Chief Justice Steven R. Jensen wants to give certain offenders with revoked driver licenses a few more excuses to drive.
Certain drug offenders with suspended licenses can already get leave to drive for work, school, and counseling programs. The Chief Justice has requested House Bill 1013 to expand the reasons for which courts may allow offenders to drive to include child care delivery and pickup, health appointments, court, probation appointments, sobriety testing, treatment, and aftercare.
HB 1013 offers these new driving exceptions to people who lose their licenses as part convictions for specific drug crimes—possession; ingestion; possession of marijuana; distribution of small amounts of marijuana; obtaining possession of a controlled substance by theft, misrepresentation, forgery, or fraud; manufacture, distribution, or possession of equipment for counterfeiting drugs; use, possession, or delivery of drug paraphernalia. HB 1013 also extends the same driving exceptions to folks busted for failure to insure their motor vehicles and giving fake auto insurance info to the police or judge. Insurance skippers get a bigger break from HB 1013, as current law only allows them to get exceptions to drive for work, not for school or counseling.
HB 1013 does not expand driving exceptions for minors who lose their licenses for alcohol-related offenses. Nor does HB 1013 change the authority of the Secretary of the Department of Public Safety to issue restricted licenses to folks who’ve lost their regular licenses. The grace DPS may extend to naughty drivers applies only to work and school.
Expect Chief Justice Stevens to explain his rationale for HB 1013 during his State of the Judiciary address to the Legislature on Wednesday, January 14.
If a law is too harsh for the crime. Then change the law.
How do you weigh the pros and cons of this bill? I don’t know how I’d vote. I wouldn’t want drug users driving. On the other hand if they are off drugs and are committed to staying off drugs, I’d say, fine. I guess you have to leave it up to the system to decide who qualifies for this and how doesn’t.