Another Kane County DUI crackdown set this month

Refusing a sobriety test won't be an option for some drivers who get pulled over in Kane County on St. Patrick's Day.

State's Attorney John Barsanti announced Tuesday the county's second "No Refusal" crackdown on impaired drivers who try to avoid sobriety tests.

"If they refuse, we tell them we're getting a search warrant," he said. "Once you show them the warrant, they cave."

The county's first such operation took place in the Tri-Cities last Memorial Day and resulted in the arrests of 14 drivers, four of whom refused tests until threatened with a warrant.

This time, the crackdown will be at undisclosed locations the night of Saturday, March 14, and into early Sunday, March 15. It continues on St. Patrick's Day, March 17, and into the next morning.

Barsanti said prosecutors will be on hand to prepare on-the-spot search warrants if a driver is suspected of impairment but will not take a breath test.

The warrants are then taken directly to the county's on-call judge, who can charge a suspect with contempt of court if he or she is ordered to give a blood or urine sample and refuses.

In Illinois, about 50,000 motorists are charged with driving under the influence each year, but 20,000 of them, or 40 percent, refuse to be tested, according to the state's attorney's office.

"A refusal case is very difficult to prove in court," Barsanti said. "All you have to go on is the observations of the officer."

This is the first time Kane County has given advance warning of a "No Refusal" operation. Barsanti said he hopes the announcement serves as a deterrent to holiday motorists who consider drinking and driving.