Greenburgh rakes in cash from years-old traffic tickets

[x635 4,066]

Greenburgh court wading through 100,000 tickets going back to 1993

May 2, 2011

Written by Theresa Juva

GREENBURGH — The town's new court administrator has found a mind-boggling 100,000 traffic tickets crammed into cabinets, some of which haven't been resolved and may have cost the town millions of dollars in revenue.

The moving violations stretch from the 2000s to as far back as 1993. In some cases, the town failed to suspend driver's licenses, schedule trials or send out fine notifications.

FULL ARTICLE: http://www.lohud.com/article/20110502/NEWS02/105020329/Greenburgh-court-wading-through-100-000-tickets-going-back-1993?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|Frontpage|s

[dc2t 80]

FULL ARTICLE: http://www.lohud.com/article/20110502/NEWS02/105020329/Greenburgh-court-wading-through-100-000-tickets-going-back-1993?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|Frontpage|s

How about having the Fire Districts do a study how to correct the court problems. They can probably do a better job than the butcher , baker and candlestick maker studying the fire districts

[abaduck 123]

FULL ARTICLE: http://www.lohud.com...ext|Frontpage|s

"A DMV spokesman said the traffic tickets never expire, and the town can still proceed with suspending people's licenses, even if the violations are years old."

Now that ain't justice; how in hell can anyone be expected to remember or contest a ticket from 1993?!

If the town let the ball drop for so long I think they're on a hiding to nothing. Better systems need to be put in place. My wife recently thought she had lost her license (I found it in the washing machine!) and went on the DMV website to request a replacement. It said 'no dice, your license is suspended'. WHAT?!

Turns out she had had a ticket for something trivial - expired registration or something - and the town (Scarsdale) had never cashed the check, and promptly had her license suspended instead. She was NEVER notified of any of this and had unknowingly been driving on a suspended license for two years. It should absolutely NOT be possible to suspend a license without a court appearance; that's bad and wrong. Only by a judge, and only in person.

Mike

[peterose313 345]

I just went to court recently for a traffic ticket that was from 5+ years ago. I think it's ridiculous that they do this to people. I'm sorry but if you take over 5 years to decide on a court date for such a minor thing, it ought to be expired. Maybe then some of the depts won't be as backlogged as they already are.

[helicopper 1,050]

"A DMV spokesman said the traffic tickets never expire, and the town can still proceed with suspending people's licenses, even if the violations are years old."

Now that ain't justice; how in hell can anyone be expected to remember or contest a ticket from 1993?!

If the town let the ball drop for so long I think they're on a hiding to nothing. Better systems need to be put in place. My wife recently thought she had lost her license (I found it in the washing machine!) and went on the DMV website to request a replacement. It said 'no dice, your license is suspended'. WHAT?!

Turns out she had had a ticket for something trivial - expired registration or something - and the town (Scarsdale) had never cashed the check, and promptly had her license suspended instead. She was NEVER notified of any of this and had unknowingly been driving on a suspended license for two years. It should absolutely NOT be possible to suspend a license without a court appearance; that's bad and wrong. Only by a judge, and only in person.

Mike

MIke,

I can understand your sentiment but the whole rationale for suspending licenses and/or registrations is because of non-appearances in court. When a defendant fails to appear, the court's only recourse is suspension (or the issuance of a warrant). Sadly, as with almost any other process, there are occasionally errors.

I'm reasonably sure that some of those 100,000 tickets were written by yours truly and I sincerely doubt I'm going to remember many of them. Some, however, left a lasting impression and those I will gladly prosecute even now.

[Guest fd62]

According to NYS V&T - There is a statute of limitations relating to fines and suspensions of 2 years from the date of the violation.

Section 226 - 36 ( (Sumons: answer)

- In no case, such an order (of suspension) or fine be entered and imposed more than 2 years after the date of the alleged violation> Upon application in such manner and form as the commissioner shall prescribe an order and fine shall be vacated upon the grounds of excusable default.

[ONEEYEDMIC 68]

There is also the problem of the violator always postponing a court date. I am still getting trial notices from tickets like 3-4 years ago. On the old hand written tickets, notes are written on the back. If you saved your copies and have to go to court, there is your memory from that day. I don't remember every ticket I have written, but I remember every ahole, & they are usually the one's that wouldn't plead down when given the chance!

