national driver's licence database hell

July 10, 2007 7:23 PM

What do I do to get out of this ticket and/or how do I renew my driver's license?

The Maryland DMV still hates me after 35 years. All of a sudden, thanks to a bogus unpaid ticket in MD, I can’t renew my NC drivers licence. Actually, it’s not so sudden. I’m a career scofflaw and hardened procrastinator, but I’m starting to fret now that the one year anniversary of my licence’s expiration is just around the corner.

The ticket came up on the National Driver’s Licence Database, so NC blocked my renewal even though the ticket is so old that there’s no record of the original violation. I’ve been in NC since 1973, and my last ticket was a minor speeding violation about 21 years ago.

The NC people have the option of overriding the block, so I’m going to try that. But I’m worried about going thru beuracratic hell with the MD DMV and maybe paying 35 years of interest on 35 dollar ticket... and I can't afford either that or a lawyer.

posted by Huplescat to law & government (7 comments total)

I think the question would be: What do I do to get out of this ticket and/or how do I renew my driver's license?

That being said, it does need to be cleaned up, and we should probably flag it as such.
posted by SpecialK at 8:11 PM on July 10, 2007

I'm not sure how this should be handled, but it's worth pointing out your issue is not with the DMV but rather the court that is holding this ticket. I'd recommend you give them a call and emphasize how far back this ticket goes. If you're a senior citizen then you may get some added special treatment.
posted by rolypolyman at 8:20 PM on July 10, 2007

Huplescat, do you mind if I toss SpecialK's paraphrase above the fold so people will know what you're asking?
posted by cortex at 8:26 PM on July 10, 2007

Fine with me.

For what its worth here’s how I got the 35 year old ticket that’s still plaguing me. I was a hippie driving a red Volkswagen Beatle and my idiot friend gave a cop the finger. That cop’s buddy chased us down and challenged me and my friends to an alley fight after 2 AM closing time... which was insane as the Baltimore cops were notorious for shooting people in back alleys for “pulling knives”.

So we scheduled the time and place for the fight with the cops and my friends and I went on our merry way and laughed about it.

That was just before I moved to the wilds of NC, but every time I drove that red Volkswagen in Baltimore after that the cops where all over me like a cheap suit.
posted by Huplescat at 9:20 PM on July 10, 2007

First, why don't you call up the DMV/court and figure out what it would take to actually get it cleared up. That way, at least you will know what you are dealing with before you try to weasel out of it.
posted by sophist at 9:23 PM on July 10, 2007

Traffic tickets don't incur interest. There's usually a maximum amount on the ticket, depending on the particular violation. If NC DMV doesn't waive it, you're going to have to get it sorted out with MD DMV and pay the fine.
posted by junesix at 9:25 PM on July 10, 2007

My dad had the same kind of thing happen to him. He lived in state A, got a parking ticket the week he was moving to state B. He sent the payment. Ten years later, he moved back from state B to state A. When he tried to get a state A driver's license, he was told that he couldn't because of an unpaid fine. It turns out, after much searching and dredging, he owed a $1 late fee for mailing his ticket a day late, ten years prior. The DMV person sent him to the court house to clear his name and pay the fine, but the court people had lost his record of a late payment. They refused to take his $1 to clear himself. He went back to the DMV, told his story of woe, and the woman took pity on him and erased the fine from his record.

I would suggest going to court, seeing if they have your record, paying it if they do, and thus wash your hands of this entire experience. Hopefully. Good luck.
posted by nursegracer at 2:21 PM on July 11, 2007