State Representative Bob Biggins (R-41st District) was arrested and charged with drunk driving last month in Springfield. Biggins was stopped and arrested in Springfield in the early morning hours of May 28. He was also ticketed for operating a motor vehicle without proper proof of insurance, and improper lane usage.
Biggins, 61, refused to submit to blood alcohol test according to his lawyer John "Mo" Madonia who has entered a plea of not guilty on Biggins' behalf.
However Biggins has issued a press release apologizing for the incident.
"I made a serious lapse in judgment and sincerely apologize to my family and those I represent who may be disappointed today," said Biggins in a statement issued after the arrest. "I take full responsibility for my actions and will face any and all legal consequences."
His next court date is July 28 in Sangamon County Court. Driving under the influence is a Class A misdemeanor. The maximum punishment for a conviction is up to 364 days in jail and a $2,500 fine or two years probation and 180 days in jail, according to William Vig, a prosecutor in the Sangamon County State's Attorney's Office.
Biggins is running for reelection this fall. His only challenger is Green Party candidate Kevin O'Connor.
"You just can't be getting behind the wheel of a vehicle when you have had something to drink," said O'Connor, 23, of LaGrange Park.
O'Connor also used the case to make an argument for better public transportation.
"I think that if there was better public transit he could have taken that," said O'Connor.
Biggins represents the 41st District, which includes North Riverside west of Desplaines Avenue, Riverside West of Desplaines Avenue and south of 31st Street and the Hollywood section of Brookfield.
He first won election to the state legislature in 1992, originally representing the 78th District. When the district map was redrawn after the 2000 census, he was elected to represent the 41st district.
