When a motorist receives a traffic ticket in New York State there is a date printed on the ticket. When a motorist does not respond in a timely manner the Traffic Court orders the NYS DMV to suspend the defendant’s driver’s license until he or she appears and complies with the Court’s directives. Some Traffic Courts will order bail and other will simply issue a new appearance date. In any event every Court must charge a suspension termination fee for each ticket for which the motorist is suspended. The Vehicle & Traffic Law § 503 (2. Fees j-1 (i)) reads:

In any event every Court must charge a suspension termination fee for each ticket for which the motorist is suspended.

“When a license issued pursuant to this article, or a privilege of operating a motor vehicle or of obtaining such a license, has been suspended based upon a failure to answer an appearance ticket or a summons or failure to pay a fine, penalty or mandatory surcharge, pursuant to subdivision three of section two hundred twenty-six, subdivision four of section two hundred twenty-seven, subdivision four-a of section five hundred ten or subdivision five-a of section eighteen hundred nine of this chapter, such suspension shall remain in effect until a termination of a suspension fee of seventy dollars is paid to the court or tribunal that initiated the suspension of such license or privilege. In no event may the aggregate of the fees imposed by an individual court pursuant to this paragraph for the termination of all suspensions that may be terminated as a result of a person’s answers, appearances or payments made in such cases pending before such individual court EXCEED FOUR HUNDRED DOLLARS. For the purposes of this paragraph, the various locations of the administrative tribunal established under article two-A of this chapter shall be considered an individual court.” (emphases added)

Therefor the Limits on the Suspension Termination Fee which any one Court can impose on you for un-suspending your driver’s license is $400 as long as all of your suspensions are in the same Traffic Court. If you have traffic ticket suspensions in multiple Traffic Courts then each one must charge you a $70 fine per ticket with a maximum of $400, regardless of any other fines and surcharges or taxes which your tickets carry.

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Interestingly enough in the state of Washington lawmakers can not be stopped for none misdemeanor traffic infractions, so the councilman would not have been stopped in the first place, and he would have never been Arrested for Driving on a Suspended License. If however the police officer’s computer would have read off the license plate regarding the suspension, even in the state of Washington he would have Arrested for Driving on a Suspended License, being that it is a  misdemeanor. 

There are a few things to learn from this story about traffic violations, and the first is that you should respond to your traffic tickets in a timely manor. Some people are unsure about what to do with their traffic ticket, and delay responding by the due date, which results in their driver’s license being suspended. Then out of the blue while driving down the street they could be arrested for driving on a suspended license. If you are not sure of what to do with your ticket, you should consult with an attorney before the date listed of the citation.

Another thing to remember is the cellphone law in New York. Using a cellphone — even while on speaker, and even if you are not holding the cellphone — can result in serious penalties. New York is taking an aggressive stand against cellphone use while driving. So, if you are accused of this violation and you believe the violation does not apply in your case, talk things over with an attorney.

Last but not least, if your license has been suspended or if it is no longer valid, you need to address this issue quickly. Again, an attorney with experience dealing with New York traffic violations can be of great service to you in this regard.

Source: NY Daily News, “City Council candidate Noah Gotbaum arrested over license violation,” Thomas Tracy, Sept. 3, 2013

The post Arrested for Driving on a Suspended License New York City Council appeared first on The Law Offices of Zev Goldstein, PLLC.