[Ammi]

A man who turned up alive nearly 20 years after he disappeared has been told he cannot have a driving licence because he is still legally dead.

Donald Miller Jr vanished from a town in Ohio in 1986 after he lost his job and turned to alcohol.

He was officially declared dead eight years later, only to resurface in 2005.

"It kind of went further than I ever expected it to," Mr Miller said.

"I just kind of took off and ended up in different places."

The 61-year-old went to court to apply for a driving licence and to have his Social Security number reinstated.

However, his request to reverse the 1994 death ruling was turned down by Judge Allan Davis, who informed him there was a three-year limit for death notices to be repealed.

The judge admitted it was a "strange, strange situation".

"We've got the obvious here - a man sitting in the courtroom who appears to be in good health," he said

He told Mr Miller: "I don't know where that leaves you, but you're still deceased as far as the law is concerned."