Maryland Out-of-State Driver DUI

Out of State Driver DUI in Maryland

The last thing you expect will happen while you are on vacation or conducting business out-of-state is being arrested for a DUI in Maryland. A DUI arrest in your own state may be confusing as it is, but now, you have been arrested in a completely different state and you have no idea how it will affect your life. Will the authorities take your license away? Does your home state punish you for what happens in another state? What if you’re convicted for DUI in another state?

Driver License Agreement

Most states are part of the interstate Driver License Agreement (DLA), which is a compact between the driver licensing agencies of various states. The rules of the DLA include those from two prior compacts, which Maryland is a member, called the Driver License Compact (DLC) and the Nonresident Violator Compact (NRVC). The goal of the DLA is not only to require each state to honor other state driver’s licenses, but also to report out-of-state traffic violation convictions to the home state. There are various violations that an out-of-state department must report to the home state, according to the DLA.

These include, but are not limited to:

• Vehicular assault, vehicular manslaughter, or homicide involving a motor vehicle or other similar conviction or administrative action;
• A felony involving a motor vehicle; and
• A conviction for operating a motor vehicle at or above a certain blood or breath alcohol concentration (BAC), or while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or a combination of drugs and alcohol, or refusing a required chemical test.

If Maryland is not your home state, and you are convicted of DUI, Maryland officials are required to report it to your home state/ the state which issued your driver’s license. This results in penalties, not only in the state of the offense, but in your home state as well.