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Treasurer-elect Colleen Davis faces trial over traffic charges

Scott Goss
The News Journal

Treasurer-elected Colleen Davis is headed for a jury trial in 2019 as she fights two misdemeanor charges and three traffic citations stemming from her arrest last month, according to court records.

The 38-year-old Dagsboro resident pleaded not guilty Friday and requested a jury trial in the case, possibly the first step toward a plea agreement that would allow her to pay a fine and avoid jail time.

Davis did not respond to a request for comment.

Colleen Davis, Delaware's state treasurer-elect, is seen at the Candidates Reception at Delaware Technical Community College during Return Day in Georgetown.

Her arraignment – initially scheduled in the Justice of the Peace on Dec. 4 – was moved to Monday in the Court of Common Pleas at the request of her lawyer James E. Liguori.

But the newly-elected state official filed her plea on Friday, days before her initial court appearance was scheduled to take place. Court records this week still showed Davis's arraignment as being scheduled for Monday.

"An attorney can come in and fill out a form before the arraignment – it's something that happens all the time," said Stephanie Fitzgerald, court administrator with the Court of Common Pleas. "Sometimes, the docket doesn't get updated for a few days."

Davis's trial before Judge Rosemary Betts Beauregard is now slated to begin Jan. 30 – nearly a full month after she will be sworn into office as the state's chief financial officer.

If found guilty of the misdemeanor charges, Davis could face up to six months in jail and a $500 fine, and her license suspended again. She is more likely to face a smaller fine and no jail time if she pleads guilty to the lesser charge of failure to reinstate her license.

This is at least the fourth time Davis has been charged with driving on a suspended license, according to court records.

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She first pleaded guilty to the charge in 1997 when she was 17, court records show. She was charged with the same crime when she was 21 and again when she was 23, although she eventually pleaded guilty to a lesser charge in those cases.

According to Davis, her most recent legal run-in began earlier this year when she requested a court hearing to contest a speeding ticket.

Davis said she failed to appear for that hearing she requested, resulting in her license being suspended – a fact that she said managed to escape her attention until her arrest.

She and her attorney have repeatedly declined requests for documentation for these events. State law bars the Division of Motor Vehicles from releasing such information.

What is public record is that Davis was caught driving on suspended license Nov. 13 – exactly one week after the Democratic newcomer defeated incumbent Republican Ken Simpler in the 2018 mid-term election.

Court records show Davis was stopped by a state police trooper just south of Georgetown about 7 p.m. after being spotted driving 72 in a 55 mph zone.

The trooper charged her with one misdemeanor count for driving on a suspended license and a second misdemeanor for handing him her suspended license.

She also was ticketed for failing to produce proof that her husband’s 2015 Honda Odyssey was insured or registered, according to court records.

Davis released a statement about the arrest on Facebook more than 24 hours after The News Journal first contacted her about her legal troubles.

"I have paid my fine, and my license has since been reinstated," she wrote. "I made an honest mistake during a busy time leading up to Election Day. As working parents know, life can get hectic. It should not have happened. I'll do better going forward."

It remains unclear when Davis received the initial speeding ticket, why she sought to contest it, when she missed her hearing, when the warrant was issued for her arrest, how long her license was suspended and exactly when it was reinstated.

Davis has insisted that she did not illegally drive to campaign events although a photo posted on Facebook the day before the election shows her and U.S. Sen. Tom Carper standing next to their respective minivans in Wilmington.

Delaware GOP Chairman Michael Harrington last month called for an investigation into whether Davis’s recent arrest violated the state's code of conduct law, which bars public officials from "engaging in acts which are in violation of the public trust" and "reflect unfavorably on the state."

Contact reporter Scott Goss at (302) 324-2281, sgoss@delawareonline.com or on Twitter @ScottGossDel.