AFFIDAVIT IN SUPPORT OF MOTION TO VACATE
STATE OF NEW YORK)
:ss.
COUNTY OF KINGS )
I, Samuel H. Sloan, being duly sworn, state under penalty of perjury, that:
I did not appear on December 11, 2000 at 8:30 AM at JFK Airport, Building #14 because I had no notice whatever of any hearing on that date.
I never received a ticket or a summons of any kind requiring me to appear at JFK Airport, Building #14 on that or any other date.
I have just obtained a copy of the notice which was supposedly mailed to me, a copy of which is enclosed. Please note the name, address, license number and date on this supposed notice. Everything is wrong about this notice. My name on my drivers license is Samuel H. Sloan, not Samuel Sloan. This might seem to be a minor difference, but because of this omission of the letter "H", they did not determine my correct address and license number.
The license number on the notice is 5061483. I have never had this license number. I do not know from where they got this number. My license number is 799315111. Therefore, it seems likely that the ticket may have been given to someone else with the same name as me.
I enclose a copy of my driver's license. Note the date on the summons, which is November 13, 2000. My driver's license shows that it was issued on September 28, 2000, which was two months before the date of this summons. The address on my driver's license was One Campus Place, Brooklyn NY 11208. The address on the supposed notice was 24 6th Avenue, Brooklyn NY 11217. This explains why I never got the notice.
The reason why the TLC did not send the notice to my correct address can be seen by comparing the supposed ticket, which I have just obtained from the TLC, a copy of which is enclosed.
As you can see, my name on the ticket is Samuel H. Sloan. However, my name on the summons is Samuel Sloan. Had they put my correct name on the summons, they would have known my correct address and I would have received the notice. In addition, I sometimes check with the DMV to see if their any outstanding tickets against me. I have a clean record with the DMV and nothing showed up there.
The reason I even know about this summons is about six weeks ago I applied for a TLC license. I got a printout from the TLC and it showed that I had a clean record. Again, this is because of the omission of the letter "H". Had I known about this summons, I would have been able to come to court six weeks ago and deal with this problem in a timely manner.
I really cannot understand why the license number of 5061483 is on the summons. I have never had this number or any number even remotely resembling this.
This problem has been caused entirely by a clerical error or a series of clerical errors by the TLC. I should not be penalized for this. I should not be required to post a bond or to appear weeks or months from now at JFK Airport, where I never even previously knew there was a traffic court. This nearly one-year-old case should be dismissed entirely without requiring any further appearances on my part.
My defense to the underlying charge is that I was not a taxi driver at the time of this summons or at any time in the year 2000. On about this date, which was August 19, 2000, I drove to Parris Island, South Carolina to see my daughter, Shamema Sloan, graduate from US Marines Boot Camp. I do remember being stopped by a police officer who gave me a ticket, which required me to appear at the DMV Court located near Farmers Boulevard and near to but not in JFK Airport. The police officer did not appear twice in court and the case was dismissed. I believe that the reason the police officer did not appear there is that there was no basis for any charge against me. I had not done anything wrong.
The ticket, copy of which is enclosed, says "Missing Hack Record, Missing Trip Record" and so on. These pertain to the requirements of a taxi driver. I was not a taxi driver on this date or at any time in year 2000 and these requirements clearly did not apply.
What I think may have happened is that the same police officer stopped another driver and mixed up my ticket with that of the other driver. Notice that although there is a place on the ticket for my signature, there is no signature there and clearly I did not sign it. Also, at the bottom, it says that it will be sent "by mail". As explained before, I clearly did not receive it, since it was sent to the wrong address.
For all of these reasons, this ticket should be dismissed.
All documents submitted with this motion are true and accurate copies of the originals, and I understand that these documents will not be returned to me.
_________________________
Samuel H. Sloan
Date: June 4, 2001
Sworn to before me this 4th
Day of June, 2001
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Notary Public