1. Driving in a bike lane
2. Parking in a bike lane
3. Turning into a cyclist's path
4. Opening a car door on cyclist
5. Passing within three feet of a cyclist

The fines jump to $500 if the bicyclist is injured. The laws are to encourage drivers to watch out for bicyclists on the road. Bicyclists can also, of course, can make a civil claim for money damages against the negligent driver.

The amendment reads as follows:

625 ILCS 5/3-707
(a-5) A person commits the offense of operation of uninsured motor vehicle causing bodily harm when the person:
(1) operates a motor vehicle in violation of Section 7-601 of this Code; and
(2) causes, as a proximate result of the person's operation of the motor vehicle, bodily harm to another person.
(a-6) Uninsured operation of a motor vehicle under subsection (a-5) is a Class A misdemeanor.

This law will have especially serious consequences for undocumented aliens who drive without license or liability insurance. The law will also have serious consequences even for aliens who are lawfully in the United States in a valid nonimmigrant status since the commission of any crime is considered a violation of nonimmigrant status under the immigration law, which will make an alien removable from the United States for violation of status.

On January 1, 2010, two new traffic laws take effect in Illinois.

The first traffic law restricts drivers under the age of 19 (with an instruction permit or graduated license) from using a wireless or cellular phone while driving. This law law also prohibits the use of wireless telephones for all drivers, regardless of age, while operating a vehicle in a school zone or construction zone.

The law provides an exception to exclude a GPS or navigation system, and creates an exception to the electronic message prohibition for a driver using an electronic communication device while parked on the shoulder of a roadway, and creates an exception for a driver using an electronic communication device when the vehicle is stopped due to normal traffic being obstructed and the driver has the motor vehicle transmission in neutral or park.

The second traffic law prohibits text messaging, composing, reading or sending electronic messages, or accessing internet sites while driving a motor vehicle in a school speed zone or a construction or maintenance speed zone, except for a person engaged in a highway construction or maintenance project for which a construction or maintenance speed zone has been established when the person is using a wireless telephone in furtherance of that project.

The law adds exceptions for specified emergency purposes and law enforcement officers or emergency vehicle operators when performing their official duties. It also adds an exception to wireless telephone in school and construction zones prohibition for a person using a wireless telephone in voice-activated mode.

• Fifteen percent of occupant deaths among children ages 0 to 14 years involved a drinking driver.
• More than two-thirds of fatally injured children were killed while riding with a drinking driver.
• Restraint use among young children often depends upon the driver’s seat belt use. Almost 40% of children riding with unbelted drivers were themselves unrestrained.
• Child restraint systems are often used incorrectly. One study found that 72% of nearly 3,500 observed car and booster seats were misused in a way that could be expected to increase a child’s risk of injury during a crash.

These are preventable deaths. People who decide to sit behind the wheel impaired must remember that they are responsible not only for their own safety, but for the safety of others.

A survey of members of the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery done in 2003 showed a 41% increase from 2001 in the number of patients seeking medical help for skin treatments that were improperly performed by nondoctor technicians.

Procedures that effect the structure or function of the skin, such as laser hair removal, qualify as medical procedures as defined by most state medical boards. This means that the procedure must be performed by a doctor or supervised by a doctor. States have different rules about what constitutes supervision, and in many states a doctor may only be at a spa periodically. If a problem should occur during treatment, a doctor may not be there to help.

Before you have any laser treatment done at a medispa, it is in your best interest to find out if a doctor is at the spa when the procedure takes place. Consumers should also have a consult with a doctor before any laser treatment. Also, do some checking up on the spa you intend to have your laser treatment done at. Find out the qualifications of the individual who will be doing the treatment. Improperly performed laser treatment can cause serious burns. If you are considering this procedure, make sure the people who will be involved in your treatment know what they are doing.

