A former U.S. veteran is fighting to get his driver’s license back after state officials said his documentation isn’t enough to prove his citizenship.
The Tennessee resident is fighting on Independence Day with hopes of getting his driver’s license back.
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David O’Connor said he has been on the road for 61 years, according to the Nashville-based CBS affiliate TVF.
After a decades-long career in the Navy and as a long-haul truck driver, the state said it cannot verify his citizenship.
O’Connor said he had a driver’s license in New Hampshire, New York and Vermont.
He got his Tennessee license eight years ago when he moved south.
Read more about license drama
But the state rescinded his license after he applied for a new REAL ID.
In May 2025, the state will prohibit citizens from entering federal buildings and military bases without enhanced identification.
But the order went wrong for O’Connor. After the request, Detran suspended his license.
“They told me I shouldn’t have the license because I couldn’t prove I was a citizen,” he told the station.
So, O’Connor’s Chevrolet Silverado truck is sitting in his garage with no one to use it.
His wife was also perplexed by the state’s response.
“I’m amazed,” she said.
“I am outraged that, at age 77, he is now considered a non-citizen by the country where he has lived his entire life.”
O’Connor’s license problems stem from a paperwork issue that was not his fault.
The driver was born in Canada. His parents, both American citizens, moved to the north of the country for a few months.
But O’Connor was quickly brought back to the state as a child.
Yet his birth certificate shows he was born in another country.
O’Connor has clearly been a U.S. citizen for decades, the station reported. He enlisted in the Navy at age 17. He served four years as a sonar technician.
“I’ve been here 77 years,” he told the station.
“None of this (situation) makes sense to me.”
I am outraged that, at age 77, he is now considered a non-citizen by the country where he has lived his entire life
Jean O’Connor
O’Connor has several other ways to prove his citizenship.
He still has his birth certificate which shows his parents were American. His Navy discharge papers say he is American.
He receives benefits from the US government as a retired truck driver. He also had a commercial driver’s license due to his job.
But the state of Tennessee has strict regulations surrounding registration policies.
Jeff Long, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security, said the regulations resulted from safety precautions put in place.
“I can understand that, but everyone needs to realize that after 9/11, Real ID is very specific and has a federal requirement on what you need to have,” Long told the station.
The network said O’Connor is still waiting to find out if he will get his license back.
Until then, your only option may be to reapply for U.S. citizenship, a process that could take years.
“I’ll probably be dead before that happens,” he said.
“It’s like your country doesn’t want you. I’ve tried to do things the right way my whole life. And now it’s like I’m nothing.”
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
