A man in Illinois may end up being placed behind bars after being taken into custody for drunk driving. The threat of prison looms over him since his recent arrest is his third one for DUI. The man facing charges is 23 years old.
According to authorities, the man drove his car while intoxicated back in January. At first, he was charged with a misdemeanor DUI. However, his charge was upgraded since he had two prior arrests for drunk driving.
The man currently faces aggravated DUI charges and thus may spend a maximum of seven years behind prison bars if he ends up receiving a conviction for the most serious of the charges. The man also received a ticket for driving a car without insurance, driving with a license that had been revoked, possessing alcohol in the car and following too closely. His bond was decreased from $40,000 to $5,000 during a recent bond hearing, and he was released following the posting of 10 percent of the new bond.
The threat of prison time can be scary for anyone facing DUI charges in Illinois. In addition, those accused of drunk driving may naturally fear being able to land jobs and maintain a strong reputation in the years ahead. Fortunately, just because they are accused of driving while intoxicated does not mean this will immediately lead to a conviction. Prosecutors have to prove each element of the pending charge at a jury trial — a burden that is usually difficult to meet. The standard of proving charges beyond a reasonable doubt exists in an effort to prevent innocent people from being convicted of crimes they did not commit and thus receiving punishments for them.
Source: nwherald.com, “Woodstock man faces aggravated DUI charges after third drunken driving arrest“, Aug. 10, 2017