People v. Luna, 2024 IL App (2d) 230568

Ismael Luna was charged in Kane County with two counts of aggravated DUI (sixth or more) and two counts of aggravated DUI for driving while his license was suspended or revoked.
Luna was found passed out in the driver’s seat of a damaged vehicle in a parking lot, with a blood alcohol content of 0.27 and an empty liquor bottle nearby.
The vehicle showed fresh collision damage and the scene indicated recent impacts with a utility pole and sign.
Luna had seven prior DUI convictions and had not held a valid driver’s license since 1989.
The State sought to deny Luna’s pretrial release under the Pretrial Fairness Act, arguing he posed a danger to the community.
The trial court granted the State’s petition to detain Luna pretrial, finding clear and convincing evidence that no release conditions could mitigate the threat he posed.

Issue	State's Argument	Luna's Argument	Held
Proof of Qualifying Offense	Luna was found intoxicated in the driver’s seat of a crashed vehicle, indicating control	Presence in seat doesn’t prove actual physical control; no evidence of keys or driving	State met burden for detention hearing; evidence of control sufficient under standard
Public Safety Threat	Luna’s record (seven prior DUIs), prior license revocation, recent conduct show ongoing threat	No individualized finding of threat; court relied merely on prior convictions	Trial court made individualized, factual finding of dangerousness; decision affirmed
Adequacy of Release Conditions	Only detention will assure public safety; monitoring (SCRAM, EHM) proven ineffective	Conditions like SCRAM & EHM can mitigate risk	Evidence supports finding that conditions wouldn’t suffice; order to detain not against manifest weight

People v. Niemiro, 256 Ill. App. 3d 904 (Appellate court clarified defendant need not be seen driving—actual physical control can suffice for DUI)
People v. Davis, 205 Ill. App. 3d 431 (Control determination is case-specific for DUI offenses)