Marshall v. Commissioner of Motor Vehicles

Summary

The court held that the statutory requirement to prepare and transmit an incident report within three business days is mandatory, not directory. A report that does not satisfy that requirement cannot be admitted under the statutory hearsay exception without testimony from the arresting officer, even if the report otherwise appears reliable. Because the noncompliant report was the only evidence supporting the suspension, the hearing officer abused her discretion and the plaintiff's appeal had to be sustained.