Lester: Are medical marijuana users risking a DUI?

Illinois has given 3,300 people licenses to use medical marijuana, but it hasn't set a threshold at which it considers them safe to drive.

That means it is up to a police officer to decide if someone with a medical marijuana license seems impaired and should be charged with driving under the influence, says Pete Baroni, a professor of law at Loyola University of Chicago and former DuPage County prosecutor.

Medical marijuana users would commonly have signs of the drug in their blood or urine, since it can show up for weeks after use.

Baroni, who worked on Illinois' medical marijuana legislation, says setting a benchmark amount to be allowed in a person's system while driving is complicated, especially because the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration won't weigh in on the issue because marijuana consumption is still illegal under federal law.

Some lawmakers, including Democratic state Sen. Michael Noland of Elgin, have pushed without success to establish legal limits of marijuana for driving.

Fairness issue

It's a different story for those without medical marijuana licenses. The smallest trace of marijuana is grounds for a DUI charge, even if a driver doesn't seem impaired.

Some legal experts question whether the double standard violates equal protection clauses of the Illinois and U.S. constitutions.

From impasse to overpass

Elk Grove Village used the Illinois Tollway's I-90 widening project as an opportunity to add welcome signs to overpasses, which the village paid for. - Courtesy of Elk Grove Village

Wondering about the elegantly etched signs along I-90 welcoming travelers to Elk Grove Village? Assistant Village Manager Maggie Jablonski says Elk Grove used the tollway's I-90 widening project as an opportunity to add the upgrades, which the village paid for. The signs will be added to both sides of bridges at Arlington Heights Road, Busse Road and Oakton Street, at a cost of $410,404. Work has just begun on the north side of the Arlington Heights Road Bridge.

Getting there

Democratic state Sen. Daniel Biss tells me he's hit 870 miles in his quest to run 1,000 miles before the year's out.

How'd he embark on such a challenge? The Evanston Democrat and candidate for Illinois comptroller said he was asked by a reporter what he did for fun, besides politics, and thought the running goal would add some variety to his life.

Face of duty

Hoffman Estates native and Fremd High School grad Andy McDermott was a professional soccer player and Phoenix cop before he moved to L.A. to become an actor. -

Fremd High School alum Andy McDermott, an actor and exercise video star, is the face of one of the hottest new video games to hit the shelves, "Call of Duty: Black Ops III."

McDermott, a former Phoenix police officer, has landed guest roles on about a dozen television series, including CBS' "Hawaii Five-0" and "Scorpion."

Hanging out

Republican fundraiser Lisa Thompson Wagner of Wheaton, on hand for the GOP presidential debate in Milwaukee last week, described the event as a "2015 bucket list experience" -- where she was surprised to find the candidates, many of whom behave as if they despise one another in front of the camera, actually hanging out with one another and chatting during commercial breaks.

Out of pocket

Hat tip to Daily Herald photographer Dan White who observed legendary Bears Coach Mike Ditka peel a hundred dollar bill from his wallet after a Salvation Army event in Oak Brook last week. "Now go put this in the kettle for me," Ditka told an autograph seeker.

'Most militarized'

VICE News has published an investigation of American universities with ties to the military, police and intelligence communities, and three Illinois schools are on the list.

Northwestern University in Evanston and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign were ranked numbers 80 and 83, respectively, for producing the greatest number of students who are employed by the intelligence community and have the closest relationships with branches of the military. Southern Illinois University in Carbondale was ranked 23.

This week's snap

This week's snap: Here's Kitchenchat host Margaret McSweeney of Barrington Hills with actress and former "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" star Sarah Michelle Gellar, who recently launched a kid-friendly, preservative-free food line called FoodStirs. "Food is the common denominator," McSweeney recalls Gellar saying. - Courtesy of Margaret Mcsweeney

Here's Kitchenchat host Margaret McSweeney of Barrington Hills with actress and former "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" star Sarah Michelle Gellar, who recently launched a kid-friendly, preservative-free food line called FoodStirs. "Food is the common denominator," McSweeney recalls Gellar saying.