DRIVER’S LICENSE SUSPENSIONS

Collateral consequences are legal and regulatory limitations that affect employment, occupational licensing, housing, voting, education, and other rights, benefits, and opportunities for those convicted of crimes. The American Bar Association (ABA) currently estimates over 45,000 state and federal collateral consequences of conviction exist nationwide.[1] Collateral consequences apply without regard to the relationship between the crime and opportunity being restricted, such as immigration issues or the revocation of a business license after conviction of any felony. Frequently, consequences also apply without consideration of the time passed between the conviction and the opportunity being sought or the person’s rehabilitation efforts since the conviction. While a conviction on the surface might seem like a cut and dry, consequence fits the crime punishment, in reality the ripples of an individual’s involvement with the criminal justice system span far and wide and permeate, in some way or another, almost every aspect of a person’s daily life.

Usually Not a Public Safety Question

Important to emphasize is that most collateral consequences that arise when an individual is arrested or convicted of a crime are not related to the underlying charge and do not have an impact on or in any manner achieve a safer public. 

That is not to say that all collateral consequences fall under this umbrella. Certain collateral consequences from conviction are important to the maintenance of public safety, such as removing firearms from the possession of convicted domestic violence abusers, or preventing those convicted of assault or abuse from working with vulnerable populations such as children or the elderly.[2] 

That being said, other collateral consequences–the ones that prosecutors can and should address–are not related to the underlying offense and can seriously impact an individual’s ability to move forward in life by impeding their financial stability and means to make a living, their housing situation, and other crucial areas of their lives.

Examples where an unnecessary collateral consequence does not benefit public safety include: 

• Driver’s license suspensions based upon nonpayment of court costs (discussed in detail in the latter part of this page); 
• Loss of voting rights while imprisoned, on parole, or during probation, due to a felony conviction;
• Loss of an occupational license due to charges or conviction unrelated to the integrity or safety of the profession (for example, in Nevada a person with any felony conviction on their record is ineligible to sit for a barbering exam to get their barber’s license);[3]
• Individuals with a felony conviction are often ineligible or have limited eligibility for public funds such as student loans;[4]
• … and many more.

Furthermore, not only do collateral consequences not benefit public safety in most cases, but they may actually allow recidivism to flourish. When ex-offenders are released, they are often prevented from accessing certain areas of society necessary to succeed–housing, employment opportunities, not to mention the social stigma associated with a conviction or arrest–and thus they are less likely to move forward with their lives, support themselves and their families, and become law-abiding citizens.[5]

Perpetuating Racial and Socioeconomic Inequities

Additionally, the inequity of collateral consequences arising out of the criminal justice system cannot be overstated. People of color are already disproportionately in contact with the criminal justice system, from more frequent and overpolicing of populations, to more aggressive prosecution and sentencing versus their white counterparts.[6] This overpolicing and over-prosecution can lead to, among other things, an increased level of encounters with the criminal justice system over the course of an individual’s lifetime, general distrust of the legal system and its actors by communities of color, racialized trauma that can span generations and severely impact mental health, and a general failure by system actors to make persons of color feel safe and valued as members of their own communities. These already-existing concerns, connected with the umpteen collateral consequences that arise each time a person of color comes into contact with the criminal justice system, creates an almost insurmountable roadblock for many people of color when it comes to housing, employment, and general quality of life.

Why Prosecutors Should Care–and What We Can Do to Help

Prosecutors are uniquely situated to alleviate collateral consequences that accrue during an individual’s interaction with the criminal justice system. Through interventions such as pre- and post-arrest diversion programs, pre- and post-conviction diversion programs, and other actions such as records expungement or sealing, prosecutors have an opportunity to address a rampant problem that affects their communities and perpetuates punishment long after an individual leaves the criminal justice apparatus, and often disproportionately affects communities of color. This outcome does not benefit the public safety or the public good, and as such, alternatives can and must be explored.

There are many points along the timeline of a case that prosecutors can intervene to possibly ameliorate the collateral consequences that arise from criminal cases. Consequences can arise even before a case is officially brought against a defendant, and can continue long after the case reaches a disposition. This project has identified four broad inflection points, or “decision points,” where a prosecutor may decide to intercede: Pre-Arrest or Pre-Charge, Post-Arrest or Post-Charge, Post-Conviction, and Post-Release.

