Weaver v. O'GRADY

• Citation: 350 F. Supp. 403
• Decision Date: 27 October 1972
• Docket Number: Civ. No. 71-291.
• Parties: Lorin C. WEAVER et al., Plaintiffs, v. Eugene P. O'GRADY, Director, Ohio Department of Highway Safety, et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Southern District of Ohio

350 F. Supp. 403

Lorin C. WEAVER et al., Plaintiffs, v. Eugene P. O'GRADY, Director, Ohio Department of Highway Safety, et al., Defendants.

Civ. No. 71-291.

United States District Court, S. D. Ohio, E. D.

October 27, 1972.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Earl Staelin, Toledo Legal Aid Society, Toledo, Ohio, Franklin A. Martens, Columbus, Ohio, for plaintiffs.

William J. Brown, Atty. Gen., Thomas V. Martin, Asst. Atty. Gen., Columbus, Ohio, for defendants.

OPINION AND ORDER

CARL B. RUBIN, District Judge.

This matter, which involves the constitutionality of various provisions of Ohio's Financial Responsibility Act, is before the Court on the briefs, stipulations, answers to interrogatories and admissions of the parties. The present action for injunctive and declaratory relief is authorized by 42 U.S.C. § 1983 to redress alleged deprivations under color of law of rights, privileges and immunities secured to the plaintiffs by the First, Ninth and Fourteenth Amendments, the Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution, U.S.Const. Art. VI, cl. 2, and the Bankruptcy Act, 11 U.S.C. § 35. Jurisdiction is conferred upon the court by 28 U.S.C. § 1343(3), (4) and 28 U.S. C. § 2201.¹

In an earlier Order dated December 15, 1971, this Court determined that the legal principles enunciated in Perez v. Campbell, 402 U.S. 637, 91 S.Ct. 1704, 29 L.Ed.2d 233 (1971) and Bell v. Burson, 402 U.S. 535, 91 S.Ct. 1586, 29 L.Ed.2d 90 (1971), were applicable to the case at bar and made unnecessary the convocation of a three-judge court.

The plaintiffs in this class action² are composed of two distinct subclasses affected by Ohio's Financial Responsibility Act (hereinafter the Act), O.R.C. § 4509.01 et seq. The first subclass (hereinafter the first subclass) consists of approximately 37,000 persons who have been deprived of their rights to drivers' licenses because of a failure to satisfy judgments taken against them arising out of their involvement in an automobile accident.³ Under O.R.C. § 4509.43 they are prevented from regaining their license even if the underlying judgment is discharged in bankruptcy. Members of the class allege that the Act violates the Supremacy Clause as interpreted by the Court in Perez v. Campbell, supra.

The second subclass (hereinafter the second subclass) consists of 45,000 persons whose licenses have been suspended for failure to post the security deposit which is required by the Act. Members of this class have not yet been subject to judgment. They claim that under the holding of Bell v. Burson, supra, they should be entitled to a due process hearing, prior to suspension, at which they would have the opportunity of demonstrating that they will not be ultimately liable in judgment for the accident.⁴

The Ohio statutory scheme, as contained in O.R.C. §§ 4509.01 to 4509.99, is similar to statutes now in effect in most states and to the Georgia law reviewed by the Court in Bell v. Burson, supra. Most of the state laws were patterned after a statute first adopted by New Hampshire. See Vorys, The New Ohio Motor Vehicle Safety Responsibility Act, 50 O.O. 102 (1953). The Ohio act applies to owners and drivers of motor vehicles which are operated in Ohio and is administered by the defendants who are the State's Director of the Department of Highway Safety and its Registrar of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles. The act requires the driver of a motor vehicle which is involved in an accident to send a report of the accident to the Bureau of Motor Vehicles (hereinafter the Bureau) within thirty days of its occurrence. O. R.C. § 4509.06. The accident report form is prescribed by the Bureau. A person who is required to file a report and fails to do so may have his license suspended until a report is filed. O.R.C. § 4509.09.

If a driver of a motor vehicle involved in an accident returns a report showing that he does not have the required insurance, the Registrar of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles makes a determination as to the amount of security which he feels is sufficient to satisfy any judgment which might result from the accident against the uninsured driver of the motor vehicle, or the owner, or both. The prescribed accident report contains a space for an estimate of property damage and personal injury which is used to determine the amount of security. If any personal injury resulted, the amount of security has to be at least $500.00. O.R.C. § 4509.12.

