Legal Question in Criminal Law in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania Driver's License Suspension Appeal Chances?

I was convicted of Possession of a Small Amount of Marijuana in September of 2008 in Pennsylvania. Pursuant to this Conviction, the PA DOT is able to enforce a 6 Month Driver's License Suspension. However, due to a clerical error at the county's Clerk of Courts, many of these convictions were never turned over to the DOT, and Suspensions were never issued. Now, in August 2014, the Clerk of Courts has caught the error and submitted thousands (in excess of 3,00 already so far) of these conviction reports to the DOT, and License Suspension notices are being sent out. I have received one recently.

I am wondering what my chances are in trying to Appeal this Suspension. I have the proper paperwork from the Clerk of Courts, I am just wondering if there is any chance of the Suspension being successfully Appealed, or if this whole appeal process is really just a money-making ploy (the fact that the Court Offices have actually just raised the fee to file an appeal supports my theory of this. Most, if not all, of the Suspensions were mailed out by the DOT on 8/7/14, and the Prothonotary's Office has just raised the Appeal cost by $12, to $206, on 8/8/14).

My main argument is that the Suspension was not sent out in a Timely Manner which is my Legal Defense as:

- The Statute of Limitations on the Crime I committed in my State is 5 Years. This has long since passed, so no penalties should be allowed to be assessed, especially since my Sentencing Hearing was nearly 6 Years ago.

- My window of opportunity to Appeal the original Conviction has long since passed for me as well, which would normally be one of the first courses of action someone receiving the Suspension would exhaust (as stated in the Suspension Notice itself), and the Appeal time period is supposed to accommodate this, whereas in my case I can certainly no longer file an appeal of the original conviction and therefore have been stricken of my first and most powerful legal recourse move because of the unjust delay of the suspension.

- The whole logic behind suspending someone's license for this crime is shattered when you try to enforce it at such a late date. Being that the crime was Possession of Marijuana, not any kind of Traffic-Related Violation, it would suggest that the Reasoning in suspending the license of these defendants would be to ensure that the safety of other drivers on the road is protected by someone who more than likely uses drugs (if caught for possession) and to give time for the person to get clean from drugs before being allowed to drive again. Enforcing this 6 Years later would certainly not serve this purpose, and my 100% CLEAN CRIMINAL AND DRIVING RECORD since the date of this Conviction (again, nearly 6 Years) should accurately reflect this logic.

- Finally, Imposing this Suspension now (versus immediately or shortly after the conviction) creates a burden of undue hardship that would not have occurred had the Suspension been enforced in a timely manner. At this point in my life I now have a place of my own to live with my girlfriend, a family to support, and a Full-Time Job for which I require Reliable Transportation, none of which was true 6 Years ago at the time of conviction. Had the Suspension been enforced in a timely manner, it would not have created as much of a problem as I was in College (part of why the offense even occurred) and had only a Part-Time Job. Both of which I either would not have required Transportation for, or could have easily managed to get it from friends or family (as I was living with my parents at the time, again I was really a KID 6 Years ago, who could have supported me with transportation). Enforcing the Suspension now creates far more of a burden than if it would have been enforced within a timely manner.

My Concerns are that:

- Some previous cases support that notion that as long as the delay was not caused by the DOT (which again, this error lies with our Clerk of Courts), that the Suspensions are still enforceable, even if they occur outside of the Statute of Limitations for the initial crimes.

- Our DOT does not allow (as stated in their documents online and their literature) for Occupational Limited Licenses (a license to get me to and from work) for Drug Possession Convictions, and this would be my second ideal outcome (the first obviously being a successful appeal).

- That I may not be taken seriously or have as great of a chance for success without a Lawyer in this case, but if this is really just basically a money-making ploy by our government, I don't want to risk spending more than I need to if the outcome is going to be an enforced suspension anyway.

Does anyone have experience or ideas regarding a case like this? Do you think I have a Chance for a Successful Appeal, and if so, would it be Contingent on securing a Lawyer with Driver's License Suspension experience?

ANY (Realistic) ADVICE IS GREATLY WELCOMED!

Thanks

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