KEATON ROSS/Oklahoma Watch 约瑟夫·布兰特利在假释后因驾照被暂停而难以应对生活。
KEATON ROSS/Oklahoma Watch Navigating life after prison with a suspended driver’s license proved difficult for Joseph Brantley.
布兰特利是M-D建筑产品公司的招聘总监，也是矫正委员会成员，他表示，在2021年1月出狱后的几个月里，他一直骑自行车上班。在存够钱买了一辆二手车后，俄克拉荷马州服务局（Service Oklahoma）告诉他，他必须至少等待三年并支付3500美元才能恢复驾照。
Brantley, a recruiting director for M-D Building Products and a member of the Board of Corrections, said he rode a bike to work for months after his January 2021 release from prison. After saving enough to buy a used car, Service Oklahoma told him he would have to wait at least three years and pay $3,500 to have his license reinstated.
随着职业和个人机会的出现——包括有机会在中央俄克拉荷马大学完成学士学位——布兰特利说，他面临着开车时驾照被暂停的两难境地。
As professional and personal opportunities emerged, including the chance to finish his bachelor’s degree at the University of Central Oklahoma, Brantley said he faced the dilemma of driving on a suspended license.
“我冒了这个险，而且在上帝的恩典下，这对我有效，我已经恢复了驾照，”他说。“我不会再做任何事情导致失去驾照，但在旧法律下，我基本上被困在这种境地里。”俄克拉荷马州一直在尝试帮助司法系统中的人们找到并保住工作，以降低再犯率并提高劳动力参与度。一项重要改革出现在2021年，当时州长凯文·斯蒂特签署了一项法律，要求矫正部门确保囚犯在释放前拥有必要的文件。
“I took that risk, and by the grace of God it paid off for me and I’ve been reinstated,” he said. “I won’t ever do anything again to lose my license, but under the old law, that’s kind of the box I was put into.”Oklahoma has tried to help people involved in the justice system find and keep jobs to reduce recidivism rates and boost workforce participation. A major reform came in 2021, when Gov. Kevin Stitt signed a law requiring the Department of Corrections to ensure inmates have essential documents before they’re released.
改革倡导者表示，俄克拉荷马州应停止因未支付法庭罚款和费用而暂停驾照。立法者们在10月13日于州议会大厦进行的一次临时研究中审议了这一问题。
Reform advocates said Oklahoma should stop suspending driver’s licenses over unpaid court fines and fees. Lawmakers examined the issue during an interim study at the state capitol on Oct. 13.
地方和市政法官可以指示俄克拉荷马州服务局暂停某人的驾照，如果他们错过付款或未出庭。执法情况在各县之间有所不同，与债务相关的驾照暂停在农村地区更为常见。
District and municipal judges can direct Service Oklahoma to suspend a person’s driver’s license if they miss payments or fail to appear in court. Enforcement varies across counties, with debt-related suspensions more common in rural areas.
俄克拉荷马州刑事司法改革倡导者（Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform）的政策顾问迈克尔·奥尔森表示，大约有18万俄克拉荷马州居民因债务问题导致驾照被暂停。根据俄克拉荷马州服务局的数据，平均暂停时长为38个月。
Michael Olson, policy counsel for Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform, said approximately 180,000 Oklahomans have a debt-related driver’s license suspension. The average suspension lasts 38 months, according to Service Oklahoma.
奥尔森表示，如果人们严格遵守这些暂停规定，俄克拉荷马州的劳动力参与率将会大幅下降。
Olson said Oklahoma’s workforce participation rate would plummet if people strictly adhered to the suspensions.
“人们继续开车，因为你必须生存，”奥尔森说。“但我认为，阻止人们开车的后果还没有被完全想清楚。”根据“自由驾驶”运动的数据，自2017年以来，至少有25个州和哥伦比亚特区通过了某种形式的驾照暂停改革。倡导者表示，结束与债务相关的驾照暂停不会减少法院收入，反而会鼓励更多人进入劳动力市场。
“People continue to drive because you have to survive,” Olson said. “But I don’t think the consequences of disincentivizing people to drive are fully thought through.”At least 25 states and the District of Columbia have passed some form of driver’s license suspension reform since 2017, according to the Free to Drive campaign. Advocates said ending debt-related suspensions does not reduce court collections and encourages more people to enter the workforce.
在加利福尼亚州，该州自2017年起停止因未缴纳罚款和费用而暂停驾照，未逾期账户的及时回收率上升了8.9%。田纳西州的研究人员检查了2011年至2021年的10年数据，发现驾照吊销并未提高回收率。
In California, which stopped suspending driver’s licenses for unpaid fines and fees in 2017, on-time collection rates for non-delinquent accounts rose 8.9% . Researchers in Tennessee examined 10 years of data, from 2011 through 2021, and found that license revocations did not improve collection rates.
