What Happens to Your Driver’s License After a DUI Charge in Maryland?
After an arrest for driving under the influence (DUI), your driver’s license is likely to be suspended. Our lawyer can help defend the charges and explore ways you can keep your license.
The first DUI arrest can result in losing your license for 180 days and much longer for additional offenses. If the accident involves a fatality, a driver could lose their license for a year or permanently. Our team can request an administrative hearing to argue why you should keep your license. In other situations, we can help you enroll in the Ignition Interlock System Program, which will allow you to drive as long as you do not have alcohol in your system.
For help defending your case, contact our Baltimore DUI defense attorneys at Rice, Murtha & Psoras by calling (410) 694-7291.
What Happens to Your Maryland Driver’s License After a DUI Arrest in Maryland?
In Maryland, anyone who drives or attempts to drive a vehicle on a highway or private property accessible to the public is considered to have given consent for testing if they are stopped on suspicion of driving or attempting to drive while under the influence of alcohol or impaired by drugs, whether individually or in combination with alcohol, according to Md. Code, Transp. Art., § 16-205.1(a)(2). When the police pull someone over for suspected DUI, they might start by performing a field sobriety test but will almost certainly request that the driver submit to a breath or blood test.
Refusing to take either test will result in an automatic license suspension. The length of the suspension depends on whether it is your first offense and your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) when the test was administered. Our Marland DUI defense attorneys can help by preparing defense strategies immediately and determining if the police made any mistakes during the stop or arrest. Even a first-time DUI arrest can result in a lengthy license suspension. However, there are instances where it might be better to refuse a test so the prosecution does not have that evidence, such as DUI accidents involving a person’s death.
License Suspensions for DUI
If you refuse to submit to the test or do take it and the result indicates a BAC of 0.08 or more, your Maryland driver’s license will be immediately confiscated. However, the police will issue a temporary license that allows the suspect to continue driving for an additional 45 days, as per § 16-205.1(b)(3)(iv).
If someone is being charged with DUI and refuses to take a test or submits to it, and results indicate a BAC of 0.08 but less than 0.15, their license can be suspended for 180 under § 16-205.1(b)(1)(i)(1), regardless of whether it is their first, second, or subsequent offense.
When test results return a BAC result of 0.15 or higher, a person’s driver’s license will be suspended for 180 days for the first offense and 270 days for the second or more offenses, according to § 16-205.1(b)(1)(i)(2).
License Suspensions for DUI Accidents Involving Death
License suspensions for DUI accidents involving the death of a person are typically much longer.
For instance, drivers with a BAC test result above 0.08 will typically lose their driving privileges for six months for the first offense and one year if it is their second or subsequent offense, as per § 16-205.1(b)(1)(i)(3).
When drivers have a BAC of 0.15 or higher, and the accident results in death, their license will be suspended for one year. For a second or more offense, their driving privileges will be revoked entirely, according to § 16-205.1(b)(1)(i)(4).
Drivers who refuse to take a test in these situations will lose their license for 270 days for the first offense and two years for subsequent offenses under § 16-205.1(b)(1)(i)(5).
What Can I Do to Keep My License if it is Confiscated or Suspended After a DUI in Maryland?
Your driver’s license or privilege will be suspended on the 46th day after the Order of Suspension if you do not request a hearing within 10 days of the date of the order or, if eligible, you do not elect within 30 days of the order to participate in the Ignition Interlock System Program for one year instead of requesting a hearing. If you submit a valid hearing request, a suspension will not be imposed unless a decision is rendered against you or if you fail to appear for the hearing.
Administrative Hearings
If your test result is a BAC of 0.08 but less than 0.15, you might be able to receive a modification of the suspension or issuance of a restrictive license. The suspension may be modified or a restrictive license issued at a hearing in certain circumstances.
You can request an administrative hearing at any time within 30 days of the date of the Order of Suspension to show cause why your driver’s license or privilege should not be suspended. You must request a hearing within 10 days of the date of the order to ensure that your privilege to drive is not suspended prior to your hearing.
Your request for a hearing must be made in writing. You may use the “Hearing Request” form if available. Send your request to the Office of Administrative Hearings at 11101 Gilroy Road, Hunt Valley, MD 21031. You must include a check or money order for $125.00, which is the required filing fee, made payable to the “Maryland State Treasurer.” Your request for a hearing will be invalid if submitted without the required $150.00 filing fee.
Ignition Interlock System Program
If you refuse a test or take a test with a result of 0.15 or more, you might be able to receive a modification of the suspension or issuance of a restrictive license. You will be ineligible for modification of the suspension or issuance of a restrictive license unless you participate in the Ignition Interlock System Program under § 16-404.1(c).
This program requires the vehicle(s) you drive to be equipped with a device that prevents you from operating it if you have alcohol in your blood. At a hearing, if you request one, an administrative judge can modify a suspension by permitting you to participate in the program for one year, but is not required to do so.
Instead of requesting a hearing, you can elect to participate in the program for one year instead of the period of suspension if certain conditions are met. First, your driver’s license must not be currently suspended, revoked, canceled, or refused. Second, you were not charged with a moving violation arising out of the same circumstances as the Order of Suspension that involved the death of, or serious physical injury to, another person. Lastly, within 30 days of the date of the Order of Suspension, you elect in writing to participate in the Ignition Interlock System Program for one year instead of requesting a hearing and surrendering a valid Maryland driver’s license or signing a statement certifying that the license is no longer in your possession.
An ignition interlock election form is usually located on the reverse side of the driver’s copy of the Order of Suspension that you received from the police officer on the night of the arrest.
Call Our DUI Defense Attorneys for Help Today
If you have been charged with DUI or DWI in Baltimore County, Harford County, Howard County, Anne Arundel County, or any other jurisdiction in Maryland, contact Rice, Murtha & Psoras at (410) 694-7291 for immediate help from our Maryland DUI defense lawyers.