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SALT LAKE CITY — Normally when you get a traffic ticket, the consequences — fines, court dates, etc. — get wrapped up pretty quickly. But what if 16 years later you found out the state wants to take your license away because of an error in the paperwork?
That's exactly what happened to Steve Nosack.
In August of 1997, Nosack was near the intersection of 9000 South and Redwood Road in West Jordan getting a ticket for driving without insurance. He went to court, pleaded guilty, and paid a fine.
"I admit that I had no insurance. I paid the penalty for it," Nosack said.
He thought the incident was over — until two weeks ago.
At the end of September, out of the blue, Nosack got a letter from the Utah Driver License Division saying his license was going to be suspended in seven days if he didn't pay a reinstatement fee of $30.
"When I went to the Driver License Division, they told me it was because they were going computerized and a lot of records were getting shipped over," Nosack said.
KSL News called the Utah Driver License Division Monday. Sure enough, they admitted this case, among many others, got lost in translation.
The paperwork never made it to state officials, who never got back to Nosack. Driver License officials even apologized — but Nosack still has to pay.
While he's not upset about paying the fine, Nosack doesn't think it should be his fault the state lost the paperwork for 16 years.
He said maybe they should consider dismissing fines after a certain period of time now that they are moving to an all digital format.