罚款和费用司法中心的地区主管莎拉·库图尔表示，如果俄克拉荷马州停止因法院债务而暂停驾照，该州可能会产生数千万美元的新税收收入。
Sarah Couture, a regional director at the Fines and Fees Justice Center, said Oklahoma could generate tens of millions in new tax revenue if it stops suspending driver’s licenses for court debt.
“以债务为基础的驾照暂停剥夺了人们的生计，”库图尔在听证会上说。“它阻碍了经济增长，削弱了公共安全，并且无法迫使人们付款。”几位立法者对这一政策变化表示了兴趣，但该提案在上一届会议期间因未获得委员会听证而搁置。
“Debt-based driver’s license suspensions cost people their livelihoods,” Couture said during the hearing. “It cuts economic growth, it undermines public safety and it does not compel payments.”Several lawmakers expressed interest in the policy change, which stalled last session after it did not receive a committee hearing.
共和党-费尔特州的参议员凯西·默多克表示，他在一名员工因驾驶暂停吊销的驾照被捕并被关押周末后，开始审视这一问题。他说，俄克拉荷马州需要确保没有危险驾驶记录的人至少能够开车上下班。
Sen. Casey Murdock, R-Felt, said he began examining the issue after one of his employees was arrested for driving on a suspended license and spent the weekend in jail. He said Oklahoma needs to ensure that people without a dangerous driving record can at least drive to and from work.
“州政府基本上是在让这些人‘暂停’，”默多克说。“你被‘暂停’了。不管出于什么原因你没付钱，你就必须在这里待多久。”共和党-邓肯州的参议员斯宾塞·肯恩表示，他认识到驾照暂停的经济影响，但担心取消与债务相关的暂停会传递错误的信号。
“The state is basically putting these people in timeout,” Murdock said. “You’re in timeout. You didn’t pay for whatever reason, and you have to stay here for however long.”Sen. Spencer Kern, R-Duncan, said he recognizes the economic effect of driver’s license suspensions, but fears that eliminating debt-related suspensions could send the wrong message.
“如果我们取消这些罚款和驾驶执照的暂扣措施，是否就会打开‘潘多拉的盒子’——让人们的违法行为不再受到任何惩罚呢？”科尔恩在听证会上问道。
“If we remove these fines and suspensions, are we perhaps opening Pandora’s box on there are no consequences for your actions?”Kern asked during the hearing.
立法者通过了2021年的一项法案，允许那些驾驶执照被暂扣的人提出特殊申请，以获得临时驾驶执照。这种临时执照允许他们在每天早上6点到晚上11点59之间自由驾驶，或者在工作或学校时间之外往返于工作地点或学校。
Lawmakers approved a 2021 bill allowing people with suspended licenses to file a hardship exception and request a provisional license. The provisional license permits unrestricted driving access from 6 a.m. to 11:59 p.m., or to and from work or school after hours.
法院债务律师埃德·温奇表示，虽然临时执照可能是一种解决办法，但申请资格非常严格，申请流程也非常繁琐。
Provisional licenses could be a solution, but eligibility is narrow and the application process is arduous, court debt attorney Ed Wunch said.
尽管布兰特利的驾驶执照在2024年10月被恢复了，但他指出，在他的招聘工作中，驾驶执照被暂扣的问题仍然经常出现。他在向立法者作证时提到，曾有一名员工因在周五晚上使用被暂扣的驾照而被捕，不得不在监狱里度过整个周末。
Though his driver’s license was restored in October 2024, Brantley said the suspension often comes up in his job as a recruiter. In his testimony to lawmakers, he recalled an employee being arrested for driving on a suspended license on a Friday night and having to spend the weekend in jail.
布兰特利建议立法机构明年应考虑对驾驶执照暂扣制度进行改革。他认为，罚款和费用往往还会因其他经济压力（如支付汽车保险费、房租和食品杂货费用）而进一步加剧。“这真是一个恶性循环，而且很难摆脱。”他说。
In an interview, Brantley said the Legislature should consider driver’s license suspension reform next year. He said fines and fees are often exacerbated by other financial pressures, including paying for auto insurance, rent and groceries.
这篇报道最初由《俄克拉荷马观察报》（Oklahoma Watch）发布，并通过与美联社（The Associated Press）的合作进行了传播。
“It’s such a vicious cycle and a vicious thing to get out of,” he said.