[abaduck 123]

MIke,

I can understand your sentiment but the whole rationale for suspending licenses and/or registrations is because of non-appearances in court. When a defendant fails to appear, the court's only recourse is suspension (or the issuance of a warrant). Sadly, as with almost any other process, there are occasionally errors.

I'm reasonably sure that some of those 100,000 tickets were written by yours truly and I sincerely doubt I'm going to remember many of them. Some, however, left a lasting impression and those I will gladly prosecute even now.

Does suspension get the accused into court? It certainly didn't in my wife's case, because there was no notification. At the very least there should be some automatic escalation in cases where a license is suspended in absentia, so that if a suspension isn't resolved in, say, two weeks, a reminder is issued, another two weeks a demand to surrender the license to DMV is issued by registered mail, another two weeks a warrant for arrest.

As it is, Scarsdale claimed they 'should have' sent ONE letter by regular mail - which we absolutely did not receive - and they then ignored it for two years until we found out by chance.

So she had been driving suspended, illegally but entirely innocently, she could have been arrested for that, it probably voided her insurance, it would definitely have caused a big problem at her citizenship interview (due in a few weeks) and if she *had* been arrested it would have caused an even bigger problem there. She works in a position of trust in the financial industry, and ANY record of arrest would take a lot of explaining and could be career-limiting. There is NO excuse for a system which permits such mistakes to happen and such serious problems to arise.

I like the UK system; for any situation for which a suspension of license is possible, the accused is *required* to appear in court, in person, with their license. The license is then physically taken off them in court, so the situation that affected my wife could never arise. If they don't show in court, a warrant for arrest is issued, and the police will pick them up and hold them or bail them to another date. If it's a minor administrative offence, like expired registration or inspection, for which suspension can't be imposed as a punishment, it can't be imposed for failing to pay the fine either; it's collected as a civil debt.

Mike

[ONEEYEDMIC 68]

It's too bad that many jobs don't do license abstracts every 6 months to see who works for them. Driving suspended doesn't make you a bad person. Sometimes you may forget about a ticket or may have missed a letter in the mail. PD's shld send out certified letters so people have to sign for them.

Some people just don't care if their licenses are suspended because the laws and fines aren't tough enough. I know we shouldn't jam up jails with people who drive with a suspended license, but something has to be done. Sometimes however, ins companies send a letter to DMV stating you have no ins when in fact you may have changed companies. If that's the case, I give you the benefit of the doubt.

It would be nice if PD's and the DMV could get into the computer age and make everyone's life easy!

[jml582 3]

What ever happened to the defendants responsiblity. If you recieve a summons, don't you have a responsibilty to send it in with a guilty or not guilty plead and also follow up yourself. What ever happened to self responsiblity? Why is it always someone else's fault if you get suspended.

[abaduck 123]

What ever happened to the defendants responsiblity. If you recieve a summons, don't you have a responsibilty to send it in with a guilty or not guilty plead and also follow up yourself. What ever happened to self responsiblity? Why is it always someone else's fault if you get suspended.

If that was directed at my wife's situation, the answer is that she sent in a guilty plea & cheque immediately. Unknown what their final fate was but it appears that the cheque wasn't cashed; maybe it's still in a pile in the basement of the courthouse. That IS someone else's fault.

Mike

[helicopper 1,050]

According to NYS V&T - There is a statute of limitations relating to fines and suspensions of 2 years from the date of the violation.

Section 226 - 36 (B (Sumons: answer)

- In no case, such an order (of suspension) or fine be entered and imposed more than 2 years after the date of the alleged violation> Upon application in such manner and form as the commissioner shall prescribe an order and fine shall be vacated upon the grounds of excusable default.

This is not the statute of limitations and your cutting and pasting only a portion of the section causes it to be taken out of context. The full subsection is below and is a limitation on the conviction in absentia of a defendant who fails to appear in court. This time limit prevents a court, such as Greenburgh, from convicting everyone from those 100,000 backlogged tickets in absentia and imposing a fine and penalty.

VTL Section 226 subdivision 3B:

( B Failure to answer or appear in accordance with the requirements of

this section and any regulations promulgated hereunder shall be deemed

an admission to the violation as charged, and an appropriate order may

be entered in the department's records, and a fine consistent with the

provisions of this chapter and regulations of the commissioner may be

imposed by the commissioner or person designated by the commissioner.

