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July 26, 2005

Pat McGuckin
Randy Nehrt

Governor Signs White's Initiative to Limit Court Supervision for Moving Violations

SPRINGFIELD — Secretary of State Jesse White's initiative to limit drivers to two court supervisions for moving violations in a 12-month period was signed into law today by Governor Rod Blagojevich. Any other moving violations of which a driver is found guilty during that period would result in convictions reported to the individual's permanent driving record.

"Unfortunately, there are bad drivers who abuse the system," White said. "These dangerous drivers shouldn't be given the opportunity to obtain court supervision numerous times per year to avoid having their driving privileges suspended. I want to commend Governor Blagojevich and the members of the General Assembly for helping to make our roads safer."

White said the change in law is necessary because a small percentage of Illinois drivers have received too many dispositions of court supervision in recent years. Some drivers have been granted court supervision more than a dozen times in a single year, keeping the offenses off their permanent records and stopping White from suspending their driving privileges for those violations.

"This law is intended to make a driver's permanent record a more accurate reflection of driving habits," White said. "It will allow my office to suspend the driving privileges of more drivers who habitually break our traffic laws."

In 1999, White pushed for a law that required every county to report dispositions of court supervision to the Secretary of State. He created a database the courts use to check if a driver has received court supervision for any moving violations. Prior to the creation of that database, there wasn't any mechanism for a judge in one county to know if the driver had been given court supervision in another county.

While just one percent of all licensed drivers have been granted multiple court supervisions in each of the past four years, a few thousand of those drivers have been granted court supervision more than three times in each 12-month period. Last year, 3,785 drivers received court supervision for more than three offenses, 128 drivers received court supervision more than six times and one driver received court supervision 14 times. Over the past three years, 28 drivers have received court supervision 10 or more times in a 12-month period.

The new law takes effect January 1, 2006. House Bill 1483 was sponsored by State Rep. Lisa Dugan (D- Kankakee) and State Senator Debbie Halvorson (D-Crete).