568-0160.

What is a look-alike drug? What can happen to you? What can you do?

In Illinois, any person who knowingly makes, advertises or distributes a look-alike drug can be charged with a Class 3 Felony, punishable by up to a $150,000 fine and 2 to5 years in prison. (720 Illinois Compiled Statutes 570/404.) Simply possessing the look-alike substance is a petty offense, not subject to jail time. However, if you possessed with intent to distribute, you are back to a Class 3 Felony. There are also stiffer penalties for subsequent charges of possession.

A look-alike drug can be any substance that would lead a reasonable person to believe that the look-alike is the real thing, such as its color, consistency, dosage amount, shape or markings. Or a drug can be considered a look-alike if you imply or expressly represent that the look-alike is real. For example, a court can consider any statements you made in advertising or distributing the drug, whether you asked for money and how you packaged the look alike.

If you are charged with a look-alike drug offense, contact an experienced criminal law attorney immediately. Do not discuss your case with the police or third parties. An experienced attorney can evaluate your case for the best possible defense.

As with most crimes, the state must prove the elements of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt. Did you knowingly make or sell the look-alike? If you possessed the drug, did you intend to sell it? Were the drugs discovered after a police search? If so, did the police have the probable cause needed to stop or search you in the first place? If not, perhaps an attorney can petition the court to have the evidence or even the arrest suppressed.

Even if the police did everything by the book and the evidence against you is overwhelming, an attorney who is respected in the courthouse may be able to negotiate a more favorable plea agreement than you could on your own.

If you have questions about this or another related criminal or traffic matter, please contact Matt Keenan at 847-568-0160 or email matt@mattkeenanlaw.com.

(Besides Skokie, Matt Keenan also serves the communities of Arlington Heights, Chicago, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glenview, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect, Niles, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Rolling Meadows, Wilmette and Winnetka.)

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Can you get evidence from the search thrown out? After all, the person who consented doesn’t live in your home.

The answer depends on the particular facts of your situation. Illinois law considers how much authority the non-resident had over your home. Is the person more like a neighbor with a key or more like someone who spends a lot of nights? If it’s your girlfriend who has the run of your house, then the search is valid. If it’s a neighbor with a key or a house cleaner, the court would be less likely to uphold their consent. The neighbor or the house cleaner are generally only authorized to invade your privacy to perform their particular purpose. For example, a housekeeper does not have a general right to invade your privacy except as necessary to clean your house. A neighbor with a key is not an invitation to search your drawers.

Illinois courts suppressed a search where a former roommate no longer lived with Defendant even though she sometimes stayed overnight. However, the Court recently upheld the consent of a niece who babysat the defendant’s child and had authority to go into the closet where the cocaine was found.

If you are charged with a crime, contact an experienced criminal law attorney immediately. An attorney can review your case to see if the search can be overturned and the evidence suppressed. Even if the search is valid, there may be other avenues for your defense. Perhaps the police lacked probable cause to search in the first place. Even if the evidence against you is overwhelming, an attorney respected in your courthouse may obtain a better plea agreement than you could on your own.

If you have questions about this or another related criminal or traffic matter, please contact Matt Keenan at 847-568-0160 or email matt@mattkeenanlaw.com.

(Besides Skokie, Matt Keenan also serves the communities of Arlington Heights, Chicago, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glenview, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect, Niles, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Rolling Meadows, Wilmette and Winnetka.)

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Effective January 1, 2013, the new law only applies to the recording of drug crimes or felonies using force committed during a drug crime.

From the viewpoint of criminal defense attorneys, this change could make it much harder to protect the rights of clients. A judge is traditionally required to sign a warrant in order to ensure that an objective party has reviewed the facts and finds sufficient reason to intrude on your privacy. The new law removes that safeguard in favor of a prosecutor who values being tough on crime above all other interests.

On the other hand, recordings can at times help the defense. In numerous DUI cases, for example, the police videos of field sobriety tests may show a client speaking clearly and performing better than the officer reported. Extensive recordings may tend to raise doubts about the guilt of a client.

If you are charged with a drug crime, contact an experienced criminal defense attorney immediately. An attorney can review your case to see whether police violated your rights and to formulate the best strategy for your defense.

If you have questions about this or another related criminal or traffic matter, please contact Matt Keenan at 847-568-0160 or email matt@mattkeenanlaw.com.

(Besides Skokie, Matt Keenan also serves the communities of Arlington Heights, Chicago, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glenview, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect, Niles, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Rolling Meadows, Wilmette and Winnetka.)

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Under Illinois law, a person who knowingly possesses drug paraphernalia with the intent of using or preparing drugs is guilty of a Class A Misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail and a minimum $750 fine. (720 Illinois Compiled Statutes 600/3.5.) The law does not apply to hypodermic syringes if you are authorized to have them under the Hypodermic Syringes and Needles Act. (720 ILCS 635.) Drug paraphernalia is defined as all equipment, products and materials to be used in planting, growing, manufacturing, converting, testing, injecting, ingesting, packaging or using drugs, except for methamphetamines which is a separate offense.

If you sell your paraphernalia, you can be charged with a Class 4 Misdemeanor, punishable by 1 to 3 years in jail and a $25,000 fine. Sell to a minor and it’s a Class 3 Misdemeanor punishable by 2 to 5 years. If the buyer is pregnant, you can face 3 to 7 years on a Class 2 misdemeanor.

Since the state must prove that you intended to use the paraphernalia to take or make drugs, simply owning a collection of bong pipes may not be enough to convict you. However, any drugs found near or residue on the paraphernalia can be used to show that you had the necessary illegal intent.

If you are charged with possessing paraphernalia, contact an experienced criminal law attorney immediately. Do not discuss your case with third parties or the police. Any statements you make can restrict your options in presenting a defense.

As with other criminal offenses, the state must prove you guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. An attorney can examine the evidence for holes in the state’s case. Was the search that revealed the paraphernalia legal? Can the state show that the paraphernalia was yours or that you meant to use it? Even if the state has more than enough evidence to convict you, an attorney can help negotiate a better plea agreement than you might do on your own.

If you have questions about this or another related criminal or traffic matter, please contact Matt Keenan at 847-568-0160 or email matt@mattkeenanlaw.com

Source: Illinois Drug Paraphernalia Law.

(Besides Skokie, Matt Keenan also serves the communities of Arlington Heights, Chicago, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glenview, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect, Niles, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Rolling Meadows, Wilmette and Winnetka.)

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Can the officer do that? What are your rights?

Generally, police can search your car without a warrant and before an arrest as long as they have probable cause to believe your car contains illegal articles such as drugs, weapons or burglary tools. Police can search anywhere in your vehicle, even by opening containers. Be advised that making “furtive”movements may be enough to trigger that probable cause, particularly if you look like you’re trying to hide something.

Unfortunately, recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions have chipped away at the rights of drivers to guard against police searches. The Supreme Court recently held that you do not have a legitimate expectation of privacy in contraband. For example, police are now allowed to have a trained dog sniff your car for narcotics during a traffic stop without your consent because you have no privacy right in possessing illegal substances.

Furthermore, under recent Supreme Court law, police do not need a reasonable suspicion of criminal activity in order to question you about topics unrelated to your traffic stop as long as this questioning does not unduly prolong the time you are stopped. Before this decision, police could not change the fundamental nature of a traffic stop by questioning you on unrelated matters without this reasonable suspicion, but this protection was overturned.

If you are stopped by police, an officer should, but may not always, ask if he or she can search your car. You should always refuse any request to search. The officer may continue the search even without your consent. Your refusal, however, may later help your attorney bring a motion to quash the evidence turned up by the search.

You should also refrain from speaking to the police or answering any questions except about your name and address.

Once you have been arrested, the police may search the parts of your car that you could access if they reasonably believe they may find evidence related to the crime. If you are arrested for speeding, the police may lack the justification they need to search your passenger compartment, but if you are arrested for DUI, the police can search for alcohol.
If you have questions about this or another criminal law matter, please do not hesitate to contact Matt Keenan at 847-568-0160 or matt@mattkeenanlaw.com

See our related post on our DUI blog at Can the Police Search My Car? Your Rights During a Traffic Stop?”.

(Besides Skokie, Matt Keenan also serves clients in the communities of Arlington Heights, Buffalo Grove, Chicago, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glenview, Highland Park, Kenilworth, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect, Niles, Northbrook, Palatine, Park Ridge, Rolling Meadows, Schaumburg, Wilmette and Winnetka.)

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