Suspended driver jailed again: Judge orders Corey Harris to admit his mistakes

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (WXYZ) — An Ann Arbor judge had the receipts ready Wednesday when Corey Harris returned to his courtroom to hear the next chapter of the now-infamous driving without a license case. And by the time the hearing was over, Harris was back in the Washtenaw County Jail.

“He has never held a Michigan driver’s license, ever!” said Judge Cedric Simpson, setting the record straight in Harris’s case.

Harris had tried to shift the blame for his traffic record still being listed as “suspended” onto the Saginaw Friend of the Court, saying the court was responsible for the suspension not being lifted in a child support case after a judge ordered the suspension to be lifted in January 2022.

But on Tuesday, court officials said Harris never paid his fees to the clerk’s office, so no authorization was ever sent to the secretary of state.

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On Wednesday, Judge Simpson stated during Harris’ pretrial hearing in the suspension case that Harris was the only one at fault.

“The blame lies with the person he was staring at in the mirror.” said Simpson. “He didn’t do what he should have done.”

Judge Simpson then found that Harris had never held a valid driver’s license in Michigan or any other state.

On Tuesday, 7 News Detroit asked Harris, in an interview with his new attorney, if he had ever had a valid driver’s license. He said he couldn’t remember.

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A State Department spokesman said they can now confirm that Harris never had a valid driver’s license after the judge made that information public.

In Michigan, a person can have a suspension on their driving record and still not have a valid driver’s license. And even if that person could get a license, they would still not be allowed to drive until the suspension is lifted.

A Pittsfield Township prosecutor appeared for the hearing Wednesday along with the police officer who issued Harris the subpoena in October 2022.

Konrad Siller confirmed that Harris knew full well that he did not have a valid driver’s license during this traffic stop, as he admitted this to the police officer that day.

As additional evidence that Harris knew he did not have a driver’s license, Judge Simpson cited the fact that Harris diligently renewed his identification card every year.

Harris was stunned when Judge Simpson announced at the end of Wednesday’s hearing that there was a warrant for his arrest.

It was a case of driving without a license in Allen Park in 2015.

Harris’ new defense attorney, Dionne Webster-Cox, said she was shocked.

Harris’ wife, who was also in court, said she and her husband, Corey, recently paid fees in the Allen Park case and she seemed stunned that he was arrested – again.

Harris said the video of his May 15 virtual court appearance went viral and led to him being ridiculed and bullied.

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Judge Simpson said Harris must also own up to his problems and the “turmoil” because it all happened because he was driving when he shouldn’t have been behind the wheel.

“There was no fault of anybody. It was a failure of Mr Harris to do certain things,” said Judge Simpson, who also acknowledged that it can be a complicated process at times. “But it certainly was no one’s fault.”

Harris was initially criticized online for driving during the hearing, then a wave of sympathy followed when online court records from his old child support case revealed that a judge had ordered the suspension lifted in January 2022.

At this time, no one from the Saginaw County Friend of the Court responded to media inquiries about the case.

All the Secretary of State’s office knew was that it had never received approval from the court in 2022.

On Tuesday, a legal assistant to the chief judge of Saginaw County District Court said the friend of the court never provided the secretary of state with a permit because Harris never paid a fee to forward it to the clerk.

But even if Harris had paid these fees, he would not have been able to obtain a driver’s license because he has never had a driver’s license.

Will Harris, 44, now try to get a driver’s license? His lawyer said yes.

“This should be a lesson to all of us,” said Dionne Webster-Cox, Harris’ new defense attorney. “Mind your business. And at the end of the day, mind your business.”

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