ATLANTA — Legislation filed in response to a man dying after refusing to sign a traffic ticket in Atlanta has been refiled.
If passed, the bill would allow you to refuse to sign the ticket but still let police and other members of law enforcement issue the citation.
In August 2023, Atlanta church deacon Johnny Hollman died when an Atlanta police officer Tased him after he refused to sign a traffic ticket.
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Five months after Hollman’s death, Georgia lawmakers worked to file 2024′s House Bill 1054 in a bipartisan effort.
While that effort didn’t make it through the process to become law, its supporters have reintroduced the legislation this year, hoping to pass the option into law.
House Bill 283 is again a bipartisan effort in the Georgia General Assembly for this year’s version.
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According to the legislative text, if passed, drivers issued citations could refuse to sign the ticket.
Specifically, “a person who is issued a citation...may sign the citation to acknowledge receipt of the citation and of his or her obligation to appear for trial.”
This is a change from “shall sign,” which would have required a signature regardless of whether the driver accepts the citation’s accuracy.
Additionally, the legislation requires that an officer must advise that signing the citation is not an admission of guilt but does require they appear for trial.
The current version of the statute requires that a driver facing a citation is advised signing is not an admission of guilt, but would require a cash bond for failing to sign the citation.
Instead, if HB 283 passes, officers will write “refusal to sign” on citations where the driver declines to provide their signature, still allowing the driver to receive the citation.
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