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I have heard that there are new changes in the Illinois Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) Program. What are the changes?
There are several phases to the Illinois GDL program : 1) Permit Phase for Drivers 15 Years of Age. 3) Full Licensing Phase for drivers 18-20 Years of Age. Each phase contains its own restrictions and sanctions which are listed in a downloadable PDF brochure created by the the Illinois Secretary of States office. Click <here> to download and view this PDF brochure. In addition, you can visit the Illinois Secretary of State website for additional information.. Back to Top
What are the current
driving laws for teenagers?
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 | Parent/guardian must certify that a minimum of 50 hours of practice
driving, including 10 hours of nighttime driving, has been completed. |
| Parent/guardian must accompany teen to provide written consent to obtain a
driver's license, or complete and notarize an Affidavit/Consent For Minor to
Drive form. |
| Must have completed a state-approved driver education course. |
| A nighttime driving restriction is in place Sunday-Thursday, 10 p.m-6
a.m., and Friday-Saturday, 11 p.m.-6 a.m. (local curfews may differ from the
nighttime driving restriction).
Effective 07-22-08: |
| Must maintain a conviction-free driving record for six months prior to
turning age 18 before moving to the Full Licensing Phase. A traffic
conviction during the initial licensing phase may extend restrictions beyond
age 18. |
| All occupants under age 19 must wear safety belts. |
| For the first year of licensing, or until the driver is age 18, whichever occurs first, the number of passengers is limited to one (1) person under age 20, unless the additional passenger(s) is a sibling, step-sibling, child, or step-child of the driver. After this period, the number of passengers is limited to one in the front seat and the number of safety belts in the back seat. |
Cell phone use while driving is prohibited except in the case of an emergency to contact a law enforcement agency, health care provider or emergency services agency.
No age-related restrictions apply except in cases where a driver fails to move from the Initial Licensing Phase to the Full Licensing Phase.
Cell phone use while driving for persons under age 19 is prohibited except in the case of an emergency to contact a law enforcement agency, health care provider or emergency services agency.
For more information on the GDL laws, please visit the Illinois Secretary of State web site.
The current state statute covering curfew is as follows:
720 ILCS 555/1(a) - It is unlawful for a person less than 17 years of age to be present at or upon any public building, place, street or highway at the following time unless accompanied and supervised by a parent, legal guardian, or other responsible companion at least 18 years of age approved by a parent or legal guardian or unless engaged in a business or occupation which the laws of this State authorize a person less than 17 years of age to perform.
1) Between 12:01am and 6:00 am Saturday
2) Between 12:01am and 6:00 am Sunday
3) Between 11:00pm on Sunday to Thursday, inclusive and 6:00am the following
day.
Exceptions:
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When the juvenile is on an errand at the
direction of the minor's parent or guardian, without any detour or stop; |
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When the juvenile is in a motor vehicle
involved in interstate travel; |
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When the juvenile is engaged in an employment
activity or going to or returning home from an employment activity, without
any detour or stop; |
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When the juvenile is involved in an
emergency; |
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When the juvenile is on the sidewalk abutting
the minor's residence or abutting the residence of a next-door neighbor if
the neighbor did not complain to the police department about the minor's
presence; |
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When the juvenile is attending an official
school, religious, or other recreational activity supervised by adults and
sponsored by a government or governmental agency, a civic organization, or
another similar entity that takes responsibility for the minor, or going to
or returning home from, without any detour or stop, an official school,
religious, or other recreational activity supervised by adults and sponsored
by a government or governmental agency, a civic organization, or another
similar entity that takes responsibility for the minor; |
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When the juvenile is exercising First Amendment
rights protected by the United States Constitution, such as the free
exercise of religion, freedom of speech, and the right of assembly; or |
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When the juvenile is married or had been married or is an emancipated minor under the Emancipation of Minors Act [750 ILCS 30/1 et seq.]. |
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Parents
Who Host, Lose the Most |
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View a "Parents Who Host Lose the Most" PSA Video
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Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for 15-to-20-year-olds in America. In fact, young drivers between 15 and 20 years old, account for less than seven percent of America's licensed drivers, yet are responsible for just over 20 percent of the nation's annual traffic crash fatalities.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 7,884 drivers, ages 15-20 years old, were involved in fatal traffic crashes across the nation in 2003 – killing a total of 8,666 persons and injuring over 300,000 more.
Just as concerning, young drivers between the ages of 15 and 20 are more often involved in alcohol-related crashes than any comparable age group.
While all states and the District of Columbia have 21-year old minimum drinking age laws, more than 20 percent of young people below the legal drinking age reported driving under the influence of alcohol, other drugs, or both, in the past year, according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health.
