Speckman settles case with Wisconsin Department of Transportation

Mark Speckman felt it was a stand he needed to make and the former Merced and Livingston High School football coach got what he wanted.

Speckman, who was born without hands, recently settled a lawsuit against the Wisconsin Department of Transportation over the treatment he received while he tried to get a Wisconsin driver’s license.

Speckman, 61, felt he was discriminated against because of his disability when he was denied a driver’s license in August 2015.

As part of the settlement, the Wisconsin DOT apologized to Speckman and will change their policies so that people with disabilities, who have a valid driver’s license from another state, will get their Wisconsin license like everybody else.

“Basically anyone with a valid driver’s license without any restrictions can’t be discriminated against because of the way they look,” Speckman said. “I had documentation like anybody else. As it turns out, a lot of people had the same issue, so I’m glad it’s going to be fixed.”

Speckman went to the Wisconsin Department of Motor Vehicles in Appleton after accepting the offensive coordinator job at Lawrence University. Speckman went to the DMV with his wife, Sue, and Lawrence University head coach Rob McCarthy.

Sue and McCarthy received their driver’s licenses with no problems.

That wasn’t the case for Speckman, as he was asked to take a road test, similar to a beginning driver. Speckman didn’t pass, but he claims not because of his disability. It was more nerves than anything.

“I wasn’t asked to take a driving test when I moved before,” Speckman said. “It didn’t happen in California, Oregon or Canada. And then the fact that I went to three different places (in Wisconsin) and they had three different protocols.”

Speckman offered documentation from his insurance agency that he was a safe driver. He had more than 40 years of driving experience without hands and had never been involved in an accident and had a clean driving record.

Still wasn’t good enough, so, in May, Speckman hired a lawyer and sued the Wisconsin DOT in federal court.

The mediation conference was held Sept. 28.

“The mediation went the way I wanted,” Speckman said. “The law is getting changed. It’s a small change, but someone who has a driver’s license won’t have to take the driving test. I did it once. I shouldn’t have to do it again.”

Speckman is a coaching legend in Merced. He coached Merced High for eight years, including a stretch from 1988 to 1993 when he led the Bears to five Sac-Joaquin Section Division I championship games with titles in 1989 and 1990.

Merced finished 14-0 in that 1990 season and was ranked No. 1 in the state by Cal-Hi Sports and No. 5 in the nation by USA Today.

“The one thing I took away from this experience is we all think we know discrimination, but until it really affects your life you really don’t know,” Speckman said. “I was angry, frustrated and felt lesser than. I believe I drive better than 90 percent of the people in Wisconsin. It was just a bad experience. The way somebody could just look at me and think no way can this guy drive a car.”

Part of the settlement also includes Speckman being hired by the Wisconsin DOT to help teach employees how to talk with people with disabilities.

“I feel good about the settlement,” Speckman said. “I’m glad it’s over. It got way more publicity than I ever would have thought. But I feel there are certain fights you have to fight. This was something I had every reason to fight. I wanted to show my family, my kids and my players there are certain things you have to stand up against.”

This story was originally published October 13, 2016 at 11:59 AM with the headline "Speckman settles case with Wisconsin Department of Transportation."