'Jeff's Law' designed for protection of construction zone workers

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Drivers who fail to slow down in highway construction zones now have yet another reason to step on the brakes.

On Sunday, Jeff’s Law took effect, which gives judges and juries the ability to convict speeding or impaired drivers who kill people in work or school zones.

“Jeff’s Law,” also known as Senate Bill 363, was created in response to the death of Jeff Heath, 58, a five-year Illinois Department of Transportation employee killed on April 26, 2006, while directing traffic in a construction zone.

The bill was introduced in the Illinois Senate in February 2007. It passed 54-1 one month later, with both Sen. Gary Dahl (R-Granville) and Sen. Dale Risinger (R-Peoria) voting in favor. The bill unanimously passed the House in July 2007, with Rep. David Leitch (R-Peoria), Rep. Frank Mautino (D-Spring Valley) and Rep. Don Moffitt (R-Gilson) all in support. Gov. Rod Blagojevich signed the bill into law in September 2007.

“I know most Illinois drivers respect the hard work of roadway workers and the vulnerability of our children by slowing down in construction and school zones,” Blagojevich said. “Unfortunately, there are a few drivers out there who don’t seem to understand just how dangerous reckless or drunk driving can be. If you kill a kid or construction worker because you are drunk or reckless, you should face the full extent of the law — this bill will help ensure that happens.”

SB 363 allows the judge or jury to presume that a driver was acting recklessly if he or she was under the influence or driving more than 20 miles per hour over the speed limit and killed a construction worker or child in a safety zone.

If the offense takes place in a school zone and a person is struck and killed, the driver would be charged with a felony and could get up to five years in prison. If the offense occurs in a construction zone, the driver would be charged with a felony that could bring up to 14 years behind bars.

Mike Claffey, an IDOT spokesman, said work-zone accidents have fallen in recent years, but officials are looking for even more improvement. In 2003, Illinois had 44 work-zone fatalities, including five workers. By 2007, the numbers fell to 21 and two respectively.

An average 7,000 crashes in highway work zones occur annually in Illinois, resulting in 2,600 injuries.

One of those injuries occurred last month, when a worker flagging traffic at an Illinois 351 construction site in LaSalle County spent more than a week in the hospital after attempting to jump out of the way of a driver who did not slow down. The driver was charged with driving while her license was suspended, failure to stop for a flagger and reckless conduct.

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