In fact, nearly a third (31 percent) of the 15-20-year-old drivers who were killed in fatal crashes in 2003 had been drinking. Twenty-five percent of the drivers had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level of 0.08 percent and above.
The fatality rate in these crashes is compounded because young drivers and their passengers are much less likely to wear their safety belts after drinking. Sixty-five percent of 15-20-year-old drivers killed in all fatal crashes in 2003 were unrestrained. But 74 percent of the young drivers killed after drinking were not buckled up.
Where are these underage teens gaining access to so much alcohol? What they report may be surprising.
A recent survey commissioned by The Century Council, a
national non-profit dedicated to fighting drunk driving and underage drinking,
revealed that 65 percent of underage youth say they get alcohol from family and
friends, meaning they get it from their parents, their friends' parents, older
siblings or friends, with or without their permission.
Most troubling, some parents have become willing accomplices in planning
teen parties and turning a blind eye to alcohol use in their own homes. Between
graduation parties, end-of-school celebrations and the free-time and fun of the
summer season, parents can be tempted to host parties for their minor-aged kids
and their friends – sometimes with alcohol – with the mistaken belief that
it is a safer option for their kids to drink at home than to drink somewhere
else.
Other parents may regard high school graduation – or going off to college – as normal rites of passage or special occasions where it is fine for alcohol to be served. Others think back to their teens when the legal drinking age in many states was 18 and consider alcohol use just a normal part of growing up.
But the legal drinking age in America is now 21. Underage drinking is illegal in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
That's why the Kenilworth Police Department is joining with other federal, state and local highway safety and law enforcement officials across the nation to remind all parents – Parents Who Host Lose the Most. If your underage teen drinks and drives, you may be legally liable for any damage, injury or death caused by your child. This is especially true if you provided the alcohol.
The consumption or possession of alcohol provided by you is all the evidence needed for you to be criminally prosecuted or civilly sued.
Specific laws vary state by state, but parents who break these laws could be forced to pay all medical bills and property damages in the case of a crash, and could also be sued for emotional pain and suffering when there is severe injury or death.
In some states, the parents can even subject themselves to
criminal prosecution. In one case in Pennsylvania, a parent was sentenced to a 1
to 4 year prison term for involuntary manslaughter after three teens died in a
drunk-driving crash following a party the parent hosted. In that case, the
parent did not buy the alcohol consumed at the party, but knowingly permitted
the teens to drink the alcohol that was brought in by others.
Just a few helpful steps can help parents avoid disaster. If you are planning a party for your teen in your home this summer:
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Help make the guest list and limit the number to be
invited. Send personal invitations to avoid the dangers of “open
parties.” |
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Put your phone number on the invitation and encourage
calls from other parents to check on the event. Think about inviting some of
the other parents to help during the party and to help you supervise to
ensure no alcohol or drugs are present, and to help ask uninvited attendees
to leave. |
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At the party, limit access to a specified area of your
property. Make sure there is plenty of food and soft drinks available. Make
regular, unannounced visits to the party area throughout the evening. |
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If your teen is attending a party at someone else's home,
call the parent to verify the details and to ensure there will be adult
supervision and no alcohol served. |
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Know how your teen is getting to and from the party. And
be aware when your teen arrives home. Seeing and kissing your child good
night is one way to detect if alcohol or drugs were used. |
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If you are going away for the weekend or on vacation and plan on leaving your teen home alone, be direct and set clear expectations, ground rules and consequences if you think your teen might be tempted to host a party. Notify your neighbors and ask them to keep an eye out – and leave the phone numbers that should be called in the event of a problem or an emergency. |
Talk to your kids and make sure they know you are concerned for their safety and do not condone underage alcohol or drug use or their use of a motor vehicle after any use of alcohol or drugs.
But most importantly, as responsible parents, don't be a party to teenage drinking.
If you are hosting a party for your teen this summer, keep it alcohol-free. Remember Parents Who Host Lose the Most . Any adult who serves alcohol to underage youth, or who is aware of it being served to underage youth on their property, may be legally responsible and liable for all of the destructive and deadly damage that results.
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© Parents Who Host, Lose The Most is a copyright of Ohio Parents for Drug Free Youth, with funding from the Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. Parents Who Host, Lose the Most: Don’t be a party to teenage drinking was developed by and is a project of Drug-Free Action Alliance.
The New Trier Township Peer Jury Program was created in 1998 by a collaboration of the Township Board, police departments from Wilmette, Kenilworth, Winnetka, Northfield, and Glencoe, public and private high schools in the area and social service agencies that serve the Township.
