Rael
08-04-2010, 02:47 AM
Mother Arrested, Jailed for Expired Tags
BY JOHN HENREHAN/myfoxdc
KENSINGTON, Md. - A Kensington, Maryland mother spent most of the evening, last Thursday, in handcuffs or in jail in the District of Columbia. Her transgression? Driving her car with expired license plates.
41-year-old Nycci Nellis was pulled over by a D.C. police officer on Military Road around 6:45 p.m.
"She pulled me out of my car, and... handcuffed me," said Nellis.
After Nellis was transported to the Second District police station, she was then taken to central booking downtown.
"It was a terrifying experience, having never been in a prison or jail before," explained Nellis.
"There were a lot of people in there. There were a lot of people who were unhappy to be there, and they were very vocal about it."
After Nellis was given a court date, she was released.
The public affairs division of D.C.'s Metropolitan Police Department declined an on-camera interview about Nycci Nellis' case.
But one officer told us there are 'general orders' applicable to traffic stops involving expired registration. According to that officer, police are advised to write a ticket if the license plates are expired by only a few days.
But, he said, if a motorist has been stopped driving with plates that have been expired for a 'substantial period', an arrest is made.
John Townsend, a spokesman for AAA Mid-Atlantic, thinks an arrest for expired plates is, "over the top."
"In most other jurisdictions, including Virginia and Maryland," Townsend told us, "you would not be arrested for this.
And this is why [it's] so shocking and it sends chills up the spines of motorists everywhere, because we're in and out of all the jurisdictions all of the time."
The D.C. officer who spoke with us also mentioned that driving in the city with an expired operator's license also generally leads to an arrest.
BY JOHN HENREHAN/myfoxdc
KENSINGTON, Md. - A Kensington, Maryland mother spent most of the evening, last Thursday, in handcuffs or in jail in the District of Columbia. Her transgression? Driving her car with expired license plates.
41-year-old Nycci Nellis was pulled over by a D.C. police officer on Military Road around 6:45 p.m.
"She pulled me out of my car, and... handcuffed me," said Nellis.
After Nellis was transported to the Second District police station, she was then taken to central booking downtown.
"It was a terrifying experience, having never been in a prison or jail before," explained Nellis.
"There were a lot of people in there. There were a lot of people who were unhappy to be there, and they were very vocal about it."
After Nellis was given a court date, she was released.
The public affairs division of D.C.'s Metropolitan Police Department declined an on-camera interview about Nycci Nellis' case.
But one officer told us there are 'general orders' applicable to traffic stops involving expired registration. According to that officer, police are advised to write a ticket if the license plates are expired by only a few days.
But, he said, if a motorist has been stopped driving with plates that have been expired for a 'substantial period', an arrest is made.
John Townsend, a spokesman for AAA Mid-Atlantic, thinks an arrest for expired plates is, "over the top."
"In most other jurisdictions, including Virginia and Maryland," Townsend told us, "you would not be arrested for this.
And this is why [it's] so shocking and it sends chills up the spines of motorists everywhere, because we're in and out of all the jurisdictions all of the time."
The D.C. officer who spoke with us also mentioned that driving in the city with an expired operator's license also generally leads to an arrest.