The Vindicator
September 29, 2018
Paul Bell was a preacher in Georgia in the late 1960s. The
weekend before Thanksgiving 1968, Bell was driving to one of the three churches
he oversaw when 5-year-old Sherry Capes crashed her bicycle into the side of
Bell’s car.
Bell didn’t have insurance. At the time, Georgia law
provided that the registration and license of an uninsured motorist involved in
an accident would be suspended unless the motorist posted a bond to cover the
cost of any claim.
Bell fought his case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court
contending he was entitled to a hearing to show he was not at fault, before his
license was suspended. In 1971, the High Court ruled that the holder of a
driver’s license has a property interest in that license and that the license
may not be suspended or revoked without due process of law.
Due process
The requirements of due process include notice and an
opportunity to be heard at a hearing. Due process may also require an
opportunity to confront witnesses and the right to be represented by counsel.
In Bell’s case the court concluded that once issued, a
driver’s license is essential in the pursuit of his livelihood. Bell traveled
to three different churches to serve his rural congregations. For everyone
else, it meant a driver’s license was more than just a piece of paper; it had
value and could not be arbitrarily taken.
Nearly 50 years later, Pennsylvania is one of 12 states that
still imposes mandatory driver’s license suspensions for certain drug offenses,
without due process of law, regardless of whether the crime has anything to do
with driving.
Between 2011 and 2016, Pennsylvania suspended the driver’s
licenses of about 149,000 people for “drug convictions unrelated to traffic
safety,” according to the York Daily Record. Those individuals are essentially
deprived of the ability to work, attend school or care for themselves and their
family.
A driver’s license is not a privilege – it is a necessity.
Individuals who live in rural areas with limited access to public transportation
– and there are a lot of such areas in Pennsylvania – are essentially stranded
without access to even basic necessities without the help of neighbors, family
and friends.
Gainful employment
A lawsuit filed in Pennsylvania by Equal Justice Under Law alleges
that it is critical for people who have criminal convictions to maintain
gainful employment, pursue education, keep doctor’s appointments and take care
of family members. Imposing “additional and debilitating” measures against a
driver whose license has been suspended “make(s) successful post-conviction
rehabilitation a near impossibility.”
Even public safety is at risk when the legislature “piles
on” drug offenders.
According to the lawsuit filed by Equal Justice Under Law,
drivers with suspended licenses often drive out of necessity even while their
licenses remain suspended, requiring law enforcement to devote time to policing
noncompliance rather than focusing on legitimate threats to traffic safety.
A study of suspended and revoked driver’s licenses in
Pennsylvania found “[t]here is significant and increasing frustration in the
law enforcement community as a result of the increased administrative workload
and time and energy required for non-driving related offenses,” suggesting that
non-traffic related license suspensions burden public safety resources rather
than increases public safety.
Legislation
Gov. Tom Wolf supports legislation to eliminate non-driving
related driver’s license suspensions. GOP State Rep. Rick Saccone is the
primary sponsor of House Bill 163, which would remove driver’s license
suspensions for non-driving offenses. The House overwhelmingly passed the bill
with a vote of 192-3.
The measure is now in the Senate Transportation Committee.
The measure is a common sense plan for alleviating the
burden on drivers, law enforcement and the courts. A significant majority of
the states, including Ohio, have taken action to acknowledge the arbitrary act
of taking an individual’s driving privileges – it is not only a bad idea but
unconstitutional. Pennsylvania needs to follow suit.
Matthew T. Mangino is of counsel with Luxenberg, Garbett,
Kelly & George P.C. His book “The Executioner’s Toll, 2010” was released by
McFarland Publishing. You can reach him at www.mattmangino.com and follow him
on Twitter @MatthewTMangino
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