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Illinois Traffic Violations Can Cause Complications for Out of State Drivers

You may not live in Illinois and may be licensed to drive by another state. Alternatively, maybe you used to live in Illinois and now you are seeking a driver's license in a new state. The problem is, back when you were living in or traveling through Illinois, you picked up an Illinois traffic ticket. You may now be finding that your old Illinois traffic ticket is preventing you from obtaining a license outside Illinois, or has even caused the suspension of your out-of-state driver's license.

Frequently, traffic tickets that were not properly addressed in Illinois cause complications for out-of-state drivers. These problems occur because the different states share driving information.

Illinois Reports Traffic Violations Via the DLC and the NRVC

Illinois is a member of both the interstate Driver’s License Compact and the Non-Resident Violator Compact. Forty-one other states participate in both of these compacts. Seven states participate in at least one of them. The participating states share information concerning traffic tickets issued to non-resident drivers.

The Driver’s License Compact is used to report information regarding traffic violations and license suspensions of non-residents to the states where people actually are licensed. The state in which a person actually has his or her driver’s license is known as the “home state.”

When the home state receives word of out an out-of-state traffic conviction, the home state treats the violation as if it occurred inside the home state. Then, the home state applies its own laws to the out-of-state offense. Unfortunately, sometimes the application of the home state’s laws causes the suspension of a person’s driver’s license in the home state. Often the only way to address this issue is to clear things up in the outside state.

The Non-Resident Violator Compact works a little differently. If the purpose of the interstate Driver’s License Compact is to let a person’s home state know of offenses committed out-of-state, then the purpose of the Non-Resident Violator Compact is to insure compliance with the traffic laws of those other states.

Under the Non-Resident Violator Compact, if someone gets a traffic ticket in another member state, but fails to respond to the ticket (such as by not paying it or not going to court), the other state notifies the driver’s home state. The home state then suspends the person’s driver’s license until the person clears up the matter in the outside state.

States Participate Differently in the Drivers License Compact & Non-Resident Violator Compact

The following states are members of both the Driver’s License Compact and the Non-Resident Violator Compact: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, D.C., Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

The states of Alaska, California, Montana and Oregon are members of the DLC but not the NRVC.

The states of Georgia, Massachusetts and Tennessee are, to the contrary, members of the NRVC but not the DLC.

Finally, the states of Michigan and Wisconsin are members of neither compact, but still may share driver’s license information with and accept such information from other states.

Motions to Vacate, Entries of Judgment, Getting into Court on Non-Resident of Illinois Traffic Violations

Typically, if you called the Clerk of the Circuit Court in the Illinois county where originally you were ticketed, likely the clerk told you that you need to pursue a “Motion to Vacate.” A motion to vacate is a manner of seeking to reopen an otherwise closed case in order to pursue appropriate relief from the court.

Motions to vacate often are brought in order to attempt to undo prior bond forfeitures, prior ex parte entries of judgment, or even prior judgments of conviction. Actions that can cause these negative results include failing to appear at court, failing to pay fines or fulfill other terms of a sentence, or simply pleading guilty and accepting a conviction.

In all circumstances, motions to vacate must be filed with the Clerk of the Court in the proper venue and must be heard and decided upon by a judge. If the judge grants the relief requested, the substance of the court’s decision should be forwarded immediately to the Illinois Secretary of State. It is the Illinois Secretary of State that maintains your Illinois driving record, and which could be the source of information now causing problems with your license out of state.

Former Illinois Traffic Court Prosecutor Representing Non-Resident Drivers on Traffic Violations

If you are licensed outside the State of Illinois, and have a traffic ticket in Illinois that has caused complications with your home state license or with your ability to obtain a driver's license in another state, Attorney Matt Hoffman may be able to help. It may be possible to return to the court of original jurisdiction over your traffic violation and clear things up.

Attorney Matt Hoffman has more than 10 years' experience handling traffic violations in Illinois courts. He appears routinely while representing clients on traffic violations at the following Lake and Cook County, Illinois traffic courts:

Lawyer Defending Non-Resident Drivers on Lake & Northern Cook County Illinois Traffic Tickets

There are many different police departments that forward traffic tickets and moving violations to the six local traffic courthouses in Northeastern Illinois for disposition. These courthouses include those located at Park City, Round Lake Beach, Mundelein, Waukegan, Rolling Meadows and Skokie. If you are a non-resident or out-of-state driver and were ticketed for or charged with a moving violation within the jurisdiction of any of these six court venues, it is likely that you were cited by one of the following police departments. The Law Office of Matthew T. Hoffman P.C. defends clients charged with traffic and other violations issued by these and other area police agencies: