Charges dropped against Kansas trans woman threatened with jail for ‘invalid’ male license
A trans woman has had charges dropped after a driver’s license incident (Getty Images, stock)
On 5 May, trans Kansas resident Kris Ripper said she was pulled over by a police officer while driving home in the rain, as the sunny weather had caused her car’s headlights to turn off.
She said that the officer “spent like 10 minutes” questioning her about whether her license was real. “I explained to him that I am a transgender woman,” Ripper said. “It has to say ‘M’ legally.”
She continued: “He just awkwardly gave it back to me and sent me on my way with a verbal warning.”
However, this week Ripper received a notice informing her that she had failed to appear in county court for an arraignment after being charged for operating a motor vehicle without a valid license.
The charge is a class B misdemeanour and could result in six months in jail, a fine of up to $1,000 and a permanent criminal record. She was also informed that if she didn’t appear in jail within 30 days, her license would be revoked.
“I literally got this notice in the mail after getting back from work so I can’t even call anyone to double-check,” she told Transistics News earlier this week.
“Everything I know about the case itself is from searching the case number on the notice. I’m just a little scared and freaking out.”
Transistics News has since confirmed that the charges against Ripper have been dismissed by the county prosecutor as of 23 June, but Ripper’s struggle is just one of the many that have and will be faced by transgender Kansans as a result of SB 244.
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