WASHINGTON – An investigation by NBC4 found that the U.S. State Department
has kicked out 45 foreign diplomats during the past two years for having bad driving records.
The State Department acts as the department of motor vehicles for diplomats
providing them with driver licenses, registration and even assessing points
when these foreign drivers are pulled over by local police, says Tisha
Thompson, an investigative reporter for NBC4.
“I’ve grown up in this area. It doesn’t take long to notice diplomatic
drivers,” Thompson tells WTOP. “We all have seen those blue and red tags go
flying past us and go, ‘Why do they get away with it’.”
In 2008, Thompson set out to find out just how many diplomats have been
ticketed in the D.C. area. She submitted a freedom of information request with
the State Department. Eventually the records and names were provided to the
local TV station. Thompson says she then had to pull the court records for
each of those individuals at courthouses around the region to get a complete
driving picture.
She described the results as “stunning.”
One individual was caught speeding at 100 mph repeatedly. Another was caught
driving with a blood alcohol level of .175 percent, which is more than double
the legal limit, was then caught drinking and driving again. Others had their
driving privileges revoked.
These repeat offenders don’t go to jail because they are protected by
diplomatic immunity, Thompson says. But the State Department has sent some of
these repeat offenders packing because of their driving records.
Thompson’s investigation also revealed that three-quarters of the tickets came from Fairfax County. The suburban community is home to a growing
number of diplomats and the number of interstate highways give them more
opportunities to speed.
“They can go fast, and they can go pretty furious,” she says.
State Department officials wouldn’t speak with Thompson on camera but told her
they are doing everything allowed under international conventions.
Some experts Thompson spoke with told her that embarrassing these
diplomats might be the only way to force them to drive more safely.
“Congress ought to make the State Department post the list on their Website
every year,” some have suggested, Thompson says. “If you can’t throw them in
jail, that’s one thing. But you can embarrass them.”
Watch Thompson’s report below:
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