When you receive a DUI, it is understandable that you will feel overwhelmed by the documents you receive, the process you are facing in hiring a DUI attorney and going to court for your case. The attorneys at Driver Defense Team are here to help you through the process. 

When you receive a DUI, you will also receive a lot of documents you will need to understand in order to fight your case. Two of the documents that will be discussed in this article are the Petition to Rescind the Statutory Summary Suspension, known as the PTR, and a document that is sent by the Illinois Secretary of State, called the Breath Alcohol Ignition Interlock Device, known as the BAIID application.   

It is important to note that there are two main issues to understand in regards to any DUI charge. First is the DUI charge itself and second is the license suspension that follows. To learn more about this, watch our video here. This article will detail with documentation given in regards to your license suspension.

The PTR (Petition to Rescind the Statutory Summary Suspension) is a document that will be filed by your attorney to assist you in trying to deal with the suspended license that occurs following the issuing of a DUI ticket. This document needs to be filed by your attorney within 90 days from when the police officer gives it to you. The timeline makes it important to speak to an attorney as soon as possible about your case.

There are multiple reasons why a PTR can be filed for you case, but the two most common that attorneys from our office use are: 

  1. Whether or not the police officer had some reason to believe that you had been drinking alcohol or using any other drugs; OR
  2. Whether or not the police officer, after arresting you and taking you to the police station, read a document that explains the length of your driver’s license suspension if you take the breath test and give a breath sample above the legal limit or if you refuse to take any test.

Your attorney will review the police reports and videos from the DUI stop and give his or her opinion on whether there is a chance that you can “win” at the Petition to Rescind the Statutory Summary Suspension hearing. A “win” would result in the suspension being removed from your driving record. It should be noted that the result of the PTR would not affect the underlying DUI criminal charge, simply the subsequent suspension. So it is possible to “win” at the PTR hearing, but still plead guilty or be found guilty on the DUI criminal charge, and vice versa.   

If it is not possible to have the suspension taken off your driving record, there is still relief available that allows you to drive during the time of your suspension. Suspensions are typically either 6 or 12 months long, depending on whether you took or refused the breath test. During that time, you will be allowed to drive if you have a specific device installed in your motor vehicle. 

This is called the Breath Alcohol Ignition Interlock Device or BAIID. Following the issuing of DUI tickets, the Illinois Secretary of State will mail out an application asking if you want to be considered for the BAIID device and have it installed in your car. As stated previously, if we can’t get rid of the suspension, you will need to fill out this application, and pay the applicable fees to request the device. 

Once the Secretary of State approves the application, you will have to take your vehicle to a private vendor to have the BAIID device installed in your car. Once installed, you are able to drive the car with the BAIID device at any time during the suspension. The suspension of your driving privileges will be lifted at the end of the suspension period as long as you pay the reinstatement fee, which is typically $250, to the Secretary of State.

To summarize, the Petition to Rescind the Statutory Summary Suspension, known as the PTR, is a document that attempts to get your driver’s license back so that it does not stay suspended. The Breath Alcohol Ignition Interlock Device, or BAIID application allows you to drive during your license suspension legally. Our attorneys can help with all aspects of your DUI charge and do our best to get your back on the road legally! 

If you need help with your DUI charge or any other traffic related issues, contact our team today.