Nassau County Drivers Stunned By Tickets Dating Back 20 Years Or More

LEVITTOWN, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- Multiple Long Island drivers have reported getting notices out of the blue about tickets dating back 20 years or more.

CBS2's Carolyn Gusoff found many drivers with the new notices for the old infractions at the traffic violations bureau in Nassau County.

Vicky Fradella, of Levittown, said she was shocked when she got a notice in the mail from the Nassau County Traffic and Parking Violations Bureau demanding $170 for an uninspected vehicle she claims she knew nothing about.

Fradella, 41, said she was also flabbergasted to see the alleged violation dated back to February 1993.

"I was 19 years old, I was still in college, I was barely in college, barely out of high school," Fradella told 1010 WINS' Mona Rivera. "And here it is now all these years later, 22 years later this thing comes up and they say, 'Hey, you know, you have to take care of this ticket.'"

Her husband, Joe, went to court to question the ticket this week and officials offered to dismiss it because of its age, but the couple would still have to pay a fee, Rivera reported.

"You can either give us $30 for the court fee or you can go to trial," Joe Fradella said, adding that they have elected to go to trial.

The Fradellas believe this is another "money grab" by the county.

"If we got a ticket back in '93, and if we didn't -- after 22 years of my wife renewing her license at least three times-- this was never brought up by DMV," Joe told WCBS 880's Sophia Hall.

Judge John Marks, the bureau's executive director, issued a statement to 1010 WINS, saying, "Individuals who receive a traffic summons and fail to respond are subject to suspension. That being said, traffic summonses and suspensions can be addressed either by paying the fine or scheduling a trial."

But Fradella was hardly the only one with a similar report.

"I received four tickets, which I don't remember getting any of, in the year 1994," Edward Cohn said.

"(Did you even know this was an outstanding violation?) No I didn't, just got it in the mail, next thing I know my license is being suspended," Hang Ley said.

One man Gusoff spoke with paid his ticket, but others aren't as quick to give the government the benefit of the doubt.

"There is something not right here, there is something not right. If you don't pay a ticket, they let you know in six months your license will get suspended," ticket recipient Jamie Selkirk said.

Attorneys familiar with Nassau Traffic Court tell CBS2 tickets dating back to the 1990s are rare and highly unusual, but there is no statute of limitations.

Last month, many drivers expressed outrage over the $30 Nassau County Driver Responsibility Fee which is tacked onto every ticket — whether the driver is found guilty or the ticket is dismissed.

Neighboring Suffolk County made headlines in 2013 for its $50 administrative fee for dismissed tickets. Following an outcry, Suffolk County dropped the fee and announced plans to refund the charges against the drivers.

But in Nassau County, there are no plans to drop the fee. Marks had previously said the driver is responsible for defraying the costs of processing tickets and notices of liability.

"The difference — a dismissal does not equal a 'not guilty,'" Marks said. "A 'not guilty' equals a dismissal, but not the converse."

Marks explained that drivers may choose to go to trial, and if they are found not guilty at trial, no fines or fees are assessed. But a ticket being dismissed without a trial does not equate to forgiveness of liability, Marks said.