Editorial: Another approach for unlicensed drivers
3/4/2008 8:15:38 AM
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The fact that a 23-year-old Minnesota man has received 68 citations for driving without a valid license is a pretty good hint that there's a problem. Add in another 500 people who have 14 or more citations and one might accurately conclude that there's an epidemic of unlicensed driving going on statewide.
It's not a new problem, but it's under increased scrutiny after an unlicensed driver with a previous citation for driving without a license allegedly ran a stop sign and struck a school bus in southwestern Minnesota, killing four children.
The knee-jerk reaction is to say, "Make the penalties stiffer." The typical citation includes a $180 fine -- barely more than the average speeding ticket. Although jail time is possible, it's relatively infrequent.
Would doubling or tripling the fines make offenders think twice before they got behind the wheel again?
Olmsted County Sheriff Steve Borchardt doesn't think so.
"Very often, these are folks who can't pay the fines anyway," he said. "It's a real conundrum. People get their license taken away, and they don't have a lot of money. They need to work, and they need to drive. While they're driving, they get pinched for all number of little things, and, every time, they lose their license for longer. You get a really vicious cycle that's tough to get out of."
Borchardt said that some areas of Minnesota have opted for a less-punitive method of dealing with this problem, by trying to find a "short-form way" to get people back on the road legally as soon as possible. Usually there's some sort of educational component involved, so that offenders will be better drivers the next time they get behind the wheel.
The jury still appears to be out on the effectiveness of this system, and such programs would do little to solve the problem of illegal immigrants who drive without a license or insurance. They're off the grid, are not trained in our traffic laws and have little to lose when they get behind the wheel.
"It's a frustrating topic for everyone in the whole system," Borchardt said.
Clearly a line can be drawn. Some states have experimented with progressive penalties, and if a five-time offender's vehicle were impounded for six months or even permanently confiscated, perhaps the message would get through.
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