County Official Charged with DUI Will Keep Driver’s License, Judge Rules
Charges Against County Official Spark Controversy
Appearing in court for her first hearing in a DUI case, a Cook County elected official successfully fought off an effort to revoke her driver’s license on Friday, after her defense lawyer aggressively questioned the arresting Chicago Police Department officer.
Samantha Steele, a First-Term Democratic Member of the County’s Property-Tax Appeal Panel, Arrested on DUI Charges
Samantha Steele was arrested last month on Chicago’s North Side and charged with driving under the influence after crashing a vehicle into parked cars. Prosecutors argued her license should be revoked, but Steele’s lawyer, John Fotopoulos, convinced Associate Judge Athena James Frentzas to block the revocation, arguing CPD Officer Danny Yu failed to properly warn Steele before she refused to submit to DUI testing.
Defense Lawyer Questions Arresting Officer’s Testimony
Fotopoulos said Yu, a seven-year CPD veteran, “meant well” but made technical mistakes in the arrest on Nov. 10 on Ashland Avenue. “The officer clearly doesn’t do a lot of DUI arrests,” Fotopoulos told the judge. “The CPD probably needs more training in DUIs.”
Arresting Officer’s Testimony Raises Questions
In his testimony, Yu repeated the assertion he made in the police report that Steele repeatedly made crass comments about the size of his penis. “She repeatedly said, ‘Is your penis small’ and ‘I refuse to answer any of your questions,'” Yu said under oath at the Daley Center.
Defense Lawyer Challenges Officer’s Credibility
Fotopoulos shot back: “What about the size of your penis has to do with her refusal?” The defense lawyer then alleged Yu had told Steele, “You Democrats are going to have to start following the law now.”
No Evidence of Alleged Comments on Police Body Camera Footage
Neither that nor the alleged comment about penis size were caught on police body camera footage, because they were made at a hospital where Steele was treated after the accident and the cameras were turned off there. But videos taken at the scene show Steele repeatedly letting the officers know she was a county elected official and refusing to cooperate, at one point declining to follow orders to get out of the heavily damaged vehicle she was driving.
Judge Reverses Decision, Allows County Official to Keep Driver’s License
Frentzas at first said she found Yu credible and denied the motion from Steele’s lawyer to block the license revocation, which the state’s attorney’s office had wanted. She reversed herself after Fotopoulos objected and Yu was brought back to the witness stand, where the defense lawyer grilled him again.
Conclusion
The case is scheduled for its next hearing on February 14. The controversy surrounding the arrest and the judge’s reversal of her decision to revoke Steele’s license has sparked debate about the fairness of the DUI laws and the quality of training provided to police officers.
FAQs
* What was the outcome of the court hearing?
The judge ruled that the county official, Samantha Steele, will be allowed to keep her driver’s license.
* What were the allegations made against the arresting officer, Danny Yu?
It was alleged that Yu made technical mistakes in the arrest and that he made crass comments about his own penis size to Steele, which were not caught on police body camera footage.
* What was the outcome of the case so far?
The county official, Samantha Steele, was arrested on charges of driving under the influence and was facing a possible license revocation. However, her lawyer successfully argued that the arresting officer, Danny Yu, made mistakes in the arrest, and the judge reversed her initial decision to revoke Steele’s license.
* What is the next step in the case?
The case is scheduled for its next hearing on February 14.
