Traffic Tickets |
Criminal Tickets
Executive Summary
In 1999, there were over 5,500 Driving While License Suspended in the Third Degree (DWLS 3)cases filed in the King County District Court.These cases represent approximately 35% to 40% of all State criminal filings in District Court.DWLS 3 cases also account for a large percentage of the arrest warrants issued countywide, which ultimately results in DWLS 3 offenders occupying a significant number of county jail beds.
While DWLS 3 has challenged the capacities of our courts and jails, this crime has also had a huge impact on suspended drivers ensnared in its web.The law has had its deepest impact on economically disadvantaged individuals who do not pay their traffic tickets, then have their licenses suspended, then are arrested for driving while suspended.Simple moving violations can quickly snowball into criminal violations.Failing to appear in court can lead to arrest and incarceration and further economic distress.This downward spiral of suspension often results in huge fines, additional penalties and interest charges that make the prospect of ever regaining a driver’s license remote.
Top criminal justice leaders in King County have been working to develop a new approach to DWLS 3 cases, with the goals of improving justice, helping suspended drivers regain their licenses, and reducing costs to the criminal justice system.The King County District Court has assumed leadership of the project, led by Presiding Judge David Steiner and Assistant Presiding Judge Vicki Seitz. Together with King County Prosecutor Norm Maleng, The Defender Association led by Bob Boruchowitz, County Executive Ron Sims, and Councilmember Larry Gossett, the group has developed the King County Re-Licensing Project.
The first part of this collaborative effort is an incentive program to get suspended drivers relicensed.The individuals who qualify for this program will have the benefit of having the court recall their unpaid fines from a collection agency.This step alone will significantly reduce the amount of money these individuals must pay because collection costs and interest fees will no longer be collected.Once these fines are recalled from collections, and the person enters into a time-payment agreement with the court, many drivers will be able to meet their obligations to the court and have their licenses reinstated. Reinstatement of the driver’s license is paramount, because without the ability to drive, many of these individuals cannot go to work and earn the money needed to pay off the tickets which suspended their license.
This program begins with the prosecutor asking the court to continue the trial for the person’s pending charge of DWLS 3.In exchange for making the minimum-required monthly payments to the court, or performing community service toward the outstanding financial obligation, the trial of the pending charge will be continued for a period of up to twelve months.At the end of the twelve-month period, if the person has complied with the conditions, the prosecutor will ask the court to dismiss the pending charge of DWLS.
Future phases of the re-licensing project will examine other aspects of this problem.For example, should the court use reminder notices to help reduce the number of persons who fail to respond to their infractions, and if so, what type? Would inter-jurisdictional cooperation on fine payments, i.e., permitting fine payment through just one court, be of assistance?How can non-governmental agencies involved with the re-licensing issue, such as CAMP (Central Area Motivation Program), be of greater service?The District Court’s new Re-licensing Coordinator to be filled in the near future -- will examine these issues in depth.
Introduction
A common goal for traffic safety and responsibility is to have all drivers licensed and insured.While some drivers lose their privilege to drive because of criminal traffic convictions, about eighty-five percent of license suspensions in Washington are for non-payment of traffic fines, so-called third degree license suspensions. Even though the suspension can be based on non-criminal moving violations, the act of driving while the license is suspended is itself a criminal act.
The crime of DWLS 3 has had an enormous impact on the criminal justice system in King County and throughout the state. DWLS 3 cases represent between 35% and 40% of all cases prosecuted by the King County Prosecuting Attorney in King County District Court.In 1998 that number was over 6,600 cases; in 1999 it dropped slightly to 5,522.
The failure-to-appear rate for these cases is about 50%, which results in the issuance of arrest warrants, bookings into the King County Jail, and substantial jail costs.
The District Court, working with the Prosecuting Attorney and public defender agencies, has developed a new approach to DWLS 3 cases that can advance the goal of holding drivers accountable for paying their traffic tickets while at the same time allowing them to be licensed. The King County Re-Licensing Project is designed to increase revenue and decrease costs for local government and give people charged with DWLS 3 a chance for a new start as responsible drivers.
Legislative History
In 1993 the Legislature adopted current RCW 46.20.289, which requires the Department of Licensing to suspend all driving privileges of a person who fails to respond to a notice of traffic infraction, fails to appear at a requested hearing, violates a written promise to appear in court or has failed to comply with the terms of a notice of traffic infraction for so-called “moving violations”, i.e. other than an abandoned vehicle,standing, stopping or parking violation.
