Suspended driver charged with driving during Zoom hearing finally gets learner’s permit

US News

From Emily Crane

The Michigan driver who made headlines for brazenly getting behind the wheel during a Zoom court hearing despite having a suspended license has finally received his learner’s permit.

Corey Harris, 44, took “a step in the right direction” toward finally becoming a law-abiding citizen after passing his novice driver’s theory test last week, his lawyer told People.

According to a clip posted on Instagram, Harris was filmed entering the Michigan Secretary of State’s office, taking the test, and then celebrating with a little dance outside.

“One day he had absolutely nothing and today he has his learner’s permit,” explained his lawyer Dionne Webster-Cox. “One day does not determine the rest of your life, it can change in one day.”

Harris’ case has taken several surprising twists and turns since his notoriety exploded when he appeared on screen driving during his headline-grabbing court hearing on May 15.

In October of that year, he was stopped for the first time during a traffic stop in Pittsfield Township and fined for driving without a license.

“Mr. Harris, are you driving?” asked a stunned Washtenaw County Judge J. Cedric Simpson.

Harris casually confirmed this and replied, “Actually, I’m just driving to my doctor’s office.”

The stunned judge immediately revoked Harris’ bail and ordered him to be detained for two nights.

Following his hearing, which attracted widespread online attention, and his brief stay in prison, it was reported that Harris’ driver’s license, which had been confiscated in 2010 for failure to pay child support, was not due to be reinstated until 2022.

A “typographical error” was initially blamed for the confusion.

But in another twist, the judge revealed during a follow-up hearing last week that Harris had never held a driver’s license.

“Based on the court’s findings, he never had a Michigan license. Ever,” Simpson said, adding that his office had reviewed all of his records. “And (he) never had a license in the other 49 states and Commonwealths that make up this great union. He never had a license.”

The judge cleared up the confusion, saying Harris’ driver’s license was not actually suspended during the first traffic stop—it was his permission to drive in the state.

“For example, if he had had a Kentucky driver’s license, he could have driven anywhere Kentucky allowed him to,” Simpson said at the hearing. “He just couldn’t drive in Michigan because his license was restricted.”

The judge noted that Harris first applied for his Michigan identification card on May 3, 1999, when he was 19 years old.

“Either you have an ID or a driver’s license,” Simpson said, adding, “You can’t have both.”

“And he’s been diligent about getting a new ID every year, so he knows he doesn’t have a driver’s license. And honestly, I just wish he’d said that right from the start and all this fuss could have just been put to one side.”

Harris’ lawyer stressed to the judge that her notorious client had already taken steps to get back on track with the ordeal and said at the time that he had registered for his learner’s permit test for last Friday.

After passing his test, Harris can now take his driving test on July 7.

He is scheduled to appear in court again on August 7, where his offense could possibly be downgraded to a civil violation, his attorney said.