WHY DO WE BOTHER TO HAVE LAWS?

Laws are necessary to prevent chaos. Without laws, people would have the ability to do whatever they wanted without consequence. Behavior would only be ruled by one’s own conscience; which according to the Merriam Webster dictionary, is defined as  “the sense [of] moral goodness or blameworthiness of one's own conduct, intentions, or character, together with a feeling of obligation to do right or be good.”  But it seems that Cook County, and the City of Chicago that lies within its boundaries, think that certain people do not have to follow the law.

(1)  BICYCLISTS:  The Chicago Department of Transportation lists the rule of the road for bicyclists on its web site. 

Section-52-010 Rights and duties -

(a) Every person riding a bicycle upon a roadway shall be granted all of the rights and shall be subject to all of the duties applicable to the driver of a vehicle by the laws of this state declaring rules of the road applicable to vehicles or by the traffic ordinances of this city applicable to the driver of a vehicle, except as to those provisions of laws and ordinances which by their nature can have no application.

(b) The regulations in the traffic code applicable to bicycles shall apply whenever a bicycle is operated upon any roadway or public sidewalk or upon any public path set aside for the exclusive use of bicycles, subject to those exceptions stated herein.

(c) Whenever authorized signs are erected indicating that no right or left turn or turn in the opposite direction is permitted, no person operating a bicycle shall disobey the direction of any such sign unless he dismounts from the bicycle to make the turn, in which event he shall then obey the regulations applicable to pedestrians. 

It is very clear that bicycle riders have to obey the same LAWS that motor vehicle drivers do.  Yet because they know that police have more important things to do than chase after a bicyclist making an illegal turn, their CONSCIENCE lets them ride as wildly as they want.

(2)  POT SMOKERS

Possession of marijuana is a criminal offense in the state of Illinois, which the last time I looked, included Cook County.  Possession of marijuana is classified as a misdemeanor offense in Illinois as long as the total weight is 30 grams or less. 30 grams is equal to about one ounce.

Misdemeanor offenses have a maximum sentence of up to one year in jail and a fine of $2,500. The judge is allowed to sentence the defendant to probation instead of jail, substance abuse counseling, random testing for alcohol and illegal drugs, and community service.

Possession of cannabis is classified as follows:

• Up to 2.5 grams is a Class C misdemeanor. The punishment for a Class C misdemeanor is up to 30 days jail and a fine of $1,500.0
• 2.5 to 10 grams of cannabis is a Class B misdemeanor offense, which has a possible penalty of 180 days jail and a fine of $1,500.
• 10 grams to 30 grams of cannabis is a Class A misdemeanor. The possible sentence for a Class A misdemeanor under state law is up to one year in jail and a fine of $2,500.

In June, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said that the war on drugs had failed, so in July she spoke with Chicago’s new police Supt. Garry McCarthy about halting arrests for low-level drug possession offenses. She said, “I suggested to him that although the law is pretty clear that such possession is a violation of the law, that since the judges routinely and almost universally dismiss such low-level drug charges, that the police might stop arresting people for this, since it clogs up our jail and these people … their cases will be dismissed out anyway.”

So the highest-elected official in Cook County, someone elected to follow the law, has instructed a police superintendent to ignore the LAW because there are too many offenses to prosecute and it clogs up the legal system!  Does Preckwinkle think that current pot smokers will follow their CONSCIENCE and not break the law once they know nothing will happen to them if caught?

(3)  DETAINING ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS

In September, the Cook County Board voted to release from jail suspected illegal immigrants before the feds can take custody and possibly deport them.  This is ignoring the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement division (ICE) that wants jails to detain soon to be released inmates for up to 48 hours so federal authorities can take them in to custody, question them about suspected immigration violations, or start deportation proceedings.

This ruling has caused great anger to vent from the West Suburban Chiefs of Police Association. Thomas Q. Wetzel, Riverside’s police chief and president of the Association wrote a letter to Preckwinkle saying, “I strongly disagree with the Cook County Board decision to not detain illegal immigrants on federal immigration detainers. This is setting a dangerous precedent for the public and law enforcement in the greater Cook County area.”

When Cook County Commissioner Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, a lead sponsor of the county ordinance, was asked whether there might be a chance to reverse the policy, he said, “I don’t think so.”

In a report issued by The Federation for American Immigration reform (FAIR), it was estimated that illegal immigrants cost the United States approximately $84 billion at the state and local level, and about $29 billion at the federal level.  Illinois’ share of that is estimated to be around $4.5 billion.

Cook County’s justification for releasing illegal immigrants before holding them for 48 hours for ICE is because it costs the county too much money to keep them incarcerated.

So the County is instructing local law enforcement not to follow the LAW because it is too cumbersome on the finances of the county.

CONCLUSION:

If an errant bike rider cuts across traffic and causes an accident, nothing will happen to him in the justice system -- especially if he is an illegal immigrant smoking pot at the time.