Many New Jersey citizens depend on their cars for nearly every daily task in their lives, from driving to work to picking the kids up at school. For a variety of reasons, many have also received license suspensions at various points in their driving careers, which generally last up to six months but can stretch longer under certain circumstances. Adding insult to injury, license suspensions may also be accompanied by fines and even jail time in certain circumstances.
Beating the system?
While the loss of a license should signal that a driver needs to reconsider driving habits and prioritize safety over speed, many individuals simply cannot accept the fact that that they are no longer entitled to their driving privileges. In extremely ill-advised fashion, some drivers in denial take to the roads without valid licenses and press their luck, which lands them in much deeper trouble if they’re caught.
Another questionable response that landed 14 people under arrest recently involved acquiring licenses using fraudulently obtained documents. The arrests stemmed from an initiative launched by the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice and the Motor Vehicle Commission that relies on state-of-the-art facial recognition technology to finger people using false identities to get driver licenses. The software checked 9 million images to root out duplicate photo records indicative of fraud.
One-way ticket to the passenger seat
The individuals snagged by the operation were all charged with the use of another’s personal identifying information, an offense that can carry multiyear prison terms in addition to huge fines. Ironically, convictions also carry additional license suspensions. And those who use others’ personal identifying information can also be charged with tampering with public records or information, which carries penalties of up to five years in prison, and license suspension.
Facing license suspension in New Jersey can be a daunting prospect. Your first call should be to the skilled legal team at Hoffman DiMuzio for help getting back on the road the right way.