Teen Traffic Hearings are Too Often Ugly in Massachusetts
Anger. Pouting. Arguments. Insults.
Such tactics—by parents, as well as teens—are all too common in Massachusetts these days, as a growing number of fledgling drivers are ticketed under a tough new statute. Known as the junior operator law, it imposes a mandatory 90-day suspension for an initial speeding offense, if the driver is under 18, as well as a $500 fine. It also requires the teen to get additional driver training and pass a driver’s license test a second time, reports the Boston Globe.
Not surprisingly, ticketed teens are upset about the prospect of losing their driving privileges almost as soon as they are allowed to get behind the wheel, and having to continue serving as a teen chauffeur is hard on suburban parents, in particular. The junior operator law, as well as stepped-up drunken driving enforcement, is credited with nearly doubling the number of traffic hearings at the Registry of Motor Vehicles over the past two years, substantially increasing the workload for those who handle these cases, the newspaper says.
Hearing officers have no choice but to suspend licenses under the new law, if it is violated, and they often are the bearer of bad news to teens and parents who were unaware of the stringent new requirements. The new law is believed to be saving lives by helping teens to be better drivers, but those ticketed aren’t necessarily appreciative.
“Vulgar language—right in front of their parents,” recounts Deana Douville, an RMV hearing officer in Springfield, of an all-too-common experience. “That’s usually when I end it. I end the hearing at that point. You kind of look at the parents like—I couldn’t imagine kids talking in front of their parents like that.”
