Thread: GA: Driving without license felony under House bill

Driving without license felony under House bill

By BEN SMITH, MARY LOU PICKEL
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 03/20/08
Driving without a license could become a felony under a bill that passed the Georgia House on Thursday.

The words "illegal immigrant" were never mentioned during the 27-minute debate on Senate Bill 350, but lawmakers got the message anyway.

"That's what it's about," said state Rep. Chuck Sims (R-Ambrose), when asked if the bill was aimed at illegal immigrants.

The bill passed in a 99 to 68 vote.

Sims objected to the bill because of the severity of the punishments it would impose. Sims also warned House colleagues that local governments could be forced to spend more money on their jails if the are forced to lock up traffic offenders for months at a time.

"I don't understand why we keep locking folks up," said said. "It's just going to cost the counties more and more money, more to the cities."

The bill, sponsored by Sen. John Wiles (R-Kennesaw), requires a jail sentence of one to five years on the fourth offense of driving without a license in a five-year period. The bill also requires a prison sentence of two days to 12 months on the first offense.

Currently, most people bond out of jail in hours after being caught driving without a license.

"We're having a big problem with people driving that are not licensed," said state Rep. Tim Bearden (R-Villa Rica), citing traffic fatalities involving unlicensed drivers.

The measure could greatly affect illegal immigrants because they are unable to legally obtain a driver's license in Georgia.

State Rep. Stephanie Stuckey Benfield (D-Decatur) asked for a reconsideration vote next week to try to defeat the measure. If the move fails to reverse the House vote on Thursday, the measure would head back to the Senate because it was amended by the House.

The amendment would exempt drivers who don't have their licenses with them when stopped by police.

"This deals with someone that's never went and got a license," Bearden said.

Sims suggested another solution.

"I would like to see them confiscate the automobile. You don't have to feed the automobile. You don't have to confiscate the automobile. You don't have to make sure it [goes] to the hospital," Sims said. "If folks can't drive with a license, just lock [the car] up."

www.ajc.com

That Sims is an idiot