Edgar Vega  says:
6 months ago

Thanks for the nice things you said. I'm only the kind of lawyer who likes to listen attentively to my clients. This is something I find many lawyers have too little time to do these days. Recently, an undocumented resident of a near western suburb came to me for help because she was arrested for driving a vehicle without a drivers license. In addition to a $200.00 bond to get out of jail, and the cost for having her car towed, the Cook County Sheriff's Police imposed a $500.00 bond for allegedly also failing to provide proof of insurance. According to 625 ILCS 5/6-101(c): "... any person in violation of this Section who is also in violation of Section 7-601 of this Code relating to mandatory insurance requirement shall have his or her motor vehicle immediately impounded by the arresting law enforcement officer." However, the woman did have the car insured and didn't have a drivers license because undocumented residents cannot obtain a social security card, which is needed in order to obtain a drivers license. Although she produced the proof of insurance to the arresting officer in front of several witnesses, she was ignored, handcuffed in front of all her children and had her car towed from a restaurant parking lot where she had parked. When I called the Cook County Police Department and asked for hearing to have the $500.00 returned, because under 625 ILCS 5/6-101(d) the police can have the car towed if there is also no proof of insurance, and this was a case of an insured vehicle but an unlicesed driver, I was told by Officer Moyer that the Cook County police considers anyone who has insurance but no drivers license to, in fact, have no insurance. Huh? you may ask. Yes, according to the Cook County Police, even though insurance companies sell insurance to vehicle owners, and vehicle owners may believe they have coverage and pay for coverage, the insurance companies are under no pbligation to honor the insurace contract because the contract is void as to unlicensed drivers. Now I'm really confused, you may say. Does that mean there is widescale and rampant fraud committed on the residents of illinois who are paying for insurace to comply with the law, and the insurance carriers charge a premium for the insurance, it's all a fraud? According to the Cook County Police, this is the state of affairs when it comes down to unlicensed drivers who try to comply with every aspect of the law by obtaining vehicle insurance on vehicles they are not licensed to drive. So this poor woman who was arrested and handcuffed on private property for making a legal turn the Police falsely claimed was illegal, and paid $200.00 bond, plus another $200 in towing charges, was also forced to pay $500. to have her car released because, although she had insurance on the vehicle, the Cook County Police have determined that the insurance contract is void solely because the insured is unlicensed. Why doesn't the woman sue the Police, or the insiurance company for fraud? Because the woman is also undocumented, and in the suburb where she lives the Police stake out the complex and stop drivers who look Mexican on any pretext because chances are they will be unlicensed. These undocumented residents are terrified that if they appear to complain, things will only get worse because they need to take their kids to school, they need to go to work, they need to buy groceries like everone else. And if they are pulled over again while driving w/o a license while on supervision for driving w/o a license the first time, they are now at risk of deportation and possible jail. But what happened to the Equal Protection Clause? Aren't the laws supposed to be applied the same to everyone? Isn't it fraud to sell insurance to an unlicensed driver on the promise the insurance is valid, but the insurance becomes void if a claim is ever made because the driver is unlicensed? This is the state of the law according to the Cook County Police when it comes to insured vehicles driven by unlicensed drivers. So the residents of the State of Illinois beware, all that insurance you are buying may be futile if you are unlicensed according to the Cook County Police. No matter what one feels about undocumented people who live among us, Amnericans, and Illinois reisidents in particular, must feel some sense of outrage that this is going on with the tacit approval of the State and County governments because if it is true that an unlicensed driver of an insured vehicle, in the eyes of the law is the same as an uninsured vehicle, then why is not Lisa Madigan doing something about this fraudulent sale of make-believe insurance on a grand scale in this State? Maybe a reader can help me understand, because I sure don't get it. If I am a nice guy as you posted on here, it must because I can't stand to know the injustice people are subjected to simply by virtue that they lack power or resources or are vulnerable. Nature has comanded us, I believe, to do what we can to serve our fellow man if we can, in whatever small ways we can, and not do him or her harm. I apologize for going on a tangent with this, but this situation has to change. edgar

SistasExpress  says:
6 months ago

See, I told ya...this guy is a warm and fuzzy isn't he? He will help attorneys get a reputation of being helpful and guess what? NICE.

Edgar   says:
5 months ago

Thank you. I don't know why I have made you feel the way you have expressed here but I will accept the compliment. I wonder how you felt about the move by the Cook County Board to take a small step toward decriminalizing marijuana?

Made  says:
5 months ago

Nice to read about people like Edgar. I'm looking forward to reading more.

Miriam  says:
4 months ago

Yes it's very sad to see this happening the other day I was arrested on a warrant, for unlincensed and uninsured in 2005. I did not even know I had that warrant because it said "pay or appear". Anyway I was treated very badly and harshly by the boone county police officers and one of them even yelled at me as I was already locked in the room, "I will make sure you get deported" when I had not even been asked my status or anything like that. So now I have court next week, and even though it's just traffic maybe i should get an attorney because they are not abiding by the laws, and like everyone knows it's usually if you look latino, thats it you get outrageous fines, and verbally abused by the cops. So everyone be careful....this system is not trusted anymore, at least no by me (not like it ever was). And they say every other government is corrupte but theirs, hmm sure! Their corruption is "very well covered".