The program has a completion rate of 63 percent, county officials said.
It saves the criminal justice system an estimated $1 million per year in operating costs and collects about $900,000 in court costs annually. It handles about 12,000 people a year who complete 300,000 community service hours. In 1992, Miami-Dade courts launched the Drive Legal program. Since the Palm Beach County Clerk and Comptroller’s office launched its Court Compliance Program in 2014, more than $3 million in fines and fees have been collected through a flexible payment plan that allowed 76 percent of offenders to keep their driver’s license. Some counties have a system in place for suspended drivers. There were 1.7 million suspensions last year. In 2013, there were 1.3 million suspensions statewide. The problem has increased over the years. There were nearly 2 million driver's license suspensions in Florida in fiscal 2016-2017. “Sometimes the burden's too great for them to be able to pay the penalties and fees and they get caught in this vicious cycle,” Brandes said. Offenders often need their driver’s license to get to work to earn the money to pay the fines and fees to get their driver’s license back. Even if suspended drivers pay off what they owe, reinstating their license with the state can cost at least $60 more.Ī first offense for knowingly driving with a suspended license carries a maximum penalty of 60 days in jail and a $500 fine, according to state law. “I’ve had people who’ve gotten notifications years later and now they have a five-year suspension for something they did years ago when they paid off their citations.”Īfter 90 days, county tax collectors can send the case to debt collection agencies that add their own fees of up to 40 percent.
“It happens all the time,” Hollander said. After 30 days, unpaid fines can trigger late fees and suspension warning letters the offender may not get in the mail.
0 kommentar(er)