Prior to entry of an order and imposition of a fine, the commissioner

shall notify such person by mail at the address of such person on file

with the department or at the current address provided by the United

States postal service in accordance with section two hundred fourteen of

this chapter: (i) of the violation charged; (ii) of the impending entry

of such order and fine; (iii) that such order and fine may be filed as a

judgment with the county clerk of the county in which the operator or

registrant is located; and (iv) that entry of such order and imposition

of such fine may be avoided by entering a plea or making an appearance

within thirty days of the sending of such notice. In no case shall such

an order and fine be entered and imposed more than two years after the

date of the alleged violation. Upon application in such manner and form

as the commissioner shall prescribe an order and fine shall be vacated

upon the ground of excusable default.

A statute of limitations is a limit on the filing of charges and for petty offenses that is one year from the date of occurrence to the time the summons or complaint is issued/served/filed. Adjudication by the court is subject to the limits of the Criminal Procedure Law.

Does suspension get the accused into court? It certainly didn't in my wife's case, because there was no notification. At the very least there should be some automatic escalation in cases where a license is suspended in absentia, so that if a suspension isn't resolved in, say, two weeks, a reminder is issued, another two weeks a demand to surrender the license to DMV is issued by registered mail, another two weeks a warrant for arrest.

As it is, Scarsdale claimed they 'should have' sent ONE letter by regular mail - which we absolutely did not receive - and they then ignored it for two years until we found out by chance.

So she had been driving suspended, illegally but entirely innocently, she could have been arrested for that, it probably voided her insurance, it would definitely have caused a big problem at her citizenship interview (due in a few weeks) and if she *had* been arrested it would have caused an even bigger problem there. She works in a position of trust in the financial industry, and ANY record of arrest would take a lot of explaining and could be career-limiting. There is NO excuse for a system which permits such mistakes to happen and such serious problems to arise.

I like the UK system; for any situation for which a suspension of license is possible, the accused is *required* to appear in court, in person, with their license. The license is then physically taken off them in court, so the situation that affected my wife could never arise. If they don't show in court, a warrant for arrest is issued, and the police will pick them up and hold them or bail them to another date. If it's a minor administrative offence, like expired registration or inspection, for which suspension can't be imposed as a punishment, it can't be imposed for failing to pay the fine either; it's collected as a civil debt.

Mike

Yes, suspensions do get defendants back into court. Your wife learned that her license was suspended (albeit some time later) and returned to the court. The responsibility to insure that a matter is closed rests with the defendant. I'm certainly not picking on your wife but with the check not having cleared and no receipt or correspondence from the court an argument can be made that she should have followed up with the court. The resolution that you describe places a tremendous burden and workload on the courts at an expense to all of us.

Yes, Scarsdale Court dropped the ball and should have cashed your check and/or followed-up but they are not solely responsible. The system may not be perfect but it is not to blame.

On the subject of them sending a letter, did you move between the time of the summons and the time you figured this mess out? If Scarsdale and DMV both sent letters that you didn't receive there must be a logical reason.

Here in the US, the defendant is given an option of appearing in person or submitting a plea by mail. If your wife was traveling in Watertown and got the ticket you probably wouldn't want a requirement for her to return to court to dispose of it.

If that was directed at my wife's situation, the answer is that she sent in a guilty plea & cheque immediately. Unknown what their final fate was but it appears that the cheque wasn't cashed; maybe it's still in a pile in the basement of the courthouse. That IS someone else's fault.

Mike

Did she receive a receipt? Did she get a bank statement showing that the check was cashed? Why is this completely somone else's fault? Again, not picking on your wife (this is probably a discussion best had with a hypothetical defendant ) but an argument can certainly be made that she should have followed up.

[firemn23 8]

If I mailed my ticket in claiming not guilty and never heard back again is it my responsibility to contact them to find out why? I was one of the first batch of tickets Greenburgh had lost. The case was eventually dismissed but just curious.

[bronxfireradio 45]

Not to raise any eyebrows or suspicions or anything, but...ahem...does this include parking tickets?

[ONEEYEDMIC 68]

Not to raise any eyebrows or suspicions or anything, but...ahem...does this include parking tickets?

In most Cities, Towns and Villages this applies, just not my town. With parking tickets that is! Probably more so on parking tickets since most of the time we just throw them and forget about it until it's too late!

[SOUSGT 357]

This is not the statute of limitations and your cutting and pasting only a portion of the section causes it to be taken out of context. The full subsection is below and is a limitation on the conviction in absentia of a defendant who fails to appear in court. This time limit prevents a court, such as Greenburgh, from convicting everyone from those 100,000 backlogged tickets in absentia and imposing a fine and penalty.

