Out of State Resident Can Protect License & Defend San Diego DUI arrest but a license issued by your home state (not California)?

Pink California DMV SUSPENSION/REVOCATION ORDER given to you?

It is easy to get an immediate evaluation online right now.

The Interstate Compact is a multi-state agreement between participating states to share information and reciprocate. The Compact includes San Diego DUI convictions and California license suspension actions.

If a holder of an out-of-state license or resident of one state has his or her driving privilege suspended or gets convicted of DUI in another state (California), the home state can be notified. The home state, in theory, will honor and reciprocate – take action to suspend the driver’s license unless proper & timely steps are taken within 10 days to protect that state license.

This means if you do not have a California driver’s license – and even if you do not plan to ever drive again in California – a DMV suspension of your driving privilege in California may result in a suspension of your home state driver’s license. You probably have some questions about the difference between the DUI criminal charge and the license suspension action.

You likely want to avoid, if not minimize, any driver’s license suspension action taken by the San Diego California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) against a randomly assigned index number which ultimately is to be honored by the home state.

You may prudently seek the assistance of a California DUI Defense Attorney Specialist.

Because drunk driving is illegal in all jurisdictions, understand what it is: the act of operating and/or driving a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs to the degree that motor skills and mental skills are impaired. The specific criminal offense is usually called driving under the influence of alcohol and/or other drugs (DUI), and in some states driving while intoxicated (DWI), operating while impaired (OWI), or operating a vehicle under the influence (OVI). Many state DUI or drunk driving laws also apply to piloting aircraft or boating.

All states in the U.S. designate a per se breath or blood alcohol level as threshold for an independent criminal offense. A second criminal offense of driving “under the influence” (DUI) or “while impaired” (DWI) is also normally charged in most states, with a permissive presumption of guilt where the person’s BAC is .08% or more (units of milligrams per deciliter, representing 8 g of alcohol in 10 liters of blood). Some states (Colorado) include a lesser charge, sometimes referred to as driving while ability impaired: it applies to individuals with a .05 percent or above, but less than the .08 per se limit for the more serious charge.

The list of states, below, indicates whether a given state belongs to the Interstate Driver’s License Compact, and if so, the year they joined. Massachusetts, Wisconsin, Tennessee, Georgia and Michigan are all Non-compact states and should, in theory, not share DUI conviction information.

If you have any specific questions about how the Interstate Compact Act may apply in your case, you may want to contact a DUI & DMV defense lawyer specialist in your state. States vary in their respective actions. Military personnel are not exempt.

Your state’s Driving Record

Get a copy of your state’s driving record at the National Driver Register.