BUFFALO, NY - The Erie County Sheriff's Office says they're used to dealing with motorists who may have had their driver's license suspended once or twice. But Thursday night, a deputy pulled a Buffalo man over who they say has had his license was suspended and revoked 18 different times.
Sergeant Dan Dytchkowskyj told 2 On Your Side, what's so frustrating about this is all they can do is enforce the driving laws, make the arrest, and bring the driver to court.
The deputy was on routine patrol on Route 16 in the Town of Holland when he stopped 48-year old Fred Keyes near the corners of Olean and Partridge Roads.
Keyes was initially pulled over for driving with only one working head light, and was ticketed for illegally tinted windows. Dytchkowskyj said when he further inspected Keyes and the vehcile, the man had crack cocaine in his possession. A license check further revealed the suspensions.
Dytchkowskyj said keeping someone like Keyes off the road is not as easy as you think.
"You know, I would like to say the answer would be throw them in jail for a long time. The problem is, we have to pay for that, and will throwing them in jail change their behavior?"
"If somebody's got 18-suspensions you know, unless you throw them in jail for a long time like 10-years...it's not an easy solution. I'm sure the judges would be using that solution," said the Sergeant.
Dytchkowskyj says people who do tend to drive while their license is suspended rarely do jail time. One big reason is the fact that jails tend to be overcrowded. He said it also up to a Judge's discretion. Keyes is currently being held at the Erie County Holding Center as he waits to be arraigned in Holland Court.