A statute of limitations is a limit on the filing of charges and for petty offenses that is one year from the date of occurrence to the time the summons or complaint is issued/served/filed. Adjudication by the court is subject to the limits of the Criminal Procedure Law.

Yes, suspensions do get defendants back into court. Your wife learned that her license was suspended (albeit some time later) and returned to the court. The responsibility to insure that a matter is closed rests with the defendant. I'm certainly not picking on your wife but with the check not having cleared and no receipt or correspondence from the court an argument can be made that she should have followed up with the court. The resolution that you describe places a tremendous burden and workload on the courts at an expense to all of us.

Yes, Scarsdale Court dropped the ball and should have cashed your check and/or followed-up but they are not solely responsible. The system may not be perfect but it is not to blame.

On the subject of them sending a letter, did you move between the time of the summons and the time you figured this mess out? If Scarsdale and DMV both sent letters that you didn't receive there must be a logical reason.

Here in the US, the defendant is given an option of appearing in person or submitting a plea by mail. If your wife was traveling in Watertown and got the ticket you probably wouldn't want a requirement for her to return to court to dispose of it.

Did she receive a receipt? Did she get a bank statement showing that the check was cashed? Why is this completely somone else's fault? Again, not picking on your wife (this is probably a discussion best had with a hypothetical defendant ) but an argument can certainly be made that she should have followed up.

I know this wont help in your wife’s case, but a summons should either be returned in person or sent by UPS, FEDEX or Certified Mail (Use certified mail only if the court uses a PO Box.) .This provides proof that you sent a document and that it was received and the dates for both. mark the summons number in the notes box. You can track the package on line for UPS or FEDEX. The Post Office returns a card in the mail with the date and who received the envelope. If you dont have notification that the envelope was received, you have a place to start and can call the court clerk.

Good luck on her pending citizenship!

[Alpinerunner 61]

If I mailed my ticket in claiming not guilty and never heard back again is it my responsibility to contact them to find out why? I was one of the first batch of tickets Greenburgh had lost. The case was eventually dismissed but just curious.

Yes, because using the same logic, it's also NOT the court's fault if the check was lost in the mail. Since it can't be proven where the check/summons was lost, you need to follow up if it's not sent by certified mail.

[INIT915 1,119]

Does suspension get the accused into court? It certainly didn't in my wife's case, because there was no notification. At the very least there should be some automatic escalation in cases where a license is suspended in absentia, so that if a suspension isn't resolved in, say, two weeks, a reminder is issued, another two weeks a demand to surrender the license to DMV is issued by registered mail, another two weeks a warrant for arrest.

As it is, Scarsdale claimed they 'should have' sent ONE letter by regular mail - which we absolutely did not receive - and they then ignored it for two years until we found out by chance.

So she had been driving suspended, illegally but entirely innocently, she could have been arrested for that, it probably voided her insurance, it would definitely have caused a big problem at her citizenship interview (due in a few weeks) and if she *had* been arrested it would have caused an even bigger problem there. She works in a position of trust in the financial industry, and ANY record of arrest would take a lot of explaining and could be career-limiting. There is NO excuse for a system which permits such mistakes to happen and such serious problems to arise.

I like the UK system; for any situation for which a suspension of license is possible, the accused is *required* to appear in court, in person, with their license. The license is then physically taken off them in court, so the situation that affected my wife could never arise. If they don't show in court, a warrant for arrest is issued, and the police will pick them up and hold them or bail them to another date. If it's a minor administrative offence, like expired registration or inspection, for which suspension can't be imposed as a punishment, it can't be imposed for failing to pay the fine either; it's collected as a civil debt.

Mike

If I understand your logic correctly, you would have rather had a Warrant issued for your wife then have her license suspended?

Assuming all the facts you presented, and I have no particular reason to doubt them, your wife's case was the exception. Otherwise, the system currently works fine. The idea of issuing thousands, upon thousands, of Warrants is not the practical approach. Just my humble opinion, coming from someone who deals with these matters all the time.

[INIT915 1,119]

What ever happened to the defendants responsiblity. If you recieve a summons, don't you have a responsibilty to send it in with a guilty or not guilty plead and also follow up yourself. What ever happened to self responsiblity? Why is it always someone else's fault if you get suspended.

