THOMAS L. COLAMECO,
Appellant,
v.
NEW JERSEY MOTOR
VEHICLE COMMISSION,
Respondent.
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APPELLATE DIVISION
Argued November 6, 2013 – Decided
Before Judges Espinosa and O'Connor.
On appeal from the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission.
NOT FOR PUBLICATION WITHOUT THE
APPROVAL OF THE APPELLATE DIVISION
PER CURIAM
Thomas
L. Colameco appeals from a final decision of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle
Commission (NJMVC) that reduced a previously imposed suspension of his license
and denied his request for a hearing. We
affirm.
The
record includes three notices from the NJMVC to Colameco, all sent to the same
Swedesboro address, advising him that his driving privileges had been
suspended. The first notice, sent in November
2010, advised that Colameco's driving privileges were suspended "indefinitely"
due to his failure to pay insurance surcharges.
A second notice, dated May 31, 2011, advised Colameco his driving
privileges were suspended as of July 29, 2011, "indefinitely" because
he failed to answer a summons in the Logan Township municipal court in February
2011. A third notice, dated November 20,
2011, advised Colameco his driving privileges were suspended as of that date
"indefinitely" because he failed to submit payment for his insurance
surcharge assessment. The November 2011
notice set forth the requirements for satisfying the suspension and stated
further:
To restore your driving privilege, you must pay a $100 fee
and satisfy the requirements of all license suspensions on your driving
record. You may not drive until you
receive written notification from the Chief Administrator. If you continue to drive while suspended, you
could face up to five years in jail.
On
December 9, 2011, Colameco was arrested and charged with violations of N.J.S.A.
39:4-50 (DWI), N.J.S.A. 39:6B-2 (driving without liability insurance),
and N.J.S.A. 39:4-81 (failure to observe a traffic control device). On December 18, 2011, nine days after his
arrest, Colameco paid the necessary restoration fees and program fee and his
driving privileges were restored. The
restoration notice was addressed to the same Swedesboro address as the earlier
notices regarding the suspension of his privileges.
On
November 20, 2012, Colameco entered a guilty plea to the DWI offense and the
remaining charges were dismissed on the prosecutor's motion. The sentence included a suspension of
Colameco's driving privileges for ninety days.
On
December 16, 2012, NJMVC issued a notice to Colameco that his driving
privileges were suspended as of that date for a period of 180 days. The notice stated that the suspension was in
addition to other driving suspensions outstanding as of November 20, 2012, and
advised:
By authority of N.J.S.A. 39:3-40, 39:5-30 and N.J.A.C.
13:19-10.8, the Motor Vehicle Commission suspended your New Jersey driving
privilege because you operated a motor vehicle during a period of driving
privilege suspension.
Colameco
requested a hearing before NJMVC regarding this suspension. Through counsel, he asserted the following as
"contested issues":
1. Mr.
Colameco was not personally charged with a violation of N.J.S.A. 39:3-40
on or about November 21, 2012.
2. Mr.
Colameco did not violate N.J.S.A. 39:3-40 on or about November 21, 2012.
3. NJMVC's
entry of a violation, and subsequent assessment of a surcharge and suspension
based upon an alleged violation of N.J.S.A. 39:3-40 on or about December
16, 2012 was erroneous or otherwise in error.
NJMVC
denied the request for a hearing. In the
denial letter, the Chairman and Chief Administrator set forth his findings and
decision as follows:
I find as a fact that you were convicted of 39:4-50
(Operating Under the Influence Liq/Drugs) on 12/10/2011, and this was during a
period of suspension that began on 11/28/2010 and ended on 12/19/2011.
On 01/16/2013 you requested an opportunity to be heard
hearing. No legal arguments were set
forth in that request nor were any facts disputed. Because no facts or legal issues are in
dispute there is no need for an opportunity hearing on this matter and the
request for a hearing is denied pursuant to N.J.A.C. 13:19-10.8.
However,
after considering Colameco's driver history record, mitigating circumstances
indicated in his request, and his need for driving privileges, the Chairman
reduced the period of suspension to thirty days. Colameco's suspension was stayed thereafter
pending this appeal.
The
sole issue Colameco argues in this appeal is that NJMVC violated his due
process rights by failing to provide notice and failing to provide him with a
hearing. His contention regarding the
lack of notice is that NJMVC failed to advise him of the date for which the
alleged misconduct - driving while privileges were suspended - occurred.
This
argument lacks any merit. Colameco has
not argued that he did not receive the three notices of suspension that advised
him unequivocally that his driving privileges were suspended - indefinitely -
from as early as November 2010. Colameco
has not argued he was unaware of the suspension when he continued to
drive. Indeed, his payment of required
fees and restoration of his privileges just nine days after his DWI arrest
belie any suggestion to the contrary.
As
the NJMVC noted in denying Colameco's request for a hearing, he presented no
factual disputes or legal arguments that made such a hearing necessary. In this appeal, he contends that "there
may be speedy trial issues as well as a host of other issues for which a
hearing and factual findings may be necessary" and asks for "a
hearing so facts may be developed."
Like the request to the NJMVC, these arguments fail to present either a
factual dispute or a legal argument that would necessitate a hearing. We therefore find this argument to lack any
merit as well.
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Affirmed.
The order staying the thirty-day
suspension of Colameco's driving privileges is vacated.
