Kane County sting targets unlicensed drivers who drive to court
Hector Ramirez pleaded guilty Wednesday to driving with a revoked license, then got behind the wheel to head home from the Kane County Judicial Center in St. Charles.
He didn't get far.
The 26-year-old Aurora man was one of 10 motorists caught up in a police surveillance sting targeting defendants who drove away from court with revoked or suspended licenses.
"Isn't that ironic?" asked Ramirez, who said he was on the verge of getting a restricted driving permit until he was arrested around 10:30 a.m. in the Meijer parking lot at Route 38 and Randall Road.
"I guess it's fair," he added. "You want to play, you've got to pay. That's the law."
The sting, headed up by the state's attorney's office and dubbed "Operation Shadow," involved more than a dozen state, county and local police officers and focused on more than 30 suspects scheduled to appear at the 9 a.m. court call. Of the 14 that police were able to monitor, 10 were caught driving, officials said.
"The point is to deter people from driving without a license," State's Attorney John Barsanti said. "This whole idea of a license suspension has got to have some teeth to it. People have to understand their license has been suspended or revoked and that does mean something... Yeah, they have to get a ride, and that may be a pain and that may be difficult - but that's the point."
State statistics suggest that ignoring driving restrictions in such cases is increasingly common. There were 72,715 people convicted of driving with a suspended or revoked license in 1997 and 82,249 convicted of the same charges last year. Repeat offenders face increasingly stiff penalties, even jail time in the most serious cases.
On Wednesday, the surveillance began as defendants left court, tailed by plainclothes officers stationed in and around the courthouse. The undercover officers then radioed information about the suspect's whereabouts and clothing to a third-floor command post with a full view of the parking lot. Those spotted driving from the courthouse were stopped by local patrol officers and state troopers posted along nearby streets.
Those arrested were charged with driving without a license and released on personal recognizance bonds at the scene. Some had passengers and were able to leave in a vehicle; others, including Ramirez, saw their vehicles impounded and were dropped off in front of the county jail.
"It's hard," Ramirez said of trying to find rides on a regular basis after he was convicted of fleeing and eluding police in a stolen car eight years ago. Although he had arranged for a ride to court with a friend Wednesday, he said the ride fell through.
"I depend on my family sometimes, but I can't always depend on my family. I'm still going to drive if it's a legal issue, a family issue, an issue with my daughters," Ramirez said. "I guess I could drive to the train station and catch a bus."