YOUNGSTOWN Driving under suspension draws ire

One man consolidated four charges and got 10 days in jail, total.
By PATRICIA MEADE
VINDICATOR CRIME REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- It took Arvella R. Davis Jr. five years to rack up five driving-under-suspension charges in the city. Michael L. Reynolds did it in 14 months.
Davis is 23, Reynolds is 19. Both live on the East Side.
Neither man is eligible for the Suspended License Intervention Program, said Dan Panigall, head of the probation department. Anyone with more than two DUS charges cannot qualify, he said.
SLIP is a way to help defendants obtain a valid license, which results in dismissal of their DUS charge. The program was initiated by Judge Elizabeth A. Kobly.
The Vindicator asked Judge Kobly what should be done with multiple DUS offenders. She cautioned that her comments were made without any specific case in mind.
"Just throw them in jail -- it's all you can do," she said. "SLIP is for those who want to be helped. Someone on their fifth [DUS] doesn't care. They show a flagrant disregard for the law."
She said a fifth DUS may not be typical, but it's not unusual, either.
Each day's arrest records in the city reflect that traffic stops, more often than not, involve a driver with a suspended license.
The judge said the offenders who served no jail time for DUS were done a disservice by the courts. They have no incentive to obtain a valid license and need the shock of substantial jail time, she said.
"Max them out," was the judge's response for those who have served substantial jail time and continue to drive with a suspended license. The maximum penalty for DUS is six months in jail.
Judge's lament
"There's a tremendous nonchalance in the city about having a valid driver's license," Judge Kobly said.
"The people without a license are the type to get in a wreck with my mother. They will flee the scene and leave victims to die because they don't want to get caught without a license."
The judge said she feels intensely committed to SLIP, which began in August.
Judge Robert A. Douglas Jr. said he generally imposes some jail time for repeat offenders or at least fines or community service so there is a consequence.
He mentioned the high cost of license reinstatement fees, which makes it "damn near impossible to get out of the hole."
Municipal court records show Davis and Reynolds have repeatedly broken the law and violated probation, but spent little time in jail.
The exception was about six years ago, when then-Judge Andrew Polovischak Jr. jailed Davis for six months for driving on a temporary license without a licensed driver in the car. It was Davis' third such offense, according to the case file.
Then he began collecting DUS convictions. He did three days in jail for his first (then-Judge Patrick V. Kerrigan); none for his second (then-Judge Louis K. Levy); and house arrest for his third (Polovischak).
The case files -- a jumble of follow-the-judges handwritten notations -- show that Davis sometimes missed court dates and failed to report to the probation department.
His jail records reflect a fast turn-around: Get arrested, make bond, get out.
Davis' fourth DUS conviction in January 2001 resulted in a reduced charge, suspended jail time and two years' probation imposed by Judge Robert P. Milich.
Panigall said Davis' probation for that case was terminated in May 2001. Records show Davis failed to appear for at least two show-cause hearings Judge Milich scheduled in the case, including the one in May, but still was not sent to jail.
Charges
Davis currently has four separate drug trafficking charges pending in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court. He's out of jail, free on four separate bonds that total $60,000 cash/surety, records show.
The most recent arrest took place Oct. 23, when Davis was charged with drug-abuse crack cocaine and DUS, his fifth. In court Friday, the drug charge, his fourth, was bound over to a grand jury.
Davis' lawyer, Louis M. DeFabio, produced a letter in court from the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles that shows Davis' license was restored six days after his arrest. Davis said he paid his insurance, which restored his driving privileges.
Dana C. Guarnieri, assistant prosecutor, said the DUS would be dismissed.
DeFabio acknowledged that DUS charges are prevalent in the city but said his focus is the drug charges Davis faces.
Reynolds, meanwhile, was in Judge Milich's court in March, and able to combine two DUS and two loud-music charges. The net penalty: 10 days in jail and three years' probation.
On Sept. 27, Reynolds was found in contempt of court for failure to pay more than $900 in fines on four cases and told to report to jail Oct. 27 to serve 30 days, the clerk's office said.
Judge Milich changed his mind Oct. 2, postponing the jail time until Jan. 27, records show. That same day, Oct. 2, Judge Milich sentenced Reynolds to 60 days in jail on a separate drug abuse conviction.
Reynolds then appeared in Judge Douglas' court Oct. 15 for his fourth DUS. The conviction netted no additional jail time.
Panigall said Reynolds' probation violation is in the works.
Last week, Reynolds was served in jail with a warrant for failing to appear in municipal court on a loud-music charge, his fourth. The trial has been reset to Wednesday.
He also has a trial set for Nov. 15 for his fifth DUS charge.
meade@vindy.com