Because Murphy was stopped while driving on a suspended license in Georgia, she was arrested and charged with a felony.
This SoundCloud recording made available by the Chicago Jobs Council takes an in-depth look into how parking tickets from 1999 cost 37-year old LaSheria Murphy her driver’s license, peace of mind, livelihood, and dignity. In 2008, Murphy was stopped by police and told her license was suspended; she later found out that her suspension was the result from parking tickets that she thought she had resolved when she was 19. The need to commute using public transit posed a number of limitations and stressors for Murphy, and when she thought she had put this situation behind her and moved on with her life in a new city, those same tickets from 1999 forced her to return to Chicago, charged with a felony.
Key Findings
- Murphy successfully renewed her driver’s license multiple times between her 1999 parking tickets and the 2008 traffic stop when she found out her license was suspended.
- During those processes, Murphy claims she did not receive any communication regarding failure to pay her 1999 ticket or the risk of her license being suspended.
- The hefty $2500 price tag of her fines and fees forced Murphy to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
- Because Murphy was stopped while driving on a suspended license in Georgia, she was arrested and charged with a felony.
- As an employment case manager, Murphy estimates that 75% of the people on her case load have had issues with driver’s license suspension.