During John Ludwig's plea hearing Monday morning, 13th Circuit Solicitor Bob Arial said Ludwig has received 19 citations for speeding since 1992. He was also cited twice for negligent driving, once for a license violation, once for an unlawful turn, and had two accidents that were ruled to be his fault.
The Solicitor's Office made Ludwig's 10-year SC Department of Motor Vehicles record available to the media. It shows 13 speeding tickets over that span. 12 of those were for ten miles or less over the speed limit (a 2-point driver's licence violation). One was for 11 - 24 miles an hour over the limit (a 4-point violation).
During the ten year span, Ludwig never had more than 4 points on his license at one time. It takes 12 to have your license suspended. Under state law, after one year, the points associated with a violation are reduced by half. In other words, a two-point violation becomes a one-point violation after one year. After two years on a driver's record, the points for an infraction disappear completely. Which explains how someone could receive one or two tickets a year, but never accumulate enough points to warrant a suspension.
Also, there is a lag in the time from when a driver is convicted in court of a violation and the record of that violation being filed by DMV. According to Greenville County Judge C.R. Garrett, the delay can be 30 - 60 days for SC violations and even months for violations that occur out of state. That means a driver could get a conviction that technically puts his license over 12 points, but during the delay for the conviction to be filed with DMV, an old violation reaches its two-year limit is dropped off the driver's record.
To hear Judge Garrett's explanation and to see the point system used by SC DMV, click on the video above.
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