Within 50 days from the receipt of an accident report the Registrar sends notice to the driver and/or owner of a motor vehicle who has not filed proof of responsibility advising him of the amount of security required to be deposited with the Registrar. The notice also advises him that failure to deposit the security will result in the suspension of his driver's license. O.R.C. Sec. 4509.13. If upon further investigation the Registrar finds the security to be excessive, he may reduce the amount required, but in no case can it be less than $500.00 if the accident resulted in personal injury. O. R.C. Sec. 4509.14. The security may be in the form of money, United States Bonds, state bonds, or municipal bonds, or a corporate surety bond. O.R.C. Sec. 4509.15.

There are certain exceptions to the security deposit requirement. These include, drivers or owners of motor vehicles where the only injury or damage was to the driver's vehicle, drivers or owners of motor vehicles legally parked, owners of motor vehicles which were being operated without the owner's permission, motor vehicles owned by the State of Ohio, motor vehicles used by a police officer responding to an emergency, and various other technical exceptions. O.R.C. Sec. 4509.19.

A person may be relieved from the security deposit requirement if he gets a release from all parties, including insurance companies, which were involved in the accident. A covenant not to sue is also acceptable. O.R.C. Sec. 4509.21. Security requirements are only released upon a final adjudication of nonliability (O.R.C. Sec. 4509.22), or the payment in full of a judgment (O.R.C. Sec. 4509.23), or when the parties enter into a settlement agreement. If a settlement agreement is breached, the suspension is reinstated until the entire obligation is paid, or security is deposited with the Registrar, or until two years has elapsed following the breach of the agreement. O. R.C. Sec. 4509.24.

If a suspension is not terminated for one of the above reasons it remains in force until security is deposited or two years have elapsed since the date of the accident and "satisfactory evidence has been filed with the registrar of motor vehicles that during such period no action for damages arising out of the accident . . . has been instituted" or if there is a judgment, that it has been paid. O.R.C. Secs. 4509.26, 4509.29. An affidavit from the person under suspension stating that no action has been instituted or is pending is prima facie evidence for purposes of releasing the suspension.

If a judgment is taken against an individual subject to the financial responsibility law and remains unsatisfied for 30 days, then, upon the written request of the judgment creditor or his attorney, a copy of the judgment entry can be sent to the Bureau of Motor Vehicles. Upon receipt of the certified copy of the judgment the Registrar must suspend the driver's license and registration of the judgment debtor. O.R.C. Sec. 4509.37. The judgment creditor may consent to allow the judgment debtor to regain his driver's license and registration. O. R.C. Sec. 4509.38. If the Registrar determines that an insurer is obligated to pay the judgment then the judgment debtor's license is not suspended. O.R. C. Sec. 4509.39.

Once a motorist's driver's license and registration are suspended for failure to pay a judgment he cannot regain his license unless he obtains a stay of the judgment or satisfies it in full. He must get "proof of financial responsibility" and maintain it for three years, as well as successfully pass a driver's examination. O.R.C. Sec. 4509.40.

A judgment debtor may apply to the court to have the judgment paid in installments. When such permission is secured the judgment debtor may regain his driving rights if he can give proof of financial responsibility and maintain it for three years. If the judgment debtor fails to pay an installment his license is suspended until he satisfies the judgment. O.R.C. Sec. 4509.42. A discharge in bankruptcy does not alter the requirements for compliance with the Financial Responsibility Act. O.R.C. Sec. 4509.43.

II

It is apparent that to the extent O.R.C. § 4505.43 conflicts with the underlying policies of Section 17 of the Bankruptcy Act, 11 U.S.C. § 35, it is in violation of the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution, U.S.Const. Art. VI, cl. 2, and is therefore null and void. See Perez v. Campbell, supra; In re Schmelzer, 350 F.Supp. 429 (S.D.Ohio E.D. (1972). In Perez the Court struck down Section 28-1162, subsec. A of Arizona's Financial Responsibility Act because it conflicted with the above cited provision of the Bankruptcy Act. Former Section 28-1162, subsec. A of the Arizona statute was substantially similar in language and absolutely identical in thrust to O.R.C. § 4509.43.

For these reasons, the defendants concede that the Ohio provision is unconstitutional (Defendants' Brief of June 1, 1972, at 3) and this Court must agree. We note that the defendants have not attempted to enforce § 4509.43 for some time prior to our decision today. They have rewritten their forms to conform to the Perez rule⁵ and have conceded the retroactive application of the principle of that case. See, Defendants' Brief, supra, at 3.

The only question that remains as to the claim of Houser and his class is the form of notice that they are entitled to. Plaintiffs demand that since Perez is fully retroactive, the state should have the burden of mailing notice to the members of this class of their rights since the promulgation of the Perez r...