Apparently there were numerous 911 calls made to the Sheriff's department about a section of washed out track. It was then reported to the railway company but they chose not to close the track and the Sheriff's department did not act further on the issue. People stopped in their cars as the train passed said they knew something was wrong as the train cars were seen as "bouncing" along the track. Finally one completely derailed and landed in front of a stopped van. The contents of the car spilled and lit on fire killing one passenger in the van and severely injuring two others. Their injuries were from burns. The woman who died got out of the van and was engulfed in flames. Other stopped cars tried to get away and many watched in horror as the woman on fire burned to death before their eyes.

The family of van passengers have filed suit for the death of their mother and for their other injuries which included the loss of one woman's baby only five months along. It is surmised that these burn injuries will be covered by the train company in a settlement.

Others, though, have filed suit for emotional damages for having been exposed to such danger that could have seriously killed or injured them. That and they say that the horror of watching one women die right before them leaves emotional injuries that last a long time and will need ongoing treatment. One man who has filed suit has already been diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

The study found that chest injuries rose by 15% and abdominal injuries tripled over the last five years. The study also reveals that many bicyclists are still not wearing a helmet when they ride. Significant head injuries were sustained by 33% of the 329 injured cyclists in the study group.

The study was presented during the 2009 Clinical congress of the American College of Surgeons, held Oct. 11 to 15 in Chicago.

Apparently the driver will be charged with a DUI in the case. This could open him up to civil suits for negligence. He did not apply due care in his driving by drinking alcohol prior to driving and the DUI shows he was clearly over the limit to be able to operate a vehicle.

Drinking and driving is just a bad idea. Not only would you face charges in court that might find you having to pay a fine, give up your license for a period or worse, but if you harm other people in the process you will be subject to civil procedure in having to pay things such as medical costs, pain and suffering, lost wages, etc.

Next time you've had too much to drink remember to hand the keys over to a sober driver before you get in that car.

Putnam suffered "diffuse brain injury" according to her attorney, and has some lasting cognitive deficiencies. She will move from a nursing home to her family's home with medical costs being paid from the money she was awarded in the settlement.

A Cook County judge approved the settlement from Target and Besam USA, the manufacturer
of the malfunctioning door.

The Nursing Home Safety Task Force will be headed by Michael Gelder, a senior advisor to Governor Quinn on health policy. The Task Force will include representatives from the Department of Public Health, Department of Healthcare and Family services, Department on Aging, Department of Corrections, Department of Human Services and the Illinois State Police.

According to a new federal report released by the General Accounting Office, Illinois has the nation's second highest number of nursing homes that perform "most poorly" on quality of care measures. The newly formed Task Force will be examining current policies and procedures for ensuring the safety of residents. Governor Quinn has promised to ensure that Illinois' nursing homes "offer a safe haven for residents, many of whom are among our most vulnerable and needy." The Governor says the newly formed Task Force will be addressing the issue of nursing home abuse and neglect "with all deliberate speed."

We applaud the formation of the Nursing Home Safety Task Force as a positive step towards ensuring the dignity and safety of nursing home residents.

The mother claims that the driver of the car was speeding upwards of 60-70 miles per hour. This, she claims, caused the driver to lose control of the car and they went off the roadway and the car flipped at least three times before ejecting her daughter and coming to a stop. Both mother and daughter received injuries from the auto accident that included severe and permanently disfiguring injuries that precluded them from normal work plus mental and physical anguish. The mother is claiming over $100,000 plus costs in damages.

Be aware that driving over the speed limit does not help one's case in matters like these. The speed limit may be up for negotiation but due care is definitely a case for the mother and daughter. The driver's duty is to the other cars on the road and to his/her passengers to drive in a manner that is careful to all of them. Did the driver do all that she could to prevent the accident? Did she slow down?

Drivers should be aware that although they may be going the speed limit they may still be liable for an accident. Would slowing down have prevented an accident? Would changing lanes have helped? All these types of things are taken into account. Driver beware.