How to Understand Material on Judici - Part 1: Case Types

[Cleanup done]

Originally published May 7th, 2008 on The East Central Illinois Criminal Law & DUI Weblog

By: Jeremy Richey

This post will focus on the case numbers found on Judici. As far as criminal and traffic case numbers are concerned, your primary focus needs to be on the following letters: CF, CM, TR, DT, CV, and OV.

If a case number contains these letters, then the case was filed in the criminal-felony division. For example, “2008CF999” would be a typical felony case number on Judici. The “2008” part of the number tells you that the case was filed in the year 2008. The “999” tells you that this particular case was 999th felony case filed in the year 2008.

Felonies carry the most severe criminal penalties. They are the crimes that can land a person in the Illinois Department of Corrections.

If a case number contains these letters, then the case was filed in the criminal-misdemeanor division. Misdemeanors are generally less serious than felonies. A misdemeanor conviction can result in a person serving time in the county jail, however, that person cannot be sent to the Illinois Department of Corrections.

If a case number contains these letters, then the case was filed in the traffic division. Traffic offenses can be petty (fine only) offenses or misdemeanors.

If a case number contains these letters, then the case was filed as a DUI — the defendant was allegedly driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

If a case number contains these letters, then the case filed was filed as a conservation violation. When you read the word “conservation,” think things like fishing licenses, wildlife, and game wardens. These cases are often petty offenses, but not always.

If a case number contains these letters, then the case was filed as either a city or county ordinance violation. These cases often times could have been filed as state charges, but the police chose to have them prosecuted in ordinance court rather than state court. A good example is underage drinking. All underage-drinking charges can be filed in state court, but, a large number of them end up being filed as city-ordinance violations rather than state misdemeanors.