Agreed.

[OnTheWheel 43]

If we gave the court a restriction on suspending licenses only when someone appears in person it would tie their hands for those who "fail to answer" or "fail to pay a fine", if you just don't show up you get away with it.

[PFDRes47cue 653]

This question may be "stupid" but...

What happens if someone recieves a ticket, then over the next couple of years that it takes to be processed, the offender passes away. Is the ticket dropped? Is the family responsible for the ticket now?

Thanks,

Madison

[abaduck 123]

If we gave the court a restriction on suspending licenses only when someone appears in person it would tie their hands for those who "fail to answer" or "fail to pay a fine", if you just don't show up you get away with it.

1. You don't get away with anything; if you fail to appear in court (and haven't contacted the court to explain yourself or have it rescheduled) you get arrested.

2. The system works perfectly well in other countries; as I explained, in the UK it's not possible to suspend or revoke a license in absentia, and it's only possible to suspend a license as a punishment, not for failing to pay a fixed penalty.

Mike

[helicopper 1,050]

This question may be "stupid" but...

What happens if someone recieves a ticket, then over the next couple of years that it takes to be processed, the offender passes away. Is the ticket dropped? Is the family responsible for the ticket now?

Thanks,

Madison

Not stupid at all. Traffic offenses would be dismissed if the defendant dies as the individual is responsible for them. Parking tickets would be dismissed (in most cases) if the registered owner of the vehicle dies.

[helicopper 1,050]

1. You don't get away with anything; if you fail to appear in court (and haven't contacted the court to explain yourself or have it rescheduled) you get arrested.

2. The system works perfectly well in other countries; as I explained, in the UK it's not possible to suspend or revoke a license in absentia, and it's only possible to suspend a license as a punishment, not for failing to pay a fixed penalty.

Mike

So you believe that the better solution is to issue arrest warrants and incarcerate someone for failing to answer a traffic ticket? That means if I stopped you on a Friday night for speeding and you had forgotten to answer a ticket you'd spend the weekend in jail so you could see a judge on Monday morning. I don't think that's a better solution.

Our system works perfectly well too. Of course there are abuses of the system (those with dozens of unanswered tickets) but generally they get arrested when we finally catch up with them. Failure to pay a fine results in a suspension of a license or registration until that penalty is paid. Why isn't that appropriate? Why should you continue to enjoy the privilege of driving when you don't comply with the court's order?

[PFDRes47cue 653]

Not stupid at all. Traffic offenses would be dismissed if the defendant dies as the individual is responsible for them. Parking tickets would be dismissed (in most cases) if the registered owner of the vehicle dies.

Makes sense. Thanks.

[abaduck 123]

So you believe that the better solution is to issue arrest warrants and incarcerate someone for failing to answer a traffic ticket? That means if I stopped you on a Friday night for speeding and you had forgotten to answer a ticket you'd spend the weekend in jail so you could see a judge on Monday morning. I don't think that's a better solution.

Our system works perfectly well too. Of course there are abuses of the system (those with dozens of unanswered tickets) but generally they get arrested when we finally catch up with them. Failure to pay a fine results in a suspension of a license or registration until that penalty is paid. Why isn't that appropriate? Why should you continue to enjoy the privilege of driving when you don't comply with the court's order?

No, you wouldn't spend any time in jail. Happened to a mate of mine. Serious speeding offence for which he could possibly have had his license suspended as punishment, which means he didn't get the option to pay a fixed penalty, he HAD to go to court to be sentenced by a judge, even if he was pleading guilty. He mixed up his court date and didn't attend. Warrant issued, next night police came to his house, picked him up, took him to the station, processed him, bailed him to appear on another date, he was home within the hour. That's how it works - being arrested and bailed on a written promise to appear is a wake-up call for anyone who pisses around. 99% of people don't piss around.

If you fail to answer a simple traffic ticket, i.e. fail to pay a fixed penalty OR contest it in court, it gets recorded as a default judgement against you and enforced in the same manner as a civil penalty or tax arrears; it'll go to collections, and ultimately if you still don't pay you'll have bailiffs at your door seizing your goods. You don't get arrested and you can't have your license suspended, but you pay - plus you pay a lot of costs if you arse around.

