Driver's License Restoration

Driver's License Restoration

Facts About Driver's License Restoration

 

Did you know

  • Guilford County has 40,000 citizens with indefinitely suspended driver’s licenses!
  • A person is charged with a traffic offense (even EXPIRED REGISTRATION, BROKEN TAIL LIGHT, etc.)
  • They cannot afford to pay fines ($10-$50) and fees ($200+) within 90 days, their license is automatically indefinitely suspended for failing to pay court costs (fine/fees).
  • Many must get to work, so they drive without a license.
  • If stopped, they are ticketed and charged with DRIVING WHILE LICENSE REVOKED, EXPIRED/NO REGISTRATION, and/or NO LIABILITY INSURANCE which greatly increases their court costs.
  • If they still cannot afford to pay court costs the person can even be JAILED for Failure to Comply!!

Current Relevant Resources

Driven into Debt: Debt-Based Driver's License Suspensions, presentation by Terri Flam-Goldberg and Emma Coltoff. Presented by the Criminal/Racial Justice Sub-Committee at Temple Emanuel.

When Debt Takes the Wheel: Why suspending the driver's licenses of North Carolinians for unpaid traffic court fines and fees is unjust and counterproductive. North Carolina Equal Access to Justice Commission (September, 2020)
"a story map project that reveals extreme racial disparities in North Carolina driver’s license suspensions by county and details the devastating impact of the state’s policy of suspending driver’s licenses for unpaid court fines and fees."
Contact https://ncfairchance.org/ to get pro bono help with driver's license registration.

Driver's License Suspensions in North Carolina: Duke Law Professor Brandon Garrett and Daniel Bowes of the North Carolina Justice Center lead a discussion of driver's license suspensions in North Carolina. Also speaking are individuals who have had their driver's license suspended about how the experience affected their lives. Sponsored by the Duke Criminal Law Society.