Q: speeding ticket court date was on October 4. I paid ticket and receive court supervision. Will this ticket show?

A: Hello Asker,

The best answer is it depends. It depends on the following factors: whether you actually got supervision, what type of license you have, what type of employer you are asking about, and whether you are an Illinois driver. I'll just go one by one.

Supervision by mail or other method other than court appearance is NOT guaranteed. On minor violations, the chance of getting supervision is high but not 100%. With that being said, several factors can greatly reduce your chances. For instance, if you had a speeding ticket for 25 mph which many prosecutors will be less apt to give supervision on because it's code for someone who was actually going faster that the officer cut a break to. Additionally, if you had a ticket within the last year, this can make it much less likely/impossible to get supervision without a court appearance. Lastly, if you had supervision twice in the last 12 months, it's just plain impossible to get it a third time.

The type of license can greatly affect it. If you hold a CDL, you are necessarily required to have your supervisions made public (i.e. visible to employers and insurance companies) by federal law. Other types like Class B and pilot's licenses run into much the same troubles. If you have anything other than a Class D or Class M license, you should DEFINITELY talk to an attorney in a free consultation to verify how visible this offense will be recorded because you likely will face much more scrutiny.

If your employer is a taxi company (i.e. not ride share app) or a limousine company, you may find yourself reporting your supervisions to your employer indirectly because many municipalities require you to provide a copy of your driving record in order to renew chauffeur's licenses. Ordinarily supervisions are not public record but certain parties can still get them. Courts, prosecutors, perhaps police, the secretary of state, attorneys like myself, and you (the driver for your own record). Since you can access this record, a request to provide your driving record YOURSELF necessarily reveals otherwise non-public information.

Finally, court supervision is an Illinois creation intended for Illinois licenses. As a consequence, Illinois license holders are the focus. Therefore, when it is reported to out of state agencies, it is common for there to be no easy way to communicate this and the out of state agency often assumes guilty is guilty and makes it public. In effect, this makes it functionally the same as a conviction in terms of visibility.

I hope this helps and let us know if you have any questions!

Sincerely,

Jason A. Wilkins

Traffic Attorney

(630) 445-2293

A: There are two records. Your insurance co or employer won’t see the record that shows it. A prosecutor and the Secretary of State will.