Additional collateral consequences are compounded once an individual is convicted of a crime or their case otherwise reaches a disposition, such as a No Contest plea, a guilty verdict after trial, or other similar determination. At this juncture, the case is still under the jurisdiction of the court. If the case has an imprisonment or jail time element, the individual usually loses their employment, housing, and days, months, or years of their lives to incarceration. The disposition of the case is likely reflected in public records, unless there is an expungement statute or other agreed-upon outcome negotiated between the prosecution, the defense, and the court which involves some kind of expungement upon successful completion of certain requirements, such as anger management classes or substance abuse treatment.

At this stage, the individual is no longer under the supervision and jurisdiction of the court, and the case has a final disposition. The individual may have been just released from prison, or the case may be finalized a different way, for example, with the individual having completed any classes or programs on probation as ordered by the court. The case outcome will likely be reflected in public records available for viewing, thus giving rise to a slew of additional or expanded collateral consequences. This is the expungement/expunction/record sealing stage.

Driver’s license suspensions are a particularly ubiquitous source of collateral consequences, especially as relates to nonpayment of fines and fees. Every day around the country, driver’s licenses are suspended for reasons that do not have to do with that individual posing a public safety risk, such as failure to appear in court, failure to pay court fines and fees, and other situations often unrelated to the underlying charge. Driver’s license suspensions based on fines and fees nonpayment penalizes an individual for their financial status rather than for the crime committed, and therefore do not serve the greater purpose in keeping communities safe. 

A majority of states, as well as the District of Columbia, employ some kind of debt-based suspension, revocation, or nonrenewal framework, which has resulted in over 11 million driver’s license suspensions nationwide.[7] This, in turn, severely impacts the country’s workforce, as those who need to use car transportation to get to and from work every day are faced with the impossible decision of choosing whether to make a living or whether to drive with a suspended license.

Impact

The impact of these types of suspensions is manyfold. Not only does the debt itself impact individuals’ economic stability and make it difficult for individuals to financially support themselves or their dependents, but taking away someone’s (potentially only) means of transportation can negatively impact their ability to get to and from work, thereby trapping them in a further cycle of debt. 

There are many ways that prosecutors specifically can intervene to address these collateral consequences. This project has articulated four key points in a case’s timeline where collateral consequences may arise.

More information about the Marion County Driver’s License Suspension programs can also be found in the webinar “A Second Chance.” You can find this webinar in the “Training Resources and Materials” section of this webpage.

Approximately 400,000 Indiana residents are subject to suspended licenses due to unpaid fines and fees.[8] Marion County, Indiana–county seat Indianapolis–is home to roughly 964,500 people according to the 2019 United States census, and of those individuals, approximately 100,000 had outstanding driver’s license suspension cases prior to the inception of several programs aimed at reinstating drivers’ licenses and eliminating debt.[9] The Marion County, Indiana Prosecutor’s Office has firmly stated its position regarding ending debt-based driver’s license suspensions, and has taken concrete steps to begin to address this issue.

More information about the Durham County Driver’s License Suspension programs can also be found in the webinar “A Second Chance.” You can find this webinar in the “Training Resources and Materials” section of this webpage.

Court costs in North Carolina have risen steadily for decades. In 1995, the District Court fee was $41. As of 2020, it is $147.50–a 260% increase. If someone had an unpaid traffic ticket or failure to appear, their license was suspended indefinitely. To address this issue, the DEAR program, along with the public defender’s office, the private bar, and the district attorney’s office partnered up to create a monumental change in Durham. DEAR stands for Durham Expunction & Restoration Program. 

How Suspensions Impacted People in Durham County

Below is an excerpt from the presentation “A Second Chance,” in which the Durham Expunction & Restoration Program and the Durham County Prosecutor’s Office participated. These are just some of the examples of how suspensions impact the community, described by the individuals themselves:

In addition to the anecdotes from Durham County residents impacted by their driver’s licenses being suspended, the data also demonstrates how catastrophic failure to pay traffic cases were in North Carolina, particularly for individuals of color.

How the DEAR Second Chance Mobility Pilot Functions

The DEAR Second Chance Mobility Pilot is a collaboration with the Durham County Prosecutor’s Office to eliminate traffic court debt. It has two models to eliminate this fines- and fees-based debt, thus allowing offenders to begin the process to reinstate their licenses. The models are based upon the relevant North Carolina statutes that allow for debt remittance.

