Councilman David G. Greenfield introduced a resolution in the City Council this week calling on the state legislature to no longer incarcerate drivers for not responding to traffic summonses such as tickets for moving violations. Under Councilman Greenfield’s proposal, drivers whose license was suspended solely due to failing to pay traffic summonses would face a fine, instead of the threat of jail time. Currently, a motorist who fails to pay a ticket for a moving violation faces the same type of criminal penalty as someone who commits serious crimes against society. Many New Yorkers innocently forget to respond to a summons because they have moved or simply don’t realize that their license will be suspended and they may be jailed if found driving as a result.
Councilman Greenfield introduced this resolution at Monday’s Stated Council meeting to bring the punishment in line with the actual offense after several constituents informed him they were jailed after having simply forgotten to pay a traffic ticket. In one case, a former city resident who had since moved abroad was pulled over by police while visiting Brooklyn for a family wedding. Because he had forgotten to respond to a nearly two-decade-old traffic ticket before moving, his license was suspended. As a result, when he was pulled over for a minor traffic infraction, the man was detained, handcuffed, arrested and spent the time that he should have been at the wedding in a prison holding cell.
“It struck me as a little extreme to drag someone from their car in handcuffs for what could easily have been a simple mistake like forgetting to respond to a ticket. I have heard of outrageous cases like parents being handcuffed and hauled off to a prison cell in front of their small children all because they forgot to respond to a ticket. Drivers should obey all traffic laws and pay when issued a ticket, but we must also recognize that forgetting to respond is not a criminal act,” said Councilman Greenfield.
In addition to individuals who honestly forgot to pay their ticket or were visiting at the time, Councilman Greenfield has heard from constituents who were incorrectly detained due to a simple paperwork mistake. The resolution introduced at yesterday’s Stated Council meeting recognizes that individuals who have their license suspended due to a serious violation such as driving while intoxicated should not be on the road and should be arrested. However, it seeks to draw a distinction between those who commit criminal acts that threaten public safety with those who simply did not pay less serious traffic summonses.
Right now, anyone who drives with a suspended license faces a punishment of up to $500 in fines and 30 days in jail and is immediately arrested if caught operating a motor vehicle in the City of New York. Councilman Greenfield’s resolution calls on the state to change the law so that individuals who are found to be driving with a suspended license solely due to failing to respond to traffic summonses would not be arrested and would instead face a fine.
“I have heard of too many cases where the punishment for forgetting to respond to a summons far exceeded the crime. It’s just not fair to arrest someone for forgetting to respond to a ticket. That’s why I am calling on the state to reform the vehicle and traffic law immediately,” concluded Councilman Greenfield.
(YWN Desk – NYC)
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10 Responses
You don’t just “forget” to pay a ticket. The city or state sends multiple warnings of consenquenes including arrest for failure to pay. Its not like having a licensce revoked is some minor incident that you overlook. Perhaps spending the night in jail is a little excessive but don’t kid yourself in to thinking that this driver just misplaced his ticket. More plausibly, living overseas he thought he would never be caught. Next time pay the ticket and enjoy the chasunah!
There are many other options, like putting a lean on the car, his bank account etc. Jail should be saved for criminals, not traffic violators.
its about time to change this crazy law , I personally have seen mothers handcuffed in flatbush on coney island ave with children in there car on eruv shabbos , only because she had no recollection of a summons she ever received , there are many laws that dont make sense , how about if you dont wear a seat belt you get a summons , maybe there should out law motorcycles there are no seat belts on them , makes a little sense . your only putting yourself in danger not anyone else , where when u text & talk your putting others in danger ,that should be more serious violation
You might forget to leave the seat down, you dont forget to pay a ticket, you may choose to ignore the multiple warnings that it is unpaid though. I agree jail is a little extreme for an unpaid ticket, but if you want to be taken seriously dont say such ridiculous things.
It is about time. NY is the only place in the world that would possibly have such an insane law.
A friend of mine was thrown in jail after being pulled over on his way home from the hospital after his wife had just given birth.
Being jailed is an extreme measure, and should only be for real extreme crimes. Towing your car is certainly punishment enough for unpaid tickets.
the law is absolutely ridiculous. I once hired a lawyer to represent me for a ticket for not putting on my blinker. The lawyer missed the court date and my license was suspended. 2 weeks later I get a letter about the suspension, but in the meantime I would’ve spent a night in jail if I had forgotten chas vesholom another blinker.
David, you’re NUTS!!!! You’ve really lost it this time!! You need a reality check…Those “poor people” who get stopped and are found to have suspended licenses, KNEW that they had a suspended license and chose to ignore it….They are careless, unsafe drivers and there is NO other option to keep them off the road. Focus on some REAL laws.
It actually happened to me yesterday. I was on the way to the hospital to pick up my wife after having just given birth to our first child-when a cop pulled me over for changing lanes when it was a solid white line. Before I knew it, I was getting searched, handcuffed, fingerprinted, mug shots, and finally thrown in jail. The process of getting out of jail took me a half a day. Meanwhile, my wife is crying hysterically in the hospital- scared that her husband is stuck in jail and that the hospital will discharge her with noway to go home( To be fair the police officers were sympathetic to the cause and that is why the process took only a half a day as opposed to a whole day…). Anyway, it turns out I got arrested for not paying a $75 ticket that I received on Dec. 5, 2011 for driving while talking on a cellphone. When I received the ticket a year ago, they prolonged the process of entering it into the system and I even emailed them regarding whether the ticket has been entered. They emailed me back the ticket was processed and dismissed. So here I go on my merry way when all this happens and I have to pay $295 in fines go to court and I don’t even know what else. I hope I can sue the city for this craziness.
Suspended licence males them unsafe drivers ? Really ?
I don’t understand the Councilmans proposal. Why would the state agree to ammend the law. If they are so forgetful that they forget to respond to a summons why would they remember to pay a fine? And what happens when they continuously forget to pay their fine what recourse does the state have then? Whatever the state decides he will cry it is to harsh a punishment for someone who forgot to respond to a summons!! While he is at it he should ask the state to go easy on all those who forget to file a tax return, pay their property tax or due to their forgetfulness leave a bank with bags of cash and forgetting to fill out a withrawel slip. Is forgetfulness the new excuse for everything now that victimhood is losing its appeal?
Lastly, do we want such forgetful people driving altogether? Perhaps they will forget to stop at a red light or forget that pedestrians in the crosswalk means don’t go. I suggest he petition the DMV to start testing the memory of all those who apply for a license and upon renewal require a memory test in addition to an eye exam.
I think the councilman has been drinking too much kosher egg nog.