Expensive new fines approved in Elburn for distracted driving

Motorists driving through Elburn soon may face a significant fine if they’re found using their cellphones.

Village board members present for the Nov. 20 meeting voted unanimously to approve the Distracted Driver village ordinance that will give Elburn police officers the option to levy a fine of $250 for the first offense, $500 for the second offense and $750 for the third offense.

Although there is a state statute covering distracted drivers, Village President Jeff Walter and several other officials including Trustee Chris Hansen felt the fines were not significant enough to get people’s attention. Hansen is the president of the DuKane chapter of ABATE, a motorcycle and rider rights organization in the area.

Together with Walter, Hansen has expressed concern over the recent frequency of crashes resulting in fatalities, especially involving motorcyclists.

“We’ve already got a reputation for speeding,” Hansen said. “I’m OK with a reputation for when you drive through our town, you put that phone down.”

Village officials had been exploring the option of creating a local ordinance that would carry a more punitive fine than the state statute, which has a $75 fine for the first offense, $100 for the second offense, $125 for the third offense and $150 for the fourth offense.

Their initial recommendation for a significant fine was $750 or even $1,000.

After much discussion over the past several months among village staff and members of the village board, advice from village attorney Bill Thomas, feedback from another attorney who handles Elburn’s prosecutions for traffic cases, an opinion from the Chief Judge of the 16th Judicial Circuit in Kane County and input from Elburn police officers who will be asked to implement the ordinance, officials settled on $250 for the first offense.

Hansen said he was satisfied with the ordinance.

“It’s better than the state’s,” he said. “It will still have an impact.”

Walter said he also was satisfied with the outcome.

“All of the parties worked well together,” he said. “It got toned down a bit. … It will be a good thing for the village.”

If the infraction takes place in a school zone, the action will be considered an aggravated offense and have a fine of $500 for the first offense and $750 for the second and subsequent offenses.

Hansen said a village trustee from Maple Park has reached out to him regarding the possibility of a similar ordinance in their village.

“We’re definitely taking the lead in the state,” Walter said.

The final version of the ordinance added a payment of $130 for court costs if a fine is contested in court.

Elburn Police Chief Nick Sikora said he will be giving his officers the discretion of writing citations through the local ordinance or going through the state statute, depending on the situation.

“I would want to leave it to the officer to choose,” Sikora said.

Walter said he agreed with Sikora.

“It would be another tool in their bag,” he said.

Walter said the new ordinance could be implemented as early as the first week of December.