Skip to main content
H 8097Criminal Procedure

Motor and Other Vehicles - Suspension or Revocation of Licenses - Violations

This bill expands criminal penalties, including potential felonies, for driving on a license suspended for medical reasons or court orders.

Held for study
Population
Affected
15
Email Legislator
Introduced Feb 27, 2026Committee House Judiciary

Plain-English Summary

This legislation amends existing traffic laws to expand the list of violations that result in criminal penalties for driving with a suspended, revoked, or denied license. Specifically, it adds license suspensions resulting from a lack of physical or mental fitness, frequent traffic offenses, or any court-ordered suspension to the list of triggers. The bill clarifies that a first or second offense is a misdemeanor, while a third or subsequent offense constitutes a felony. It also mandates specific fines and potential imprisonment terms for these violations, removing the ability for judges to suspend these penalties.

For younger readers

This law changes the rules for people who drive cars when they are not allowed to. Sometimes, grown-ups lose their driver's license because they broke safety rules, have a medical problem that makes driving unsafe, or a judge told them they cannot drive. This bill says that if someone drives after a judge took away their license or because they are not healthy enough to drive, they can get in big trouble, including going to jail. It is designed to make sure that people who are not supposed to be driving stay off the road.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups
Drivers with suspended licensesRepeat traffic offendersDrivers with medical conditions affecting fitnessLaw enforcement agenciesJudicial system
Impacted communities
All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

None Likely

Estimated cost
Amount unknown
Estimated revenue
Amount unknown

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints
For Progressives
  • Enhances community safety by ensuring that individuals deemed physically or mentally unfit to drive are strictly prohibited from operating vehicles, protecting vulnerable road users.
  • Clarifies the legal distinction between misdemeanors and felonies for repeat offenders, potentially reducing ambiguity in the application of the law within the justice system.
  • Strengthens accountability for those with a "frequency of offenses," preventing individuals with a history of dangerous driving habits from continuing to endanger the public.
  • Expands the definition of criminal conduct to include "any court ordered license suspension," which could disproportionately penalize low-income individuals whose licenses were suspended for non-payment of fines or fees.
  • Imposes mandatory minimum fines and jail time while explicitly removing the ability to suspend sentences, stripping judges of the discretion to consider a defendant's financial hardship or personal circumstances.
  • Escalates third offenses to felony status, which can permanently damage an individual’s employability and housing prospects, contributing to mass incarceration and cycles of poverty.
For Conservatives
  • Reinforces the rule of law by ensuring that individuals who ignore court orders or strictly defined license suspensions face severe and mandatory criminal consequences.
  • Enhances public safety by cracking down on drivers who have demonstrated a lack of fitness or a pattern of frequent offenses, removing them from the roadways.
  • Imposes stiffer penalties, including felony charges for repeat offenders, serving as a strong deterrent against ignoring state driving regulations and court mandates.
  • Grants the government broad power to criminalize driving based on subjective determinations of "physical or mental fitness," potentially infringing on personal liberty and privacy.
  • Removes judicial discretion by mandating that fines and jail time cannot be suspended, preventing judges from handling cases based on their specific merits and effectively mandating outcomes.
  • Expands the definition of criminal conduct to include "any court ordered license suspension," potentially trapping citizens in the criminal justice system for administrative or procedural issues rather than actual criminal intent.

Votes

Loading votes...

Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 10 additions · 7 deletions

SECTION 1. Section 31-11-18.1 of the General Laws in Chapter 31-11 entitled "Suspension or Revocation of Licenses — Violations" is hereby amended to read as follows: 31-11-18.1. Driving after denial, revocation, or suspension for certain violations.

(a) Any person shall be guilty of a misdemeanor for the first and second offenses and shall be deemed guilty of a felony for the third or subsequent offenses who drives a motor vehicle on any highway of this state who never applied for a license or who drives after his or her application for a license has been refused, or after his or her license has expired or who otherwise drives without a license or at a time when his or her license to operate is suspended, revoked, or cancelled, for:

(1) operating Operating under the influence of a narcotic drug or intoxicating liquor;

(2) refusing Refusing to submit to a chemical test; reckless driving;

(3) manslaughter Manslaughter from the operation of a motor vehicle or operating so as to endanger resulting in death; or

(4) three Three (3) moving violations within a one-year period;

(5) Lack of physical or mental fitness;

(6) Frequency of offenses pursuant to § 31-11-7(a)(1)(i); or

(7) Any court ordered license suspension. shall be guilty of a misdemeanor for the first and second offenses and shall be deemed guilty of a felony for the third or subsequent offenses.

(b) The division of motor vehicles upon receiving a record of the conviction of any person upon a charge of driving a motor vehicle while the license of the person was suspended, for reasons set forth in this section shall suspend the person’s license or deny the person’s application for any length of time that it shall deem proper but in no case less than an additional three (3) months. Upon receiving a record of conviction of a second violation of driving a motor vehicle while the license of that person was suspended for reasons set forth in this section, the division of motor vehicles shall suspend the person’s license or deny the person’s application for any length of time that it shall deem proper but in no case less than an additional six (6) months. Any subsequent conviction shall result in license revocation. Upon receiving a record of the conviction of any person upon a charge of driving after his or her application for a license had been refused, or after his or her license had been revoked or cancelled for reasons set forth in this section, the division of motor vehicles shall not issue a new license for an additional period of one year from and after the date the person would otherwise have been entitled to apply for a new license. (c)(1) Upon a first conviction under this section a mandatory fine of five hundred dollars ($500) shall be imposed, and if the person was driving after his or her application for a license had been refused, or at a time when his or her license to operate was suspended, revoked, or cancelled for operating under the influence of a controlled substance or intoxicating liquor, or his or her refusal to submit to a chemical test, reckless driving, manslaughter from the operation of a motor vehicle, or operation so as to endanger, death resulting, the person shall be imprisoned for a minimum of ten (10) days.

(2) A mandatory fine of five hundred dollars ($500) for a second conviction under this section within a five (5) year period shall be imposed, and if the person was driving after his or her application for a license had been refused, or at a time when his or her license to operate was suspended, revoked, or cancelled for operating under the influence of a controlled substance or intoxicating liquor or his or her refusal to submit to a chemical test, reckless driving, manslaughter from the operation of a motor vehicle, or operation so as to endanger, death resulting, the person shall be imprisoned for a minimum of six (6) months to one year.

(3) For any subsequent conviction within a five (5) year period, a fine of one thousand dollars ($1,000) shall be imposed and the person may be imprisoned for up to one year or be required to participate in a public service program designated and approved by the court. If the person was driving after his or her application for a license had been refused or at a time when his or her license to operate was suspended, revoked, or cancelled for: (i) operating under the influence of a controlled substance or intoxicating liquor; (ii) his or her refusal to submit to a chemical test;

(iii) reckless driving; (iv) manslaughter from the operation of a motor vehicle; or (v) operating so as to endanger, death resulting; the person shall be imprisoned for a minimum of one year. Jurisdiction for violations of this section is given to the district court and the court shall have full authority to impose any sentence authorized for violations of this section.

(d) No fines, suspensions, treatment, or jail provided for under this section can be suspended.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.