Judge: Defendant who went viral over driving with suspended license never had license to begin with. Now he's arrested again.



Corey Harris went viral last week after video came to light showing him driving a car during a May 15 Zoom hearing for his case of driving with a suspended license, which garnered Harris plenty of derision.

During that hearing, Judge Cedric Simpson of Ann Arbor, Michigan, announced that Harris' bond was revoked and ordered him to turn himself in at the Washtenaw County jail by 6 p.m. that same day, or else he'd be held without bond, WJBK-TV reported.

'It should be something of a lesson for all of us. Handle your business. At the end of the day, handle your business.'

Then it was widely reported earlier this week that another judge in 2022 ordered Harris' license suspension rescinded — but information about the rescinded suspension never got to the Michigan secretary of state, so the record was never changed. With that, Harris got plenty of sympathy.

However, when Harris appeared Wednesday in front of Judge Simpson — this time in person — Simpson shared shocking new information.

Speaking to Harris' new attorney, the judge said, "People are saying — and quite frankly your client has made the assertion — that ... this court was acting on some type of defective or faulty information. Which I will tell you, counsel, caused the court — given what the court did — to investigate what my ruling was."

With that, Simpson stated that Harris actually "has never had a Michigan license, ever," nor has he had a valid driver's license in any other state, and by the end of the hearing Simpson had Harris arrested right then and there, WXYZ-TV reported.

It turns out that court officials said information about Harris' rescinded license suspension never got to the Michigan secretary of state because Harris never paid his fees, WXYZ added.

"There was no error by anybody," Simpson said, according to the station. "It was a failure on the part of Mr. Harris to do certain things."

So how could Harris' license be suspended if he didn't have a license to begin with?

WXYZ reported that in Michigan, individuals can have suspensions on their driving records without having valid driver's licenses. The station added that if such individuals are able to obtain driver's licenses, they still wouldn't have driving privileges until they cleared their suspensions.

A spokesperson for the Michigan secretary of state confirmed to WXYZ — now that the judge made the information public — that Harris has never possessed a valid driver's license.

While Harris told WXYZ during a Tuesday interview that he didn't recall if he ever had a valid driver's license, a Pittsfield Township prosecutor at Wednesday's hearing said Harris admitted that he didn't have a license to the officer involved in the October 2022 traffic stop that led to May 15's viral Zoom hearing.

Judge Simpson by the end of Wednesday's court session issued a bench warrant for Harris' arrest — over a 2015 case of driving with a suspended license in Allen Park, WXYZ said.

Harris' new defense attorney, Dionne Webster-Cox, told the station she was shocked: "It should be something of a lesson for all of us. Handle your business. At the end of the day, handle your business."

This story has been updated.

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Man who went viral for driving during Zoom hearing over his suspended license shouldn't have been on trial at all



Corey Harris, 44, went viral last week over a Zoom courtroom video in Ann Arbor, Michigan, that showed him driving a car during the hearing regarding his suspended driver's license.

Judge Cedric Simpson noticed Harris joined the May 15 video hearing from behind the wheel of an automobile and called him out: "Ok, so maybe I don’t understand something. This is a driving while license suspended [hearing], and he was just driving, and he didn’t have a license."

'Always double-check behind these workers because they will say that they will do something, and they don't do it.'

Simpson announced that Harris' bond was revoked and ordered him to turn himself in at the Washtenaw County jail by 6 p.m. that same day or else he'd be held without bond, WJBK-TV reported.

But it turns out Harris never should have been on trial at all.

Michigan Secretary of State records show his license was suspended in 2010 for unpaid child support in Saginaw County, WXYZ-TV reported. However, court records show that a judge in 2022 rescinded the license suspension, WXYZ said.

But WXYZ said information about the rescinded suspension never got to the Michigan Secretary of State, so the record was never changed.

With that, Harris was cited in Pittsfield Township last October for driving with a suspended license, according to WXYZ's video report.

WXYZ said Harris spent two days in jail after the Zoom video hearing last month, and he told the station he went back to the Secretary of State to try to resolve the matter.

"It's very embarrassing," Harris told WXYZ. "With the type of ties that I have with the church and the community, it's very embarrassing."

In a separate story, WXYZ said it's unclear why neither Harris' public defender or the Pittsfield Township's prosecutor's office resolved his case months ago. Especially given that WXYZ said it took less that five minutes to find the Saginaw County court record showing that a judge rescinded Harris' license suspension in January 2022.

WXYZ said it reached out to the prosecutor's office and the office of Harris' defense attorney. A county spokesperson in regard to the public defender's office said they do not comment on ongoing court cases, WXYZ added.

The station also reported that the Saginaw County Friend of the Court, which was involved in the original child support case, didn't respond to calls from WXYZ. But the Secretary of State's office on Friday told the station it never received clearance from the friend of the court that would have allowed the reinstatement of Harris' driving privileges after he paid fees.

"Always double-check behind these workers because they will say that they will do something, and they don't do it," Harris told WXYZ.

Here's the Zoom courtroom video that went viral:

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Defendant on trial for driving with suspended license joins Zoom hearing — while driving car. Judge is stunned.



A courtroom video shows the unbelievable moment when a defendant on trial for driving with a suspended license joined a Zoom hearing on the matter — while driving a car.

Judge Cedric Simpson was presiding over the hearing in Ann Arbor, Michigan, WJBK-TV reported, adding that defendant Corey Harris joined the May 15 video hearing from behind the wheel of a car.

'Okay, so maybe I don’t understand something,' the judge began. 'This is a driving while license suspended [hearing], and he was just driving, and he didn’t have a license.'

"Mr Harris, are you driving?" Simpson asked Harris.

"Actually, I’m pulling into my doctor’s office," Harris replied. "Just give me one second, I'm parking right now."

Simpson was incredulous, dropping his pen and resting his head on his hand, WJBK said.

"All right," the judge interjected. "What are we doing?"

Image source: WJBK-TV video screenshot

Harris' public defender asked Simpson to adjourn the hearing, but the judge wasn't about to let this one go.

"Okay, so maybe I don’t understand something," the judge began. "This is a driving while license suspended [hearing], and he was just driving, and he didn’t have a license."

"Uh," Harris muttered.

"Those were the charges, your honor, yes," the public defender replied.

"No, I'm looking at his record; he doesn't have a license," Simpson shot back. "He's suspended, and he's just driving."

"That is correct, your honor," the public defender acknowledged.

"Uh," Harris muttered again before adding a "hello?" amid a long silence from the court.

Finally, the judge noted, "I don’t even know why he would do that."

Image source: WJBK-TV video screenshot

Simpson soon announced that Harris' bond was revoked, and he ordered the defendant to turn himself in at the Washtenaw County jail by 6 p.m. that same day or else he'd be held without bond, WJBK noted.

With that, Harris leaned his head back and sighed, "Oh, my God."

Image source: WJBK-TV video screenshot

Here's the video of the entire exchange:

WJBK spoke to Harris' attorney who said she "strives to live in a world where people are not jailed for non-violent offenses," but the station said she refused to comment further.

A number of everyday people had hilarious reactions to what went down in the courtroom.

One woman told WJBK she advises Harris to "just walk, from here out" instead of getting behind a steering wheel anytime soon. A man added to the station that next time Harris ought to dress in a suit and tie and sign into the Zoom video hearing from inside his house.

Speaking of, Harris' next court date is set for June 5, WJBK said.

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