How Will An Asheville Speeding Ticket or Traffic Citation Affect My Out Of State License?
One of the most common situations I deal with as an Asheville Traffic Lawyer, is managing cases where a license from another state is involved. Of course many people visit the Asheville area from other states, and often many locals still have out of state licenses because of the number of transplanted people who are here. Many clients wonder, if my license is from state X, how can a NC ticket affect me?
The NC DMV is a member of a DMV interstate compact. What that means is that most states communicate with NC, and vice-versa, regarding any DMV action that is taken against a license. Once a court judgement is entered, DMV is noticed of the court's judgement, and DMV then applies any penalty that their rules allow. Other DMV's across the country that wish to reciprocate that action, may do so as well. However, what I've found is that many states don't reciprocate, and will merely flag the out of state license as having an issue that requires attention in NC. That can, at the very least, cause the other state's DMV to refuse to reinstate or renew until the NC issue is resolved.
A good example would be excessive speeding. Excessive speeding conviction in NC will cause DMV to revoke the NC driver's license. But what about my out of state license? I've found that many states merely flag the NC issue, and won't renew that state's license until the NC license issue is resolved. This also means that absent the need for a renewal, the out of state license could remain active and valid the entire time. In the case of a license revocation, NC has no power to change your out of state driving privileges. They can only update your DMV as to the action they are taking here in NC.
As far as the immediate affect on your out of state license, NC action may not always be the same action taken in your licensing state. Your licensing state's attorney and insurance agent are good resources these questions. Even then, some tickets just don't match up. For example, California finds Improper Equipment/Speedometer to be a moving violation, opposite of NC and many other states. The non-moving infraction Improper Equipment you get here in NC still assesses points in California DMV world!
Obviously, the interplay between the courts, DMV, and DMV of other states is highly complex. The laws and rules that govern a driver's license cause a number of my clients a great deal of difficulty. One of my favorite type cases to handle is the complex DMV license suspension problem, even when the license involved is out of state. If you are facing DMV and drivers license issues in Asheville or Western NC, call an Asheville traffic attorney today!