Q: 20mph over in 30mph zone. If i go to court, plead not guilty, get supervision do i still pay the ticket or goes to reco

A: Hello Asker,

It's a weird question we get often and the answer is...sort of. In Illinois, there are three driving records for every driver. Internal, Court Purposes, and Public:

-Internal - the formal records of the Secretary of State. They show both the full record and all things that were ever on it including removed items. Only the Secretary of State may access these

-Court Purposes - records used for court. Accessible to police, prosecutors, courts, secretary of state, attorneys, and the named driver. These records reflect the full record and include court supervisions but not removed items

-Public - public records include only convictions and supervisions for DUI's and Driving During Suspensions. All other supervisions are not visible. These records are public records available to insurance companies, employers (with the exception of any agency that can access more secret records above), and other agencies.

Court supervision for all intents and purposes won't go on a record that will hurt your driving privileges. It doesn't count for points (not technically how points work in Illinois but that's the idea), won't raise your insurance rates, and won't be visible to employers. It will however remain on your non-public records for years to come. This allows future prosecutors to know the extent of your driving record.

With that said, I recommend going to court to get court supervision. 50mph in a 30 mph zone is rather fast and mail in supervision is not a guaranteed success. By doing so, you may even avoid traffic school. Alternatively, you can arrange for an attorney to appear for you and secure court supervision though this is not necessary and is really more for convenience than anything else.

I hope that helps and let us know if you have any further questions.

Sincerely,

Jason A. Wilkins

Traffic Attorney

(630) 445-2293