Until recently, the legal system in Israel was very forgiving towards those who were caught driving without a valid driver’s license. Some might even say, “too forgiving” – since this leniency has resulted in an alarming number of drivers on the road who should not be driving because they had their licenses permanently or temporarily cancelled by the police or by the traffic court.
This is about to change. The legal system, as the case presented here will show, has decided to send a strong message to those driving without a valid license. It doesn’t matter why you drive without a license or for how long or how many times. If you are caught while driving without a valid license, you will pay a high price with lasting consequences.
P, a young lady from Jerusalem, was caught driving without a license. P never took a test and never had a driver’s license. She didn’t have any traffic violation precedent and she didn’t have any criminal record. She claimed that this was the first time she had ever driven.
The deal/plea
The deal was simple and very mild. P was to serve the public (“Sherut Lemaan Atsibur”) for a total of 150 hours, pay a fine to be decided by the judge, a suspended prison term and suspension of her driver’s license (the same one she never had). P would not have a criminal record. “Sherut Lemaan Atsibur” is a type of probation, but which carries no criminal record.
Because of her clean past, she reached an agreement with the police prosecutors. As a matter of fact (legal routine) a plea (“Iskat Teun”) is almost always accepted by the judge.
The prosecution
The prosecution asked for a mild penalty based on P’s clean past. In addition, they claimed that P would immediately lose her job if she was to serve any actual prison time. P was living in Jerusalem, supporting herself alone and depended on the salary from her job. She was presented as an exemplary citizen with no criminal history.
The reasoning behind the legal decision
The Honorable Judge, Mr. Avraam Tenenboim, of the traffic court in Jerusalem had a divergent opinion from the prosecution. As a result, he used his power to deny the plea/bargain based on the public’s best interest! The judge believed that it was time to protect the public from this kind of behavior; therefore, he decided to send a strong message to drivers like P.
The Judge agreed to consider P a normative citizen, but at the same time he emphasized that he had never had a case in which someone caught in a similar situation did not claim that it was her first time! Naturally, everyone always claims it was the first and only time he drove without a license.
Mr. Tenenboim is one of the best Judges in this country, despite always being under criticism for “extreme or different” decisions. He has a special approach, even when reprimanding a traffic violator, because he is very concerned with the public’s best interest.
The judge explained in his decision that it is rare when a plea/bargain is denied by the court and that even when the plea is really “bad” for the public best interest, judges will usually accept it – even “grinding our teeth.” However, it was not so in this case, where he stated the following:
“An offence of driving without a license, or driving when his/her license is temporarily canceled, is a total disregard for the law. There are too many people driving without permits or licenses regarding the provisions of law as a mere recommendation. There is no doubt that P is an intelligent, educated girl who can without any problem apply for and receive a driver’s license, as indeed she actually did after being caught. There is no explanation why she drove without a valid license except for a disdain for the law. There is no other way but a harsh punishment.”
The final decision
P was found guilty and sentenced to seven days in prison. In addition, she was to pay a 2,000 shekel fine and had a suspended six month driver’s license cancelation if she didn’t break the same law again in a three-year period.
The judge’s reasoning as he wrote was, “The aim of a punishment should be a brief and symbolic condemnation to act as a deterrent.”
The possible appeal
Because of the extreme nature of the punishment after the plea had been denied, the judge agreed to delay the prison term, giving the defendant or the prosecution the opportunity to appeal to the appellate court (“Beit Mishpat Mehozi”).
A message to all of us
We are the public! Our children, parents, siblings and friends are also out there driving or crossing the streets. It is well-known that more people have died in driving-related incidents than all wars combined.
Illegal driving is now our number one enemy and it is time for this to stop. It is time not to be benevolent to those driving without a permit, under alcohol or drugs influence, talking on the phone without a speaker or infringing on laws made for our safeguard.
