A routine traffic stop by Sheriff's Police turned into a felony charge affair this past weekend in River North when officers pulled over a vehicle for failing to yield to an ambulance darting through the city with emergency lights blazing. The driver, whose license had been suspended from Wisconsin and who had no form of picture ID, received a citation for not giving right-of-way to the emergency vehicle, authorities said.
The situation escalated when the vehicle owner, accompanying her in the passenger seat, was found carrying a loaded weapon. The discovery of plausible peril tucked away made it all the more damning considering she lacked a Firearm Owner’s Identification card and a Concealed Carry License from either Wisconsin or Illinois. The necessary permits were policies of possession written to prevent just such an even, according to a Facebook post by the Cook County Sheriff's Office.
"The owner of the vehicle, who was sitting in the passenger seat, had a loaded weapon on her," the Sheriff's Office revealed, painting a picture of how a simple traffic infraction unfolded into a more severe charge, yet in these moments we find the incremental confirmations of our justice system at work—always alert, a reminder that beneath the veneer of tranquility, the instruments of law enforcement move, vigilant and ready.
