supervision

Misdemeanor convictions that cannot be sealed: crimes of violence

November 23, 2012
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A person who is found guilty of a misdemeanor can have his record expunged in most circumstances. Most misdemeanors allow the court to impose a term of supervision if the defendant has no criminal history. Supervision is not a conviction, and it can be expunged. A conviction, however, cannot be expunged. It can only be [...]

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Job applicants with criminal records may find employment under new EEOC policy

October 29, 2012
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As anyone with a criminal record can tell you, one conviction can have a devastating impact on your future. When you apply for a job with a criminal record, you usually don’t expect to make it past the background check. But that all may change soon under an important policy change with the Equal Employment [...]

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Summary of sentencing rules for misdemeanor offenders

December 5, 2011
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The potential penalties for a Class A misdemeanor offense include up to one year in the county jail and a maximum fine of $2500. Technically, a sentence of incarceration can last for only 364 days. A jail sentence of 365 days or more is only permissible for a felony offense. Additionally, any sentence lasting one [...]

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Examining State Police expungement statistics

October 4, 2011
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The Illinois State Police are mandated by law to keep track of how many petitions to expunge or seal they receive each year, and what the outcome is. This is a new legal obligation. It became mandatory through the Expungement Backlog Accountability Law. 20 ILCS 2630/14. In the past, the State Police were notorious for [...]

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Illinois felonies result in conviction despite fact that offender has no criminal background

May 24, 2011
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A person with no experience in the criminal justice system will see that the courts make a distinction between felony and misdemeanor cases. In almost every courthouse in Illinois, felony cases are heard by a judge who hears only felony matters. The judge presiding over felony cases is usually a Circuit Judge. These judges are [...]

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What is a Class A misdemeanor in Illinois?

February 13, 2011
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All criminal charges in the state of Illinois fall generally into two categories: felony and misdemeanor. The distinction between felony and misdemeanor is that a felony offense has a possible sentence of one year or more imprisonment, whereas a misdemeanor is less than one year. Most states classify their offenses in this same manner. The [...]

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I need to move away from Illinois. How can I transfer my probation to another state?

August 28, 2010
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A defendant who is placed on probation for a criminal offense generally cannot leave the state without permission of the court. The same rule applies while on bond. On request, some courts will grant a defendant permission to travel out of state for a job, or in cases of family or medical emergency. The law [...]

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New laws in Illinois increase penalties for speeding tickets

July 3, 2010
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The laws against speeding in Illinois got tougher on July 2, 2010 when Governor Pat Quinn signed a new law aimed at persons driving 100 mph or faster. The law has two important parts: Speeding 31 mph over the Limit is a Class B Misdemeanor Speeding 31 mph in excess of the limit is no [...]

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New 2010 expungement law in Illinois changes eligibility and waiting periods

June 5, 2010
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State lawmakers changed the law for the expungement process in Illinois significantly in 2010. The new changes impact the eligibility of thousands of persons who have either a conviction or supervision in their background. Under the new law, the process is generally the same. The person seeking to expunge or seal a court record of [...]

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I have a CDL and got a traffic ticket. Can I get supervision?

March 11, 2010
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Court supervision is the preferred disposition of a moving violation for almost anyone with a traffic court date. Supervision is not a conviction and thus it does not put points on your license. Although many traffic court judges advise defendants that after the supervision, the ticket will not be on their driving record, this is [...]

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