This program is used as an alternative to sending first-time youthful offenders through the criminal court system. The juvenile officer at the arresting police department decides whether a case is appropriate for the peer jury. Typical offenses may include shoplifting, vandalism, fighting, trespassing, curfew violation, and possessing drug paraphernalia or marijuana.
Youthful offenders are judged and sentenced by a jury comprised of their adolescent peers and often receive sentences that require restitution and/or community service. The Peer Jury Program is administered through the New Trier Township office and has proven to be very effective.
For more information please visit the Peer Jury page located on the Township's web site.
(a) It shall be unlawful for any person within the limits of the village to possess marijuana, hashish or other substances which are identified as including any parts of the plant Cannabis Sativa, whether growing or not; the seeds thereof, the resin extracted from any part of such plant; and any compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture or preparation of such plant, its seeds, or resin, including tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and all other cannabinol derivatives, whether naturally occurring or by extraction, or independently by means of chemical synthesis or by a combination of extraction and chemical synthesis (other than mature stalks of such plant, fiber produced from such stalks, any other compound, derivative mixture, or preparation of such mature stalks except the resin extracted therefrom).
(a) No person under the age of twenty-one (21) years shall consume, purchase, or accept delivery of alcoholic liquor or have alcoholic liquor in his or her possession within the village. The possession and dispensing or consumption by a person under the age of twenty-one (21) years of alcoholic liquor in the performance of a religious service or ceremony or the consumption by a person under the age of twenty-one (21) years under the direct supervision and approval of a parent or guardian of such underage person in the privacy of the parent's or guardian's home is not a violation of this Section.
(b) No person after purchasing or otherwise obtaining alcoholic liquor shall sell, give or deliver such alcoholic liquor to another person under the age of twenty-one (21) years, except as allowed under Section 24-31(a).
The Village of Kenilworth has a parental responsibility ordinance that allows officers to fine, or summon to court, parents who fail to exercise proper parental responsibility by allowing, failing to supervise, or permitting a minor to commit a violation of village ordinance or state statute concerning possession/consumption of alcoholic beverages by a minor, possession of cannabis or possession of a controlled substance.
It shall be unlawful for any person
who has ownership or control of any premises located within the village to
knowingly suffer, permit or allow any person(s) under the age of twenty-one (21)
years to be present on such premises in possession of any alcoholic liquor or to
consume any alcoholic liquor, except as allowed under Section 24-31(a), or in
possession of any cannabis or controlled substance prohibited by Section 24-30
(a) or Illinois statute. A person who owns or controls a premises is deemed to
have permitted such premises to be used in violation of this Section if he or
she knowingly authorized, enabled, or permitted such use to occur by failing to
control access to either the premises or the alcoholic liquor maintained therein
with knowledge, or with reason to know, that such use would occur or was
reasonably likely to occur.
(a) Definitions. For the purpose of this Section, the terms, phrases, and words shall have the meanings given to them in this Subsection. All terms, phrases, and words used in this Section but not defined in this Subsection shall have meaning given to them elsewhere in the Village Code.
Minor means a person under the age of 18 years.
Tobacco product means any item, project, or substance containing or made from tobacco leaf, including specifically, but without limitation cigarettes, cigars, snuff, and pipe, chewing, or dipping tobacco.
(b)
(c)
(d) Purchase by minors. It shall be unlawful for any minor to purchase or otherwise acquire any tobacco product within the corporate limits of the Village.
(e) Possession and use by minors. It shall be unlawful for any minor to possess or use a tobacco product within the corporate limits of the Village; provided, however, that the possession or use of any tobacco product by any minor under the direct supervision and control of the parent or guardian of any minor in the privacy of such parent’s or guardian’s home shall not be unlawful.
Learning to drive can be both
exciting and stressful for a teenager and his or her parents. The
Kenilworth Police Department encourages families (parents and teen) to consider
entering into a written driving agreement. Many families report that it
has proven to be a successful way to promote safe driving behavior. It is
as simple as outlining your family’s “household driving rules” as well as
the consequences for violating those rules. This approach promotes an
atmosphere of discussion between parents and teens, which can also help to
prompt discussion on other important topics.
The
link below is
a new publication titled "Chatting with Kids about being online".
It contains information that parents might find useful when speaking to their
children about topics such as online safety, social networking sites, protecting
personal privacy and more.
http://www.onguardonline.gov/pdf/tec04.pdf
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Send mail to
kenilworthpd@kenilworthpd.org with questions or comments about this web
site.
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