Maryland and the District of Columbia (DC) are both part of a Drivers License Compact (DLC) that requires member states to share information regarding traffic ticket convictions back to the licensing state of the motorist. Due to this, the MD Motor Vehicle Administration (MVA) will be notified of your speeding ticket in DC.

The Maryland Driver's Manual section that describes the state's involvement in the DLC (pages 22 and 23) says that convictions reported from member states are treated in the same manner as if the offenses occurred in Maryland. Drivers who are convicted of traffic law violations when driving in another jurisdiction do not escape corrective action taken by this state. Convictions for moving violations received from other jurisdictions are recorded on the Maryland driving record.

So your out of state DC ticket should be reported to Maryland and placed on your driving record. You did not mention what the ticket was written for that you received after being in an accident but if you plead guilty in court and pay the fine for the citation then it will also go on your driving record.

The Maryland provisional license is a probationary-type license and second part of the MD graduated licensing system. Under the graduated licensing system, non-commercial license applicants, who have never held a driver’s license, must progress through three licensing levels - Learner’s permit, Provisional license and Full license.

It requires conviction-free driving prior to obtaining a full driver’s license. It is issued to drivers after they gain experience driving with a learner’s permit and to previously licensed drivers with less than 18 months of driving experience.

Once a provisional license is issued, the licensee must hold the valid provisional license for an assigned 6, 12, 18 month period without receiving a moving violation conviction (points or no points assessed) before becoming eligible for full license status. The length of the required “conviction-free” period (6, 12, or 18 months) is determined by the length of the licensee’s previous driving experience/ licensure, if any.

Conviction-free means without receiving a moving violation for which you are convicted or found legally guilty.

If a MD driver receives a moving violation with the provisional license, and is convicted of the violation, the following sanctions apply:

• The first offense of receiving a moving violation/conviction requires the licensee to complete a driver improvement course;
• A second offense of receiving a moving violation/conviction can result in a 30-day suspension of the driver’s license/privilege;
• A third or subsequent offense of receiving a moving violation/ conviction can result in up to a 180-day suspension or revocation of the driver’s license/privilege.

The above sanctions will be imposed in addition to any other sanctions that apply as a result of the conviction(s). Also, each/any conviction for a moving violation (offense) will automatically cause the licensee to begin a new 18-month conviction-free period requirement, regardless of the length of the originally assigned conviction- free period.

So if you have 2 moving violation convictions that are going to show up on your Maryland provisional license record it would appear that your license may be suspended for 30 days and you may need to also complete a driver improvement course. For more information on points being assessed and what penalties you may incur for receiving 2 citations while having a provisional license contact the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration.