Downstate Illinois just moved WAY up in my mind

Ha:

TAYLORVILLE, Ill. — The sign on the door of the American Tap warns patrons not to smoke. But sitting at the bar, customers merrily puff away, sharing cigarettes with the bartender and the owner while openly defying and mocking the state's ban on indoor smoking.

"I told the health department weeks ago, 'Go ahead and fine me,' " said owner Gary McWard, flicking an ash from his cigarette into an empty beer can on the bar top. "And I'm still waiting."

Enforcement could be a long time coming. Light up indoors in Chicago and the suburbs and get caught, and it's virtually certain the law will try to snuff it out. But in Downstate Illinois, where state smoking rates are the highest and opposition to the smoking ban is most vociferous, some communities are refusing to halt indoor smoking or levy fines.

Why?

Some rural prosecutors and county health departments say they are in a legal bind: The law that took effect Jan. 1 is not specific in how it should be enforced.

Though the law spells out fines from $100 to $250 for smokers and from $250 on up for business owners, it does not detail a due process to enforce it, they say.

And it leaves it up to local authorities to wrestle with the ambiguity. Officials in Chicago and the suburbs are enforcing the ban despite the lack of certain guidelines, but some Downstate prosecutors are reluctant to—especially with strong pockets of public sentiment against the ban.

This guy is kind of my new hero:

Peoria attorney Daniel O'Day, who believes the ban infringes on personal liberty, travels across the state working for free to represent smokers cited under the law. He said the ban has a number of flaws, including no specific requirements for bartenders to enforce the law; no penalty for failing to remove ashtrays; and no legal limit on the dollar amount of fines for bar owners.

I recommend reading the whole thing. It's the most heart-warming article I've read in a long time. It ends with one last nanny-stater sniffing:

"We would like to get this stopped, but we can't," said Gerry Grigsby, administrator for the Christian County Health Department. "We're stuck with a bad law, and it's a health hazard."

Ha ha!