MODEL 1: Defendant-initiated motion

1. Defendant makes the motion to waive debt based on inability to pay (must be documented)
2. Prosecutor consents to the motion
3. Judge approves

RESULTS:
(from 2018-2019)

This resulted in the elimination of over $200,000 in traffic court debt, across 9 jurisdictions, for over 500 people. The court granted over 90% of these motions.

MODEL 2: Mass relief motion

1. Prosecutor makes motion to remit debt
   1. Batches can between 250-1000 motions per week
2. This motion based upon
   1. Length of suspension, and
   2. Nature of traffic offense

RESULTS:
(from 2018-2019)

Over $5mil in traffic court debt has been eliminated by this model, benefitting over 15,000 people in Durham, Mecklenburg, and Pitt counties–99% of these motions to the courts have been granted.

• Fines and Fees Justice Center Free to Drive Campaign
• National Inventory of Collateral Consequences of Conviction (NICCC)
• DEAR Durham
• UNC School of Government Collateral Consequences Assessment Tool

This list will grow as more resources are added!

This page will continue to be populated with more content and resources as they are generated.

1. Criminal Justice Section. n.d. “Collateral Consequences of Conviction Project.” American Bar. Accessed January 30, 2021. http://web.archive.org/web/20210118150232/https://www.americanbar.org/groups/criminal_justice/niccc/.
2.  Welcome to the NICCC. n.d. “What are collateral consequences?” National Inventory of Collateral Consequences of Conviction. Accessed April 30, 2021. https://perma.cc/F245-M55D.
3.  Id.
4.  See, for example, the Federal Student Aid website, which outlines the restrictions associated with criminal convictions. Note, for example, that drug-related offenses are considered grounds for ineligibility and/or revocation of current student loan aid: https://studentaid.gov/understand-aid/eligibility/requirements/criminal-convictions. Drug convictions, especially drug convictions that have occurred outside the timeline of receipt of student loans, have nothing to do with a person’s desire to get financial assistance with their education and therefore serve no purpose in achieving public safety goals.
5.  John Malcolm and John-Michael Seibler. 2017. “Collateral Consequences: Protecting Public Safety or Encouraging Recidivism?.” The Heritage Foundation. Last modified March 7, 2017. https://www.heritage.org/crime-and-justice/report/collateral-consequences-protecting-public-safety-or-encouraging-recidivism.
6.  National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. 2021. “Race and Collateral Consequences.” Stay Informed: Racial Disparity. Last modified April 16, 2021. https://perma.cc/D3A8-YGH8; see also, e.g.,  Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights & Urban Affairs, “The Collateral Consequences of Arrests and Convictions under D.C., Maryland, and Virginia Law.” (October 22, 2014), https://www.washlaw.org/pdf/wlc_collateral_consequences_report.PDF. 
7.  Fines & Fees Justice Center. 2019. “Driver’s License Suspension.” Free to Drive: National Campaign to End Debt-Based License Restriction. Last modified June 25, 2019.  https://finesandfeesjusticecenter.org/campaigns/national-drivers-license-suspension-campaign-free-to-drive/.
8.  See, for example, https://www.wrtv.com/news/local-news/marion-county-prosecutor-issues-statement-supporting-end-of-debt-based-license-suspension-in-indiana, describing the statement Marion County Prosecutor Mears issued regarding driver’s license suspensions in his jurisdiction, specifically, “Approximately 400,000 Indiana residents have suspended driver’s licenses due to unpaid fines or fees, resulting in a cyclical poverty trap; those who can’t pay the fees lose their means of transportation to their jobs, complicating their ability to ever pay the fees necessary to reinstate their license. In true nature of helping the constituents of Indiana, reinstatement fees must be eliminated or lowered.”
9.  United States Census Bureau. 2019. “Marion County, Indiana.” Quickfacts. https://perma.cc/7HY5-423H.

This resource was developed and made possible with the support of the Charles Koch Institute and is part of the North Carolina Collateral Consequences project initiative. CKI believes an effective criminal justice system protects people and preserves public safety, respects human dignity, restores victims, removes barriers to opportunity for people with criminal records, and ensures equal justice for all under the law. To advance that cause, the institute partners with social entrepreneurs working across the key institutions of society — including education, communities, business, and government — and supports applied research to turn ideas into practical solutions. To learn more, please visit their website.