In 1994 I had a car accident; in Oklahoma city, OK, on I-40. My roommate was driving my 1991 Ford Country Squire police wagon (it was a police chiefs car, and FULLY optioned out. I bought it at the end of the three year lifecycle at the town auction with only 60,000 miles on it - a MIRACLE for a cop car); and we were towing an 8 foot trailer loaded with pretty much everything I owned that would fit into it, across the country from Boston to Arizona.
A late '80s Buick Riviera made an overly aggressive passing maneuver and clipped the edge of the trailer which sent us guardrail, to guardrail, to guardrail. We then flipped over, the trailer flipped on top of us, and we spun around on the roof back to the other side of the highway.
I wrote Ford a letter thanking them for making such a tough car, since it certainly saved my life. The rivvie sped off.
Anyway, all my worldly possessions were scattered across the great state of Oklahoma.
A few months later I started getting collections notices, summons, even warrants for my arrest for bad checks. It turns out that for the first time someone had stolen my identity.
I have spent the last twelve years variously cleaning up the mess, and the messes which followed on after it. Every few months something new jumps up; and it takes me months of time and effort to clear it up, only to have more show up.
In 1999, my drivers license was suspended in Massachusetts, because of a bureaucratic error in Arizona (they said I had an unpaid ticket that I paid). Every six months until I moved to Ireland in 2000 I had my drivers license suspended as more crap piled up; none of it legitimate, all a combination of identity theft and bureaucratic bullshit; but I finally managed to clear everything out.
I then moved to Ireland for three years; and when I cam back I found out that even MORE bullshit had happened while I was gone. The social security administration informed me that had me working at 18 different jobs and addresses during the three years I was in Ireland, but they STILL wouldn't give me a new SSN. Massachusetts was saying I'd run out on my taxes, and had a half dozen tickets and arrest warrants now. California, New Jersey, Indiana, New Hampshire, Kentucky, and Washington state all had outstanding fines, warrants, tickets, or something or other.
Well, it took me six months, but I finally got it all sorted out, and got my drivers license re-instated, and my credit mostly fixed.
Then last summer, I was pulled over for making a right turn on red when it was posted no right turn (I didn't see the sign), and AGAIN I find out my license has been suspended.
This time it was Massachusetts saying that AGAIN I had unpaid tickets, fines, and taxes including warrants for failure to appear etc...
Not only that, but because I had active arrest warrants, they suspended my CCW.
This time I got my lawyer on it, because I couldn't get back to MA to take care of it, but I hadn't heard back from him about the issue since February.
Well, my temporary ID card (which AZ issues you when your DL is suspended) expired a couple weeks ago, and I am planning on buying a couple guns in the near future, so I had to renew it; plus we never changed the address on the car registration or on my ID. So anyway we went down to the MVD today.
We got in, and I filled out the forms for a renewal of m ID card, but when I went to the window I asked her to check and see if my re-instatement status had been cleared yet. Low and behold it had; my lawyer must have gotten things straightened out and forgotten to tell me (he's a family friend and he refuses to accept my money).
So finally, after THREE CONTINUOUS YEARS, and a total of SEVEN YEARS of this bullshit, I've got my driving record cleared again, and my license re-instated.
Now lets just hope in another six months MORE bullshit doesn't pop up to screw me over. Of course I've still got bullshit to clear up on my credit... That's a nightmare in itself. Ever couple months I write the letters, and they clear things up, and three to six months later it's all back again.
