Letter to Senators: Change Law, Save Lives

Tom Rogers' letter to state senators ahead of a session vote May 15, 2014 on House Bill 1135.

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Dear New Hampshire State Senators,

My name is Tom Rogers. On September 21, 2013, in Hampton, NH, a motor vehicle accident killed my wife and her friend Elise Bouchard. The same accident severely injured two others.

At 8:30 in the morning, a nineteen-year-old driver named Darriean Hess crossed into the northbound lane striking a group of four bicyclists who were participating in the Granite State Wheelmen’s Seacoast Century. This is a 100-mile charity ride that follows the coast from Hampton Beach State Park, south to Newburyport, then back north again up into Maine, and finally back to Hampton Beach State Park.

The victims were Pam Wells, my wife of 19 years, her friends Margo Heigh and Elise Bouchard of Danvers, MA, and Uwe Umeyer of Essex, MA.

It is my firm belief that this accident would have been prevented if it had been a misdemeanor to drive without a valid license in NH.

The thing is, Darriean Hess was pulled over just hours earlier for speeding, but when the Hampton police realized she didn’t have a license, they could only give her a summons to appear in court. They then allowed Hess to call a friend who drove Hess away in the car which she had been driving and which belonged to her boyfriend.

In the wake of this tragedy, a bipartisan group of New Hampshire State Representatives put forward House Bill 1135 which seeks to modify the penalties for driving a motor vehicle without a valid driver’s license or with a license that is not appropriate for the vehicle being driven.

In essence, the law would be changed so it would be a misdemeanor. This would allow the police to do a better job of protecting the public.

I came to Concord to testify on behalf of House Bill 1135 in March, and the measure was later approved in the House by a vote of 261-45. The bill then received the same recommendation from the full Senate during a unanimous voice vote on the floor on April 17. At the time, it seemed that all that remained to do was for the governor to sign off on the bill.

But last Tuesday, May 6, the Senate Finance Committee voted 3 to 2 to recommend against passage for the bill, indicating that the expenditure of $28,000 was too much for the State budget to handle.

I would argue that this one-time expense is statistically insignificant, and that there would be no noticeable effect on anyone’s tax bill.

I have attached a press release and fact sheet that I have just distributed. There you will find more details about the accident, as well as a recap of my understanding of the history of the legislation and its anticipated fiscal impacts.

It is my understanding that the full Senate will consider the recommendation of the Senate Finance Committee this coming Thursday, May 15.

I urge you to do the right thing, and allow HB 1135 to become the law. Anything short of passage is unconscionable.

Sincerely,

Tom Rogers
Hamilton, MA