It's not really germane, but by the way I take a different view to you on driving; I regard driving as a right, not a privilege. Freedom of movement is a hallmark of a free society, whether on foot or on horseback or behind the wheel. As a society we have, perfectly sensibly, taken the stance that, like the right to bear arms, it's a right which needs to be regulated to a degree by the state - so we make drivers pass a test (far too easy in my view but that's another story) before they're allowed to drive, for instance. But driving remains a right, not a privilege - not a privilege to be doled out, or withheld, by the state for any reason it thinks fit.

Mike

[helicopper 1,050]

No, you wouldn't spend any time in jail. Happened to a mate of mine. Serious speeding offence for which he could possibly have had his license suspended as punishment, which means he didn't get the option to pay a fixed penalty, he HAD to go to court to be sentenced by a judge, even if he was pleading guilty. He mixed up his court date and didn't attend. Warrant issued, next night police came to his house, picked him up, took him to the station, processed him, bailed him to appear on another date, he was home within the hour. That's how it works - being arrested and bailed on a written promise to appear is a wake-up call for anyone who pisses around. 99% of people don't piss around.

If you fail to answer a simple traffic ticket, i.e. fail to pay a fixed penalty OR contest it in court, it gets recorded as a default judgement against you and enforced in the same manner as a civil penalty or tax arrears; it'll go to collections, and ultimately if you still don't pay you'll have bailiffs at your door seizing your goods. You don't get arrested and you can't have your license suspended, but you pay - plus you pay a lot of costs if you arse around.

It's not really germane, but by the way I take a different view to you on driving; I regard driving as a right, not a privilege. Freedom of movement is a hallmark of a free society, whether on foot or on horseback or behind the wheel. As a society we have, perfectly sensibly, taken the stance that, like the right to bear arms, it's a right which needs to be regulated to a degree by the state - so we make drivers pass a test (far too easy in my view but that's another story) before they're allowed to drive, for instance. But driving remains a right, not a privilege - not a privilege to be doled out, or withheld, by the state for any reason it thinks fit.

Mike

So you want squads of police going around to drag people from their homes for traffic offenses and courts to be open day and night to adjudicate these cases? This is more invasive and more expensive than suspensions.

Driving is not a right in New York. It's a privilege that can be suspended or revoked for violations of the Vehicle and Traffic Law as established by the State Legislature and is subject to the rules and regulations of the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles. This is not my opinion, it's the law in NY.

I appreciate your opinion that the UK system is better but as a "user" of the US system for more than 20 years, I have to say our system works.

[abaduck 123]

So you want squads of police going around to drag people from their homes for traffic offenses and courts to be open day and night to adjudicate these cases? This is more invasive and more expensive than suspensions.

Driving is not a right in New York. It's a privilege that can be suspended or revoked for violations of the Vehicle and Traffic Law as established by the State Legislature and is subject to the rules and regulations of the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles. This is not my opinion, it's the law in NY.

I appreciate your opinion that the UK system is better but as a "user" of the US system for more than 20 years, I have to say our system works.

Very few people fail to show at court when it's required. Mostly it isn't. When they don't co-operate then yes they have to be picked up. Courts don't normally operate outside business hours. All I can say is it works in the UK, and I've seen the kind of problem that can occur in the US system at first hand. They suspended my wife and ignored the matter, for a trivial paperwork offence; that's bad and wrong.

However I note your last paragraph; we're all entitled to an opinion but you base yours on a hell of a lot of experience so perhaps I should listen to it

Mike

Edited May 6, 2011 by abaduck

[firebuff860 54]

Helicopper,

If a defendant signs off on a guilty plea signs a check and mails it in, that case should be considered closed by the defendant. Do you want every ticket holder who pleads guilty calling the desk every day saying did you get my check?? How much time would that take? If a municipality screws up, and they all do, they should admit it and move on. I am no millionaire, but I do not look for that $65 dollar check to clear every day.

I do find it odd that when I forgot to pay a ticket in Ct, I received a letter from NYS stating my DL was suspended and this person did not, but it happens.

There are responsibilities on both sides, it looks like the ticket holder in abaduck's case took care of her's and the village dropped theirs.

Edited May 6, 2011 by firebuff860

[OnTheWheel 43]

Its really not hard to look at your statement and see if a check clears. Thousands of people take care of it the right way, theres a handfull that dont show up or dont pay fines on time. The easiest most cost efficient way to address that is suspensions and revokations. As far as the notice being lost in the mail, thats why DMV requires you advise them of an address change within 10 days. And when you send a ticket in, send it certified mail with a return receipt, or hand deliver it and get a receipt.