Officals try to protect public from worst traffic offenders

"Can't they put a stop to these people before they kill someone?"

These are examples of comments left by concerned readers of the Times-Gazette Web site whenever a story about a person with a long list of driving offenses is published.

Reports concerning people with a long history of charges, such as a 13th DUI conviction in one recent case, have many citizens wondering what is being done to keep dangerous drivers off the road.

The answer from local prosecutors? As much as can be done.

Punishment for a first offense DUI leads to a year without driving privileges, aside from the mandatory 48 hours in jail and fines. However, many seem to end up in court before that time is up, charged with driving on a revoked license.

A second DUI conviction means a driver's license revocation of two years and a third conviction can result in three to 10 years without a license.

But over time, these and other accumulated charges could prevent a driver from getting behind the wheel at all for an extended period -- and even a longer stint behind bars.

It's called being declared a Habitual Motor Vehicle Offender or HMVO.

What happens

Assistant District Attorney Mike Randles said this process begins when his office receives a notice from the Tennessee Department of Safety telling them they think a particular person has accumulated enough charges on their drving record to be declared a HMVO.

If you have three or more charges like reckless driving, vehicular assault, DUI, evading arrest or even driving on a revoked license over the past five years, or five offenses within a 10-year period, that's when you could face prosecution under the Tennessee Habitual Offender Act.

And a conviction under the act means you face revocation of your driving privileges for as long as the court's order remains in effect -- a minimum of three years.

The D.A. said his office will file a petition, which is then served on the defendant, who has to appear in court. The matter is "purely civil in nature at this point," Randles explained, and the person accused can have a hearing on the matter.

However, if the judge declares that person a HMVO, an order is issued and it will be three years until the court can be petitioned to remove that status.

Serious time

Tennessee is one of 26 states that have the HMVO law on their books. Violating the act can mean serious jail time.

Getting caught while driving under HMVO status is a Class E felony, and is punishable by imprisonment of one to six years and a maximum fine of $3,000.00, Randles said.

For example, in 2007, Circuit Court Judge Lee Russell sentenced a Shelbyville man to 11 years in prison after he pleaded guilty of violating two orders declaring him a habitual traffic offender by twice running a stop sign.

Randles noted at the time that the person in question had five prior convictions -- categorizing him as a persistent offender.

That status leads to greater punishment for later offenses, including minor traffic violations -- even if they do not include personal injury.

And in this case, the man had been previously warned in court that he could face greater punishment for such violations, so he received five and a half years for each HMVO violation.

No deals

Randles says his office prosecutes many individuals who get caught driving after being declared a HMVO and other charges on their record leads to longer jail terms.

"We see a fair number of these charges," Randles says. "I'd say every grand jury has one or two ... and we don't reduce those charges to something else ... we don't plead that to some lesser crime."

One recent example was the conviction of a man on his 13th DUI charge. Randles pointed out that the offender had been declared a HMVO in 1988 by a Marshall County judge. The result was a seven-year prison sentence.

"If they've got felonies on their record, the punishment ... goes up," Randles said.

The D.A. also remembered a case in which Russell ruled that a woman was a HMVO and told her she could not drive. But the woman was the last person on the docket and had come to court alone, so "everyone knew she was going to drive away."

"Sure enough, a deputy watched her get in her car and drive away," Randles said. "He pulled her over and arrested her. She wound up doing time over it."

Randles repeated that when it comes to serious driving offenses in Bedford County, people shouldn't expect a plea deal to a lesser charge.

"About the only way you can stop some people from driving is to lock them up for as long as possible," Randles said.