In the past, for a conviction of any offense under a Federal, Pennsylvania State, or other state’s-controlled substances law, in addition to any other penalty, e.g., jail, probation, etc., a person would also suffer the additional penalty of a driver’s license suspension.
That is, after a person with a drug-related offense was prosecuted in criminal court, Pennsylvania’s Department of Transportation (PENNDOT) would then impose a mandatory minimum 6-month driver’s license suspension.
Often, in those circumstances, individuals were not even made aware of that additional civil penalty—the driver’s license suspension—until after being later cited for driving without a license (that they did not know was even suspended). That state of the law created reentry barriers and added hidden civil consequences to criminal prosecutions.
The law, Section 1532, which is found in Title 75—Pennsylvania’s Vehicle Code—was changed in 2019 to eliminate driver’s license suspensions for drug convictions. This month, Section 1532 changed again when the Governor signed, on November 3, 2022, a new version of the law. The new version of Section 1532 eliminates the drug-related driver’s license suspensions retroactively.
This means that for old drug conviction-related driver’s license suspensions that are still pending, now those are to be adjusted as if the driver’s license suspension penalty was canceled. The result is no driver’s license suspensions for new, and old, drug convictions. This is great news for countless drivers! If you need assistance with drug-related, or any other criminal charges, call us to learn how ThePhillyLawyers can help you at 215-884-9300.
