Legal Help For All Your Family Immigration Needs Immigration law might be daunting for family immigrants but immigration attorneys in…
New Jersey issued driver’s licenses and identification cards open doors of opportunity.  Not only does the driver’s license grant New Jersey residents the privilege to operate a vehicle, it also is widely accepted as an identification card that enables one to rent apartments; title, register, and insured cars; open bank accounts; cash checks; enter secure buildings;  and board commercial aircraft, among other things. Acceptance of a driver’s license as proof of identity has become so commonplace, that presenting a different document, like a passport, attracts attention, even if the alternative document is actually more secure.Too many undocumented individuals in New Jersey get behind a wheel each day and drive to work, despite not having a license. Right or wrong, these individuals believe they have no choice. Let me give you an example, just last week a woman came up to me at a seminar I was giving and told me her story. She has been in the U.S. for over 13 years. She has a 10 year old who is severely autistic. She brought him into my office. She can no longer control her son. Half way through the interview he got up and ran out of my office and down the street. I had to run after him to try and protect him from getting run over. She can”t take a bus with her son. She can’t walk down the street with her son. She has to drive, she says. He acts up and runs off at any moment. To complicate things, programs won’t treat her son because she is undocumented despite the fact that her son is a citizen. A couple of weeks prior she was pulled over and was issued several tickets.Every time she gets behind the wheel she risks facing tickets like driving with an expired licensed, driving never having had a license, or driving with a suspended license. All three carry high fines, jail in some circumstances, and the risk of suspension of driver’s license or the ability to get a license. Those are the risks. Many, as the woman described above, choose to drive despite the consequences. They believe that getting to work and supporting their families trumps the risk of a possible infraction. Our immigration courts are filled with individuals who got pulled over and where placed in removal hearings for making that same decision. These are not criminals, but that doesn’t matter in our system.Bill A2135 was recently introduced into the New Jersey legislature which would return the right to drive to undocumented or “illegals.” Depending on the final language, all residents will be allowed to to title, register, and insure motor vehicles despite their legal status. That would likely result in less individuals fleeing the scene of an accident, and would make it easier for those involved in accidents to get the treatment or compensation they deserve because more vehicle’s will be insured. Those are the facts. As a society we can debate whether undocumented or illegals should have the right to apply for a license, but these benefits are clear.If you are charged with any of these traffic violations, call our knowledgable staff today 888-695-6169 or download one of our books.
