A Wildwood man with an extensive history of traffic offenses was arrested again after he was caught driving near a busy entrance gate in The Villages
A deputy spotted 51-year-old James Stevens driving a white Ford pickup truck westbound on County Road 466 toward Morse Boulevard in The Villages around 8:20 p.m. Thursday, according to an arrest report from the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office. He was pulling an enclosed trailer without a license plate and only one working brake light.
Due to this, the deputy stopped Stevens and detained him. A check of his driving record revealed his license had been suspended multiple times, and he was designated as a habitual traffic offender three times. His license had also been revoked since Sept. 28, 2021, the report said.
A subsequent check of his criminal history showed five prior convictions for driving with a suspended license, the report said.
Stevens was arrested on charge of driving while license suspended (habitual offender). He was booked at the Sumter County Detention Center and released after posting $2,500 bond.
The Wisconsin native has a long history of traffic offenses, with the most recent being in July 2025 for going on a booze run with a suspended license and earlier that same month for not wearing a seatbelt.
Before that, a neighbor who knew the status of his license caught him driving in July 2024. He had an invalid license in May 2024 when he was arrested at a restaurant, and a faulty headlight led to charges in April 2024.
Stevens was found passed out in a Taco Bell drive-thru, still with a suspended license, in July 2023. He spent 20 days in jail when he was caught during a different DUI in Dec. 2022. He also got lost while DUI on a golf cart in Aug. 2021.