People v. Herbert

The defendant was tried by a jury, convicted of driving while under the influence of alcohol, and sentenced to one year’s conditional discharge with seven days in the county jail. On appeal the defendant argues that the charge should have been dismissed because he was denied a speedy trial. We agree with the defendant and reverse his conviction and sentence.

Before addressing the particular facts and issues presented by this appeal, we shall briefly summarize some rules regarding the prosecution of traffic offenses.

Supreme Court Rules 504 and 505 (87 Ill. 2d Rules 504, 505) provide a series of…