Activists call for reform on driver’s license suspensions

Two community activists encouraged Wichita City Council members Tuesday to stop the city’s practice of suspending driver’s licenses to collect traffic fines.

Racial Profiling Advisory Board vice chair Walt Chappell said suspending licenses puts an unfair burden on poor residents.

“They can’t afford it. Every time they go out to get groceries or get to their work, they end up having to pay additional fines,” Chappell said. “If they’re stopped, they keep adding more fines. So they’re never able to pay it back.”

“It is not a crime to be poor,” he said.

Chappell compared suspended licenses as a form of house arrest. He said fewer people would have their licenses suspended if they were told during a traffic stop they can pay the fine in installments.

“We need to have clear communication, if we could, at the time of the stop,” Chappell said.

Kansas Appleseed’s Djuan Wash said suspended licenses perpetuate a cycle of poverty among some residents by limiting their transportation options.

“We don’t have the best public transportation system in Wichita,” Wash said. “It’s incredibly difficult for people who have third-shift jobs to get back and forth to work.”

Wash encouraged council members to support efforts in the Kansas Legislature to make it easier for people with suspended licenses to begin driving legally again.

Wash said Rep. Oletha Faust-Goudeau, D-Wichita, would craft legislation for this upcoming session. Chappell said municipal court costs should only apply to those who go to court and are found guilty.

“Why put it on the backs of people who cannot necessarily afford the fine, let alone the extra court costs?” Chappell asked.

Chappell, who is active on criminal justice issues, also encouraged the city to start a quarterly analysis of traffic citation data to look for potential racial bias in certain neighborhoods or beats.

“That can be done with the data we currently have,” he said.

Chappell said they also need a policy that releases body camera footage from use-of-force cases to the media within three days.

“We cannot just keep them in the confines of the police department and expect the people to understand transparency,” Chappell said.

This story was originally published October 4, 2016 at 12:51 PM with the headline "Activists call for reform on driver’s license suspensions."