Driving while the license is suspended under this statute is a misdemeanor, with potential criminal penalties of up to 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.
How A Person Gets Their License Suspended in the Third Degree
Drivers who fail to respond to traffic citations are subject to an order of suspension by the Department of Licensing (DOL). If a suspended driver is discovered operating a vehicle, he or she will be cited into a district or municipal court on the misdemeanor charge. Of those summoned into court, nearly half will fail to appear, resulting in the issuance of a bench warrant directing their arrest.
Those who do appear may have their cases continued one or more times for the purpose of allowing them time to try on their own to re-instate their license. If the suspended driver fails to appear in court for one of the scheduled hearings during the pendancy of the case, an arrest warrant will likely be issued.
The primary reasons people fail to pay fines, even when faced with the prospect of losing their license, are:
The impact of DWLS 3 criminalization has been profound and felt by every agency throughout the criminal justice system. The huge number of case filings have driven extraordinary public defense costs, clogged court calendars, increased the strain on the processing and service of bench warrants, and impacted our crowded jail facilities.
Impact on the Suspended Driver
Individuals caught in the web of tickets, suspension, and criminal charges also face loss of insurance, potential arrest warrants, and mounting fines, fees and expenses that combine to make the chance of ever being licensed more remote with each occurrence.
In addition, suspended drivers may be subject to more frequent stops by police. A car registered to a driver whose license is suspended may be stopped at any time, without additional probable cause, by a police officer who is aware of the suspension. RCW 46.20.349.
A Better Way to Achieve the Legislative Goals
The goals of this project are to increase the collection of fines that are now not collected,decrease the costs to the criminal justice system, and assist people who are stuck in the downward spiral of license suspension by allowing them to pay past due traffic fines while maintaining their privilege to drive.
Criminal charges will still be filed against people caught driving while their license is suspended in the third degree, but adjudication of those cases will be stayed after arraignment while participants make good-faith efforts to meet a payment schedule. The court will assist in the development of a payment plan, coordinate with cooperating courts on consolidating outstanding fines, and allow people to substitute community service for financial payments.
Defendants who have a DWLS 3 offense committed on or after June 1st of this year will be eligible for this program. Defendants are not eligible if they have a DUI or physical control conviction, or a deferred prosecution for these crimes, or a vehicular homicide conviction, within the last five years, an outstanding warrant, or if a garnishment proceeding involving the infraction fines has been filed.
At arraignment, eligible defendants facing the DWLS 3 charge would have the opportunity to enter a Conditional Waiver of Speedy Trial which continues their trial date for up to one year. This waiver will occur before the appointment of public defense counsel, potentially saving the County many thousands of dollars in defense costs. Participants will work with court clerks to consolidate all outstanding fines owed to multiple courts. Time payments and community service in lieu of monetary penalties will be arranged. Defendants will be expected to pay at least 10% per month of the fines which have suspended their license. For example, Mr. Jones has three unpaid traffic infractions totaling $213. The court expects him to pay $21.30 per month to maintain good standing within the program and to retain his license to drive. As long as he makes those payments, and/or performs community supervision at the direction of the court, he maintains his license and his trial date is continued.
The outstanding adjudicated tickets that formed the basis for the suspension could then be withdrawn and the way cleared for the Department of Licensing to re-instate the license, which costs $20 and can be accomplished immediately by going to a DOL outlet or through the court computer system , which takes about three days.
The agreement would be approved by a District Court judge in an ex parte proceeding. Regular monitoring of participants’ progress in discharging their debts to courts will be done by the court clerks. When the terms of the agreement are fulfilled, the criminal charge will be dismissed.
A longer-term goal is to work with community groups interested in providing individual financial counseling to program participants to help them meet their new obligations, keep their licenses, and obtain insurance.
Those who do not meet their obligations under the Conditional Waiver Agreement would have their cases set for trial and face prosecution on the criminal charge.
Conclusion
Criminal prosecution of DWLS 3 does not appear to result in effective recovery of traffic fines owed to courts. Collection rates on delinquent traffic fines have remained low despite over half-a-decade of criminal prosecution. At the same time these cases impose considerable expense on the criminal justice system and make it more difficult for people to achieve self-sufficiency. The licenses of low-income persons remain suspended, damaging their ability to find and keep jobs that might permit them to make payments on the debt.
The King County Re-Licensing Project will have these benefits:
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