Michigan man from viral court hearing 'never had a license,' judge says. A timeline of the case
The case involving a Michigan man who went viral while driving during a Zoom court hearing continues as a judge announced on Wednesday that the 44-year-old had a bench warrant out for his arrest and that Corey Harris has never had a driver's license, but only a state ID.
Harris returned Wednesday to the same Washtenaw County courtroom where the internet saw him go viral on May 15, but this time he had a new lawyer and appeared in person. During the recent hearing, Judge Cedric Simpson made the shocking announcement that Harris "has never had a Michigan license, ever!"
"(Harris) has never had a license in the other 49 states and commonwealths that form up this great union," Simpson said during the hearing. "He has never had a license.”
Harris' initial hearing in May blew up across social media because it appeared that he was driving a vehicle with what Simpson and the court believed was a suspended license.
Here's how Harris' case got to this point.
Corey Harris appears to be driving with a suspended license during May 15 hearing
Harris, who told WXYZ-TV he was driving his wife to the doctor at the time of the now-viral hearing, appeared in Simpson's courtroom May 15 via Zoom on charges related to a traffic stop.
When Simpson looked at Harris' records during the hearing, he noticed that Harris was driving with a suspended license.
"I don't even know why he would do that," Simpson said before he revoked Harris' bond and ordered he turn himself into the Washtenaw County Jail by 6 p.m. that day.
Harris turned himself in and spent two days in jail.
Saginaw County court records showed Corey Harris' license suspension was lifted in 2022
After Harris' time in jail, and as people online poked fun at him, a local reporter for WXYZ-TV found Saginaw County court records that told a different story.
The records, also obtained by USA TODAY, showed that Harris' license suspension was ordered rescinded by a judge in the Saginaw County Friend of the Court in January 2022 after a child support case was settled.
Simpson and no one in the courtroom knew about the lift because the Michigan Secretary of State's office never received a clearance from the Saginaw County Friend of the Court two years ago, WXYZ-TV reported.
During an interview with WXYZ-TV, Harris said he believed the license suspension was "supposed to have been lifted two years ago."
"It's very embarrassing," Harris told the TV station about the situation.
Officials say Corey Harris did not follow procedure in 2022 to have his license suspension lifted
The Michigan Secretary of State's Office told USA TODAY on Wednesday that Harris did not follow the proper procedure to have his license suspension lifted.
When the Saginaw County Friend of the Court rescinded Harris' license suspension, Harris had 10 days to provide a form proving the order of reinstatement to the Michigan Secretary of State branch office, Angela Benander, a spokesperson for the state office, said.
If someone does not give the form to the Secretary of State within 10 days then it expires, and if that occurs, then the individual would need to go back to the Friend of Court to get another document of proof, according to Benander.
"The Friend of the Court does not send the order directly to the Secretary of State," Benander said, adding that the necessary proof had not arrived at the time of Harris' court hearing in May.
The office received the Harris' proof of reinstatement Monday, according to Benander. Harris will still need to complete both the written driver's exam and road testing and pay the standard $25 fee to receive a valid driver's license, she added.
A judicial assistant for Saginaw County Circuit Court's chief judge told WXYZ-TV on Tuesday that the Friend of the Court never sent a clearance to the Secretary of State because Harris never paid a fee to have it lifted to their clerk's office.
Corey Harris never had a driver's license to begin with, judge says
Simpson's announcement during the hearing on Wednesday left many surprised, even Harris' new attorney, Dionne Webster-Cox, who said she was "shocked," according to WXYZ-TV.
"It should be something of a lesson for all of us," Webster-Cox told the TV station. "Handle your business. At the end of the day, handle your business."
In addition to Harris never having a license, Simpson said a bench warrant was out for Harris' arrest stemming from a 2015 case of driving with a suspended license. Harris was arrested and taken to the Washtenaw County jail again.
"The person that needed to be blamed is the person that he was staring at in the mirror," Simpson said about Harris. "He didn't do what he should have done."
Webster-Cox said after the hearing that Harris plans to get his driver's license and has a meeting with the Secretary of State's office on Thursday. Benander confirmed Thursday that Harris did indeed go to one of the Secretary of State's offices.
How is Corey Harris able to be arrested for driving with a suspended license, but not have a license?
When a person is arrested or charged with driving with a suspended license in Michigan, their "driving privilege" is what's being suspended, Benander told USA TODAY.
"In Michigan, you can have a Secretary of State driving record that can have a suspended status whether you have a driver's license or not," she said.
The suspended status is what's reflected in Harris' driving record, according to Benander. Although Harris provided his proof of reinstatement to the Secretary of State's office, it only means the suspended status is lifted and now he'll have to try for his actual driver's license, she added.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Corey Harris 'never had a Michigan license.' A timeline of the case
