Default Judgment

Defendant appealed a decision by a Magistrate of the Rhode Island Traffic Tribunal denying Defendant’s Motion to Vacate the default judgment entered on a charged violation of R.I.G.L. 1956 § 31-27-2.1 (Refusal to submit to a chemical test). Defendant was arraigned and pleaded not guilty. Defendant failed to appear for a subsequent pre-trial conference, and as result, the Magistrate entered default judgment. Defendant filed a Motion to Vacate, but the Magistrate denied Defendant’s motion, reasoning that Defendant mixing up his court date was not enough to meet the “excusable neglect” standard for vacating default judgment. Defendant appealed, arguing that the reason he failed to appear for the hearing on his Motion to Vacate met the standard necessary to show “excusable neglect.” The Appeals Panel, however, found that the record lacked sufficient evidence to satisfy a finding of “excusable neglect.” Specifically, the Appeals Panel found that Defendant’s calendaring error was not sufficient to warrant a finding of excusable neglect. Accordingly, the Appeals Panel affirmed the Trial Judge’s entering of default judgment and denied Defendant’s appeal.

North Providence Police Department v. Charles Galatis, No. T17-0004 (May 11, 2018).pdf