Under Maryland law (specifically Md. Code Ann. TA § 17-104), an owner of a vehicle must maintain required security (almost always insurance, in rare cases a self-insured bond substitute) during the registration period for the vehicle. Three trial issues present themselves regarding any prosecution of this charge. While it’s non-jailable, defense counsel who face this
Under 21-706 of the Maryland Transportation Article, you have to stop at least 20 feet behind (if approaching from behind) or 20 feet from the front (if approaching from the front) of a schoolbus with red flashing lights or a stop-sign extended out from the bus. There is an exception for buses on the opposite
it’s illegal because it’s stupidly dangerous. Baltimore Sun, January 22, 2013: The incident occurred at about 6:25 a.m., when the sheriff’s deputy saw a Dodge Ram 1500 traveling at a high rate of speed in the Finksburg area. The deputy tried to pull the car over, but the motorist failed to stop and continued at
There are certain circumstances where getting a probation before judgment will not help a motorist that much in Maryland’s traffic court. When the charge is an alcohol charge, insurance carriers can see any administrative alcohol license suspension even if the ultimate jailable offenses of driving while impaired/driving under the influence do not result in convictions
Sometimes I get asked by clients “how much does a DUI cost?” Literally – in those words. When I hear this question worded this precise way, I suspect (okay, I know) that I am dealing with someone who is ignoring reality, someone who hallucinates that the only cost of a driving under the influence charge
Under Maryland law and regulation, the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration (MVA) has the duty to administer the motorist license system and to call motorists in for a “Point System Conference” and send motorists to driver improvement programs or “DIP.” More ominously, the MVA can suspend or even revoke a motorist license for one of a
Washington Post, April 15, 2011: A Montgomery County district judge was cited for reckless driving Thursday after an investigation into another driver’s claim of road rage that started outside a courthouse and nearly caused a 70 mph collision on Interstate 270 during rush hour, according to police records and officials. Judge Brian G. Kim, 49, noted
Boyce Atkinson was charged with driving while intoxicated in Harford County. His attorney at trial agreed to with the State to a not guilty statement of facts, recounting that Mr. Atkinson was found slumped over in the driver’s seat with the keys in the ignition and engine off. Upon being awakened by the officer, Mr. Atkinson
This is the first in a series of important legal cases which, in my judgment as a practicing Maryland attorney, Maryland attorneys should simply know cold, be able to cite them almost from memory and have them as close to their fingertips as we do major U.S. cases like Brown v. Board of Education or
I am proud to be a defense attorney and I never let myself lose sight of the fact that when an officer puts on his or her uniform, she or he is choosing to carry the power of the State of Maryland (whether hired by the State or by a local government) in a way
