Personal Narrative: Celeste
Celeste Sawyer is a single mother of five children living in Florida. Her driver’s license was suspended, because she accumulated $584 of traffic ticket debt.
Personal Narrative: Marlo
Knapp's license has been suspended since March of 2010 due to unpaid fines and fees that she owes in Escambia County totaling near $7,000 stemming from a mix of both traffic and criminal cases.
Personal Narrative: Sean
Sean Lewis spent his 36th birthday at the Escambia County Clerk’s Office trying to resolve his overdue court fines and fees so that he could get his driver’s license back.
Driven By Debt: How Driver’s License Suspensions for Unpaid Fines and Fees Hurt Texas Families
This report discusses the various ways debt-based driver’s license suspensions harm Texas drivers, especially those that are low-income and minorities.
Personal Narrative: Melanie
Melanie is a white, 45-year-old resident of South Carolina. As a mother, she tries her best to care for her children but she has not been able to provide basic healthcare for them for years due to her license suspension.
Personal Narrative: Kevin
Kevin lives in a rural town in Alabama and is disabled. He relies on his monthly disability check to support him and his partner. He could not afford car insurance, but he continued to drive since there are no other viable options for transportation where he lives. After he was ticketed for lack of insurance, his license was suspended and his fine only compounded the thousands of dollars in court debt he already owed.
Stopping the Debt Spiral
This report shares the results of a survey of 304 low-income Illinois residents who were asked about their experience with debt, including criminal justice debt. Respondents disclosed the types of debt they had, the number of debts they owed, and the emotional toll debt takes on their families.
Personal Narrative: Khalid
Khalid never received notice of fines and fees that led to his driver's license being suspended. He lost a job offer because he had no license.
Personal Narrative: Graciela
Graciela is a 76-year-old caregiver who takes three different buses for five hours to get to work each day. She receives Supplemental Security Income. Her license was suspended because of unpaid Driver’s Responsibility Program (DRP) surcharges.
Next Stop: Felony Parking
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.