Both Ohio and Washington State are members of the Drivers License Compact (DLC) so if you are convicted of the DUI you received in OH then their courts will inform the Washington Department of Licensing (DOL) about this under the influence conviction.

The Revised Code of Washington (RCW) 46.21.010 gives information regarding Washington State's participation in the Drivers License Compact (DLC). Here it states the licensing authority of a party state (of the DLC) shall report each conviction of a person from another party state to the licensing authority of the home state of the licensee.

The report back to the driver's home state shall clearly describe the violation, specifying the section of the statute, code or ordinance violated; identify what action was taken; indicate whether a plea of guilty or not guilty was entered or the conviction was a result of the forfeiture of a security.

According to the WA DOL site, they keep a record of traffic infractions, convictions for motor vehicle violations and notices for failure to appear or respond to traffic citation on every driver in the state. This information that goes on your driving record is obtained by clerk of the courts and licensing agencies so it would appear that the out of state information reported to the DOL would also be placed on your WA driving record.

Back to the DLC Washington State law regarding the DLC, in Article IV it gives the effect of out of state convictions by stating:

(a) The licensing authority in the home state, for the purposes of suspension, revocation or limitation of the license to operate a motor vehicle, shall give the same effect to the conduct reported, pursuant to Article III of this compact, as it would if such conduct had occurred in the home state, in the case of convictions for:

(1) Vehicular homicide;

(2) Driving a motor vehicle while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or a narcotic drug, or under the influence of any other drug to a degree which renders the driver incapable of safely driving a motor vehicle;

(3) Any felony in the commission of which a motor vehicle is used;

(4) Failure to stop and render aid in the event of a motor vehicle accident resulting in the death or personal injury of another.

(b) If the laws of a party state do not provide for offenses or violations denominated or described in precisely the words employed in subdivision (a) of this Article, such party state shall construe the denominations and descriptions appearing in subdivision (a) hereof as being applicable to and identifying those offenses or violations of a substantially similar nature and the laws of such party state shall contain such provisions as may be necessary to ensure that full force and effect is given to this Article.

So it appears from this wording that WA would take actions against you just as if you received the DUI in state instead of out of state. In Washington your license may be suspended from 90 days up to 4 years, based on prior offenses and your blood alcohol level for DUI offenses. The WA DOL could tell your friend more about what could happen if he is convicted of the Ohio DUI.

If he fails to appear in court or otherwise take care of the DUI in then the judge will likely issue a warrant for your friend's immediate arrest and find him guilty of the offense. In Ohio a first time conviction of a DUI can come with jail time of a minimum of three consecutive days or a 3 day driver intervention program, a fine of between $200 and $1,000 and you can receive a court license suspension of 6 months to 3 years. If your friend cannot make it back to Ohio for the court date he should contact a lawyer to see what his options are to take care of this ticket.