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OVER DRIVERS
LICENSES FOR
ILLEGAL
IMMIGRANTS
RAGES ON,
ANOTHER
DRIVERS' LICENSE
ISSUE IS BEING
IGNORED.
AN ASTOUNDING
NUMBER OF
DANGEROUS
PEOPLE WHOSE
LICENSES
DEFINITELY
SHOULD BE
YANKED .. HAVE
DRIVEN RIGHT
THROUGH A
LOOPHOLE IN THE
SYSTEM AND ARE
NOW HEADING
RIGHT AT YOU.
HERE'S NEWS
THIRTEEN
INVESTIGATIVE
REPORTER LARRY
BARKER:
.Schultz: "Q. These
14,000 accused drunk
drivers, they beat the
system? A. They
clearly beat the
system."
.Eden: "It has just
become a muddy
mess."
.Park: "That's not
justice and that's not
the way the system
should work."
.Barker: "How many
times have we heard
it? You drink. You
drive. You lose. Well
here's something you
haven't heard. there
are thousands of
drunk drivers who
drove, got arrested
then won."
NO, IT DOESN'T
TAKE PLACE HERE
IN COURT. IT'S
HERE AT MOTOR
VEHICLES. YOU
SEE IF YOU GET
CAUGHT DRIVING
WHILE
INTOXICATED, TWO
THINGS WILL
HAPPEN. FIRST
YOU'LL BE
ARRESTED.
SECOND, YOU'LL
AUTOMATICALLY
LOSE YOUR
DRIVING
PRIVILEGES FOR
UP TO ONE YEAR.
THATS THE LAW.
HOWEVER, YOU
CAN CHALLENGE
THE LOSS OF
YOUR LICENSE BY
ASKING FOR AN
MVD
ADMINISTRATIVE
HEARING. IF YOU
CAN PROVE YOUR
ARREST WAS NOT
BY THE BOOK,
THEN MOTOR
VEHICLES WILL
RETURN YOUR
LICENSE. LAST
YEAR, THE MVD
CONDUCTED MORE
THAN 5000
REVOCATION
PROCEEDINGS
ACROSS THE
STATE. POLICE
OFFICERS ARE
REQUIRED TO
APPEAR AND
JUSTIFY THE
DRIVER'S ARREST.
AN MVD
EMPLOYEE WILL
THEN DETERMINE
WHETHER TO
RETURN A
DRIVER'S LICENSE.
ACCORDING TO
THE RULES, ONLY
THE DRIVER'S
LAWYER IS
REQUIRED TO
ATTEND THE
HEARINGS.
HOWEVER, THE
POLICE OFFICER
HAS NO CHOICE. IN
FACT, IF THE
POLICE OFFICERS
IS EITHER LATE OR
A NO SHOW, THE
MVD
AUTOMATICALLY
RESTORES THE
DRIVING
PRIVILEGES.
.Barker: "Our
investigation found,
since 2003 more than
14,000 drunk drivers
got a break when
witnesses failed to
show up for their
hearing. It's enough to
fill every jail cell at the
county lockup more
than six times over."
.Hearing Officer: "In
light of the fact that
the necessary witness
is not here today,
counsel, I will rescind
the revocation in this
matter."
NEW MEXICO
HIGHWAYS ARE
LITERALLY
BUMPER TO
BUMPER WITH
DRUNK DRIVERS
WHO HAVE
FIGURED OUT THE
SECRET TO
BEATING THE
SYSTEM. LOSE
YOUR LICENSE
AFTER A DWI AND
THE ODDS ARE
PRETTY FAIR MVD
WILL GIVE IT
BACK. ASK
DELANO SANCHEZ.
FOLLOWING HIS
6TH DWI LAST
YEAR, THE STATE
REVOKED HIS
DRIVING
PRIVILEGES. TWO
MONTHS LATER HE
GOT IT BACK
WHEN THE
OFFICER WHO
ARRESTED HIM DID
NOT APPEAR AT
HIS MVD HEARING.
DIEGO SANDOVAL
GOT THE SAME
BREAK
FOLLOWING HIS
FOURTH DWI. THE
STATE TOOK AWAY
HIS LICENSE AND
THEN GAVE IT
BACK. YVETTE
WISE HAD 3 PRIOR
DWI ARRESTS
WHEN SHE WAS
PULLED OVER
LAST YEAR FOR
AGGRAVATED
DRUNK DRIVING.
MONTHS LATER
SHE WAS BACK ON
THE ROAD WITH A
VALID DRIVER'S
LICENSE
COURTESY OF A
WITNESS WHO
DIDN'T MAKE IT TO
THE HEARING.
.Park: "This is the only
chance that drunk
drivers really have a
chance to keep their
licenses and that's
only if the officer
doesn't show up."
STATE REP AL
PARK IS CHAIR OF
THE HOUSE
JUDICIARY
COMMITTEE.
.Park: "These drunk
drivers are falling
through the cracks at
this administrative
hearing. And they get
to keep their licenses.
And that means that
frankly you and me
and everyone on the
road is in danger."
.Hearing Officer:
"Since Officer Lee is
not present, I will
rescind the revocation
in this matter. ... Your
driving privileges in
the state of New
Mexico will not be
revoked due to the
Implied Consent Act."
GORDEN EDEN IS
THE DEPARTMENT
OF PUBLIC SAFETY
CABINET
SECRETARY.
.Eden: "It is insane.
We are putting drunk
drivers, giving back
their lawful right to
operate a motor
vehicle and having
them walk away from
these administrative
hearings when in fact,
they broke the law."
.Schultz: "The reality
is ... we've got a
system that's broken.
It's allowing drunk
drivers to beat the
system and get their
driver's license back."
RAY SCHULTZ IS
APD'S CHIEF OF
POLICE.
.Schultz: "There's just
not enough hours in a
day, not enough days
in the week in order for
us to make sure that
we have an officer
present at every
administrative
hearing."
APD SPENDS
MILLIONS OF
DOLLARS A YEAR
IN OVERTIME FOR
OFFICERS TO
ATTEND
HEARINGS,
INTERVIEWS AND
CRIMINAL COURT
CASES.
.Schultz: "Our arrests,
especially for DWI,
clear majority occur
early evening, late
evening and early
morning hours. All of
these hearings are all
set on a monday
through friday nine to
five schedule."
THE CHIEF SAYS
SCHEDULED
HEARINGS ARE
PART OF THE JOB.
HOWEVER,
SCHEDULING
NIGHTMARES
ROUTINELY
REQUIRE
OFFICERS TO
APPEAR IN
MULTIPLE PLACES
AT THE SAME
TIME. FOR
EXAMPLE,
MONDAY,
SEPTEMBER 24TH,
IT'S DWI OFFICER
GUSTAVO
GOMEZ'S DAY OFF.
.Schultz: "He's
scheduled to start the
morning off at 8:00
with a grand jury case.
He's then scheduled to
be in Metropolitan
Court at 9:30. He has a
pre-trial scheduled at
10:30. Another pre-trial
scheduled at 11.
Another pre-trial
scheduled at 11:15.
Another pre-trial
scheduled at 11:30. An
MVD administrative
license revocation
hearing scheduled at
1:00. He's scheduled to
be in Metropolitan
Court at 1:30. And he's
scheduled again to be
at MVD at 2:00 in the
afternoon."
THE
BENEFICIARIES OF
A FLAWED
HEARING
PROCESS INCLUDE
JESSICA RICORD.
SHE WAS
ARRESTED FOR
DWI IN FEBRUARY.
SHE GOT HER
LICENSE BACK IN
MAY AND TWO
MONTHS LATER
WAS BACK IN JAIL
FOR DRUNK
DRIVING. LAST
YEAR KENNTH
CANNON WAS
ARRESTED, HAD
HIS LICENSE
RETURNED AND
THEN WAS
ARRESTED AGAIN
FOR DRUNK
DRIVING. HECTOR
MARTINEZ WAS
POPPED LAST
YEAR ON HIS
SECOND DWI
ARREST. HE GOT
HIS LICENSE BACK
BECAUSE OF A
WITNESS NO
SHOW AND THEN
WAS RE-
ARRESTED FOR
AGGRAVATED
DRUNK DRIVING.
.Schultz: "Defense
attorneys know it's
impossible for an
officer to be present at
every scheduled
hearing. And they play
the game. They play
the odds. And
unfortunately, the
odds are in their
favor."
.Eden: "People will
drink and drive
whether they have a
license or not. But
what people now know
is, I can beat the
system. I can get that
driver's license back
through an
administrative hearing
process.And thats
exactly what they are
doing. We are putting
the legal right to drive
back into the people's
hands who are causing
the vast majority of
our motor vehicle
fatalities in this state."
.Governor: "We're
going to fight to
change that statute.
That is not a statute
that should continue
to exist because it
favors one side over
the other. And the side
that it is most against
are the people of New
Mexico who are on the
roadways going about
their business and
possibly having that
same drunk driver
driving once again
drunk with a valid
driver's license."
.Eden: "It's going to
take an action by the
legislature ... to
correct the mayhem
that we are creating to
these administrative
hearings."
.Schultz: "In my 30
plus years with the
department, I've
investigated way too
many fatal accidents
caused by DWI
offenders. I've seen
the tragedy that
occurs on the streets.
And unfortunately, its
going to continue to
occur because people
continue to get their
driver's license back.
They continue to beat
the system and not be
held accountable."
LARRY BARKER,
KRQE NEWS 13.
AMONG THE
CHANGES
GOVERNOR
MARTINEZ WILL
ASK FROM NEXT
YEAR'S
LEGISLATURE IS A
PROVISION TO LET
POLICE OFFICERS
TESTIFY OVER THE
PHONE INSTEAD
OF IN PERSON.
ADLIB TOSS TO
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