A man was charged with DUI after driving his car into a cornfield and proceeding to get lost in the field. more ›

A 54-year-old Elgin woman faces a little extra trouble with the law now, after she showed up drunk to her trial for her sixth DUI charge. more ›

Given this area's idol worship of all things related to the 1985 Bears, you'd think having the last name Ditka would equal a "get out of jail free" card. To hear Michael P. Ditka, son of the legendary former Bears coach, that's not the case. Son of Ditka contested a DUI charge in Deerfield, claiming that police targeted him because of his famous name. more ›

Janusz Owca, 32 of Maine Township, obviously needs a lesson in how best to help his defense when accused of a violent act. Actually, judging from this story, he needs lessons in of things. But Owca definitely wins for "Bonehead Move Of The Week" for his dumbassery. It all began with a reported incident of domestic violence this weekend. more ›

• A car crash in Maywood that killed three has been ruled a road rage incident; the Tribune has details on the bizarre incident.
• 10 DUIs = 24 years in prison.
• CBS 2 is reporting an Asian Carp has been hooked in the Garfield Park lagoon.

A few weeks ago, when Judge Thomas Gainer tossed out evidence in the case of Officer John Ardelean and the 2007 crash which took the lives of two people, the message was clear - this case is all but over. Today, as reported by Chicago Breaking News, that eventuality was made reality. Judge Gainer threw out the charges of DUI and reckless homicide, letting Officer Ardelean off the hook for the crash that ended the lives of Miguel Flores and Erick Lagunas. more ›

State Senate President John Cullerton has returned the SUV that his son, Garritt Cullerton, was driving when he was arrested in April for DUI. The SUV was a 2009 Ford Escape Hybrid, one of three state-owned cars Cullerton is responsible for, and was transferred to the state's Department of Central Management Services today. In a statement, Cullerton's office said: “It is our hope that the vehicle can be obtained by one of the many state agencies that has expressed a need for a vehicle but has been unable to proceed due to the state budget crisis." more ›

After this weekend's DUI arrest for Garritt Cullerton, son of state senate president John Cullerton, there's been a bit more digging and it turns out Garritt has been pulled over a number of times in recent years for a variety of offenses. According to the Tribune: more ›

Illinois State Senate President John Cullerton is having a rough start to his week as his son Garritt, 26, was arrested over the weekend, cited for DUI in his father's state-issued SUV. Police pulled him over in the 800 block of North Dearborn just after midnight on Sunday and reported that Garritt had a BAC of .188, more than twice the legal limit of 0.08. According to a release by Cullerton's office: "A Senate vehicle assigned to the Senate President for official legislative business was used by his son without his authorization. The Senate President is disappointed that this incident occurred and takes this matter very seriously. He will work to ensure that this does not occur in the future." more ›

This is not the kind of story that warms your heart. In fact, it's the kind of story that makes us downright angry. Betty Burden, a Mount Prospect bus driver was arrested earlier this week for DUI while dropping children off after school and, according to police, her blood-alcohol level was 0.226, three times the legal limit. The Tribune reports: more ›

Eddie Lumpkin, 48, an auto mechanic, who was accused of driving drunk on Tuesday when he allegedly hit and killed a 6-year-old girl also admitted to smoking marijuana shortly before the crash, Cook County prosecutors said in court on Friday. Lumpkin's bail was set at $500,000 during the hearing at the 26th and California courthouse. more ›

A Chicago Fire Department lieutenant was arrested yesterday and charged with a DUI after allegedly driving a 2008 Dodge Ram pickup truck onto someone’s lawn and breaking off a fire hydrant before hitting a tree, driving over a stop sign and leaving the scene. more ›

Former Blackhawks star - and current Wolves player - Chris Chelios was arrested over a week ago for DUI, the Tribune is reporting this afternoon. Chelios was stopped last Monday, December 28, while driving his pickup truck in Westmont. Chelios was charged and released on bond; he's next due in court on February 1. more ›

• Two Metra workers have been suspended after a weekend incident in which a young boy's foot got caught in a train's closing doors.
• Our thoughts and prayers go to the family of Sergeant Albert Ware, a Chicago soldier killed by an IED in Afghanistan last week.
• Edward Stapinski, the Lockport police officer involved in a deadly car crash on the Stevenson Sunday night, is being held on $750,000 bond. Stapinski's blood-alcohol level was allegedly three times the legal limit upon his arrest.

Celebrities seem to have all the luck in court proceedings; at least that’s how it seems for Playboy’s Miss May 2009. Cook County Judge Thomas ruled that Crystal McCahill should not have been arrested for DUI even though she had a blood-alcohol level more than twice Illinois' standard for DUI. Last January, McCahill ran a red light at the Chicago and Wood intersection and told the officer when he pulled her over she been drinking at Climax Lounge (now named Griffin Lounge) where she worked. The police officer claims she voluntarily accompanied him to the District 13 station. Her lawyer countered that McCahill thought she was under arrest and that there wasn’t sufficient reason to make the arrest because the officer had not performed a field-sobriety test before taking her to the station. more ›

A Northwest Indiana man with the last name "Duis" was pulled over early this morning and found to have a blood-alcohol level four times the legal limit, earning him a, yes, DUI. So already the young man is showing an extreme lack of judgment. But it carried over even further when the man told the state trooper who had pulled him over, "Dude, I do this every night; I'm straight up and not drunk!" A field sobriety and, later, breath test proved, yeah, dude, you were. [WBBM 780] more ›

Dozens of family members and friends quietly gathered outside the Fraternal Order of Police hall where supporters raised funds for an officer accused of drunk driving and crashing into a vehicle that killed two men, Chicago Breaking News reports. more ›

Meet Cheryl Reynolds, the worst mother in Chicago. On Saturday, Reynolds crashed her car as she allegedly reached for a bottle of alcohol in the car that had fallen onto the floorboard, causing her nine-year-old to smash her head into the windshield. Reynolds was subsequently charged with aggravated driving under the influence and ticketed for reckless driving, not having a valid drivers license, failing to wear a seat-belt and for operating an uninsured vehicle. The crash happened around 6:15 p.m. Saturday evening as the car crashed into a viaduct near East 83rd Street and South Jeffery Boulevard. Police reported yesterday that both Reynolds and her daughter were in stable condition. [WBBM, Fox] more ›

An increasing number of Illinoisans are refusing to take a Breathalyzer test when asked by police, according to the Sun-Times. About 41 percent of people arrested in cases of drunken driving -- more than two out of five -- refused to submit to breath testing in 2007, according to data from the Illinois Secretary of State’s office. more ›

Mayor Daley said today that the Chicago Police Department will need to investigate if a police officer involved in last Friday's hit-and-run accident received preferential treatment; the officer struck a teenage bicyclist, killing the boy. Said the mayor, "I know the superintendent will be looking at that as quickly as possible ... They will have to investigate that, definitely." Allegations have arisen that the officer didn't receive a breathalyzer test until four hours after the accident. When he was given the test, he blew a .079, just under the .08 legal limit. more ›

Chicago Police officer Richard Bolling is being held on $2 million bond following an alleged DUI hit-and-run that killed 13-year-old Trenton Booker early Friday morning. According to witnesses, Bolling was at a bar near 55th and Indiana earlier in the evening. Booker, who family members say had sneaked out of his house to ride his bike with friends, was allegedly riding north in the southbound lane of Ashland while Bolling was traveling south. Bolling, who was off-duty, hit Booker at the intersection of 81st and Ashland around 1:30 a.m. Friday, and allegedly continued driving without stopping. According to the Sun-Times: more ›

• While no longer the state's top DUI locale as they were in 2006, Naperville was still No. 2 in 2008.
• A Wisconsin appeals court ruled last week that police in the state can attach GPS devices to cars for the purposes of tracking without a search warrant.
• Next up in furlough days: the Chicago Park Distrtict.

Cook County prosecutors have dropped DUI charges against Raymond L. Bell after viewing a video that they say proves arresting officer Joe D. Parker fabricated information in defending his decision to arrest Bell. Parker claimed in his report that after pulling over Bell on the evening of July 7, 2008, Bell "staggered" and was "unsteady" yet the video (below) shows a different story. Parker had previously won praise for being one of the leading DUI-enforcers in the state but in light of this incident, dozens of his prior arrests are now being reviewed and criminal charges could be pending against Parker; two other officers are also having their DUI arrests reviewed. Prosecutors refused to comment further on the case but Bell's attorney, Gregory Reeder, said, "If we didn't have the videotape, he could have gotten a conviction and lost his license. This was a blatant falsehood. They [prosecutors] definitely did the right thing." [Sun-Times] more ›

• Joey "The Clown" Lombardo is the latest mobster sentenced in the Family Secrets trial: Joey received life.
• Uriel Soto-Castro, the man who hit three teens with his car on Friday, is facing aggravated drunken driving charges from the incident; none of the teens' injuries were considered life-threatening.
• The Sun-Times uncovered some rather disproportionately high salaries for some area educators.

• Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg was completely evacuated this afternoon after a citizen reported seeing a man with a gun. After a subsequent search by police turned up nothing, the mall was reopened.
• A federal judge sentenced Paul Schiro to 20 years today. Schiro is the first defendant from the Family Secrets trials to be sentenced. While the jury had only convicted Schiro of racketeering, his sentence was longer because, according to the Sun-Times, "U.S. District Court Judge James Zagel found that the prosecution had proven by a preponderance of evidence that Schiro had helped kill [Emil] Vaci."
• Box maker Smurfit-Stone, who has a headquarters located here, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Such a filing would allow them to restructure their debt.

It appears aldermen aren't the only ones having problems with DUIs. Cook County Judge Sheila McGinnis pleaded guilty yesterday to DUI charges stemming from a May 2008 incident in Tinley Park. McGinnis hit another vehicle stopped at a red light and refused a field sobriety test; no one was hurt in the crash. While she faced up to a year of jail, she was simply fined $1,000, put on 18-months probation, and was reelected in November. more ›

Alderman Sharon Dixon (24th) was arrested for DUI last night after an argument with police. The incident occurred around 1:30 a.m. when Dixon approached a police controlled intersection in the 6900 block of North Sheridan Road. Police were controlling the area due to a fire and Dixon asked them to move their cars so she could get through. According to Chicago Police Officer Laura Kubiak, when the police told her she would have to move her car, Dixon got out of the car and yelled at the officers. The police simply charged her with obstructing traffic and no proof of insurance. more ›

Actor Sam Shepard has been arrested for speeding and drunk driving in Normal. According to the AP, he was stopped about 2 a.m. this morning, for going 46 in a 30 MPH zone. According to reports, when he was pulled over, he drove up on the curb. more ›

For the dipshits among us planning on getting absolutely 'faced and cruising home a couple nights from now, here's another thing to consider before you pour yourself into the driver's seat and hit the highways. Whereas a DUI on December 31st would be terribly expensive, time-consuming and have negative legal consequences on your life, a DUI on January 1st is even worse. How could that be, you say? more ›