Will You Get Points on Your License for a DUI in Maryland?

Drunk driving, also called “driving under the influence” (DUI) is incredibly dangerous and criminalized in every state. If you are arrested and subsequently convicted of driving under the influence, there are serious consequences in your future, including mandatory suspension or removal of your driver’s license, prison time, and fines. While time in prison or fines are usually meted out after a trial, suspension or revocation of your license is done through accumulation of points on your driving record.

In Maryland, if you are convicted of driving under the influence, you will get eight points on your license. This is an extremely high amount of points, requiring mandatory suspension of your license. If you have points on your license from prior infractions, it could result in total loss of your driver’s license. At 12 points, revocation of your driver’s license is mandatory.

Get in contact with our Baltimore DUI defense Attorneys from Rice, Murtha & Psoras today when you call our office at the number (410) 694-7291.

Getting Points for Driving Under the Influence in Maryland

Driving under the influence is prohibited in Maryland under Md. Code, Transp. Art., § 21-902(a). If you get a DUI in Maryland, you will get eight points added to your license pursuant to Md. Code, Crim. Art., § 16-402(29). It is important to note that you get eight points if you are “impaired” by alcohol per Md. Code, Transp. Art., § 21-902(b). If you are “driving under the influence of alcohol” under Md. Code. Transp. Art. § 21-902(a)(i), are under the influence “per se” under Md. Code Transp. Art., § 21-902(a)(1)(ii), or impaired by drugs or controlled substances pursuant to Md. Code Transp. Art §§ 21-902(c) and 21-902(d), respectively, you will get 12 points on your license pursuant to Md. Code, Crim. Art., § 16-402(38). These are extremely high amounts of points to be placed on your license all at once. For comparison, going ten miles per hour or more over a speed limit is only two points per Md. Code, Crim. Art., § 16-402(3).

Getting points on your license comes with consequences, which increase in severity as you get more points on your record. At just three or four points, you will get a warning from the MVA that points are on your license. Between five and seven points, you will be required to participate in a driver’s improvement program (DIP) – essentially a remedial driving class. If you get between eight and 11 points, your license will be suspended, and with 12 or more points, your driver’s license will be revoked Entirely.

Points also have other consequences outside of those laid out in statutes. For example, your insurance rates will almost certainly go up if you have more points on your driver’s license. All of these potential consequences make it important that you hire our Maryland DUI defense lawyers quickly so that potential bad outcomes have the best chance of being mitigated.

Since driving under the influence gets you eight points for any of these drunk driving offenses, your license will be suspended, and you will have to go to court to remove that suspension. Additionally, the other consequences for lower points values will also apply, so you will have to balance completing a driver improvement program with having a suspended license.

Ways to Prevent License Suspension in Maryland

If you got points added to your license and are facing an impending license suspension, there are things you can do with the help of our lawyers to try and stop or mitigate that process. As a practical matter, once an officer pulls you over and you are subsequently convicted of driving under the influence, your license will be taken away, and you will be issued a temporary one. If you do nothing, your license will at least get suspended, and potentially terminated, depending on how many points are put on it.

However, under Md. Code, Crim. Art., § 16-205.1(b)(3)(v), you are entitled to a hearing to fight that suspension. You have 30 days to request a hearing from the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration (MVA). However, our lawyers recommend requesting the hearing within ten days of the incident because that ensures your license will not be suspended or revoked before the hearing.

How to Get Driving Privileges Restored After Points from a DUI in Maryland

If the outcome of your MVA hearing is that you get points on your license for a DUI, your license is going to be suspended or revoked. However, there are things you can do from that point to get your driving privileges back.

Wait for Eligibility

Unfortunately, the first thing you need to do is wait until you are eligible to get your license back. If you attempt to get a new license too early, your claim will get denied, so there is really no point in doing so. During that time, you should avoid driving a vehicle of any kind as or else your suspension/revocation time would be increased.

Call the MVA

Once you are eligible to get your license reinstated, you need to file a request with the MVA. The MVA will examine your records and determine whether your request will be approved or not. Of course, our attorneys are more than ready to help you out and try to make your request to get your license back goes as smoothly as possible.

You will also have to pay a fee to get your license back. The amount you need to pay is related to what caused you to lose your license.

Our Maryland DUI Defense Attorneys are Here to Help You Out

Rice, Murtha & Psoras can be reached at (410) 694-7291 to have our Maryland criminal defense lawyers go over your claim.