The man is keeping me down, again.

November 5, 2007 5:00 PM

CDL passenger endorsement about to be suspended! What do I do?

OK, so I got a letter in the mail stating my commercial driver's license passenger endorsement is about to be suspended indefinitely on Nov. 8th for 'disqualifying criminal arrest and/or conviction record'. So it says I have until Nov. 8th to submit a written request for a hearing on the matter, including my reasons for why the suspension is undeserved.

Full disclosure: I have prior misdemeanor drug arrests (weed), but nothing that would disqualify me to my knowledge.

Is it a waste of time to try and fight this? Should I get a lawyer? Any advice from people who've found themselves in similar situations? Can I at least write the letter myself so I don't need to pay a lawyer to have it written for me?

I have my CDL A which is not being suspended, so I can work, but I need the passenger endorsement to drive a tour bus. This is in New Jersey, so any local help is welcome. Understandably, MMMV and YANML.

link to photo

posted by knowles to Law & Government (6 answers total)

Maybe you can petition to have your record expunged, how long ago were the convictions?

Relevant NJAC 13:21-14.5 passage:

12. A criminal record that is disqualifying. The phrase "crime or other offense" as used hereinafter shall include crimes, disorderly persons offenses or petty disorderly persons offenses as defined in the "New Jersey Code of Criminal Justice" and any offenses defined by any other statute of this State. A driver has a disqualifying record if:

09;i. He or she has been convicted of, or forfeited bond or collateral upon, any of the following:

09;09;(1) An offense involving the manufacture, transportation, possession, sale or habitual use of a "controlled dangerous substance" as defined in the "New Jersey Controlled Substance Act";
posted by rhizome at 5:28 PM on November 5, 2007

call a New Jersey DUI lawyer, they're going to be the foremost experts on commercial license suspensions.
posted by Mr_Crazyhorse at 5:41 PM on November 5, 2007

This page says that Motor Vehicle Services has the authority to suspend a person’s commercial driving privilege if they were convicted of two serious commercial traffic violations in separate incidents during a 3-year period.


So if you were driving under the influence twice in the past 3 years, there you go.

I say fight it , never take an indefinite punishment even if deserved, let the administrative judge give you a time line for any punishment. But I don't live any where New Jersey and I don't have a CDL so YMMV, good luck
posted by kanemano at 5:44 PM on November 5, 2007

Arrests, plural? Are you sure your other license isn't going to be yanked also? You have become a huge liability to the company that insures the company you work for as a driver. Your employer most likely pulls up your driving record occasionally and this action may be on your record. I think you might want to check your primary commercial license and see what you can do preemptively to prevent a similar action against that license.
posted by 45moore45 at 6:25 PM on November 5, 2007

Is it a waste of time to try and fight this?

What a sad indictment of American justice when these words are used in the same post as
nothing that would disqualify me to my knowledge.

Not only should you fight it, you have a civic resposibility to do so.
posted by Neiltupper at 8:33 PM on November 5, 2007

OK, so I got a letter in the mail stating my commercial driver's license passenger endorsement is about to be suspended indefinitely on Nov. 8th for 'disqualifying criminal arrest and/or conviction record'. So it says I have until Nov. 8th to submit a written request for a hearing on the matter, including my reasons for why the suspension is undeserved.

The letter doesn't say what that arrest or conviction is. Could be a case of mistaken identity, or identity theft. Go in to the DMT and get a printout of exactly what they claim you have supposedly done, including date/times of arrests.
posted by aeschenkarnos at 8:50 PM on November 5, 2007