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Technical Corrections Act Clarifies New DWLR Law

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Author’s Note: Question 2 of this post and its answer have been amended to accurately reflect the state of the law before it was amended in the 2015 session.

Earlier this legislative session, the General Assembly enacted the North Carolina Drivers License Restoration Act, S.L. 2015-186, which amended the state’s driving while license revoked law and relieved certain defendants of the mandatory license revocations that historically have followed convictions for this offense. I blogged here about the particulars of the act, which recodified various violations of G.S. 20-28 and eliminated additional license revocations for certain types of DWLR convictions. Three questions about the import of the act immediately arose. Now that the technical corrections bill has become law, I have answers.squareDWLR chart_edited-1

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Are Driver’s License Revocations on the Agenda?

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The 2015 North Carolina General Assembly convened earlier today, with new members sliding into place just as the first ice storm of the winter left the area. And while most folks’ attention will (as usual) be focused on the state budget, I’ll be watching over the next few months for legislation related to motor vehicle crimes. I’m particularly curious to see whether the General Assembly shows any interest in interrupting the cycle of driver’s license revocation, an issue that lately has attracted national attention.

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DWLR + DWI Does Not (Automatically) Equal a Grossly Aggravating Factor

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Author’s note:  The law was amended in 2015 to alter this analysis.  The amendments are discussed here.

Grossly aggravating factors matter in DWI sentencing.  And there’s one factor that seems to be confusing folks, particularly when it comes to ignition interlock violations. Here’s hoping this post clears it up.

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NC Supreme Court Reverses State v. McKenzie: CDL Disqualification Does Not Bar DWI Prosecution

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The court of appeals’ decision last January in State v. McKenzie was big news in the DWI world. The state’s intermediate appellate court held the one-year disqualification of a defendant’s commercial driver’s license (CDL) stemming from charges that he drove his personal vehicle while impaired amounted to criminal punishment. Thus, the court of appeals concluded, … Read more

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DWLR and Out-of-State Revocations

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Suppose a police officer patrolling a city street lawfully pulls over a car with out-of-state tags. When the officer asks the driver for his driver’s license, the driver tells the officer: I had a Maryland driver’s license, but it was revoked. May the law enforcement officer properly charge the defendant with driving while license revoked … Read more

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State v. Dewalt and Speeding to Elude

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The court of appeals decided State v. Dewalt last week, holding that the aggravating factor of driving while license revoked, when used to elevate misdemeanor speeding to elude arrest to a felony offense pursuant to G.S. 20-141.5(b)(5), does not require proof that the defendant drove on a street or highway. The facts of the case, … Read more

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Proving Knowledge of a License Revocation

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Driving while license revoked (DWLR), a Class 1 misdemeanor, is one of the most frequently charged criminal offenses in North Carolina.  And, while certain elements of the offense are spelled out in G.S. 20-28 and are relatively straightforward—namely that the person (1) operated a motor vehicle, (2) on a highway, (3) while the person’s license … Read more

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DWLR Based upon an Ignition Interlock Violation

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Last month, the North Carolina court of appeals decided State v. Graves, No. COA09-595 (March 16, 2010), a case involving the defendant’s appeal from his convictions for felony speeding to elude, driving while license revoked (DWLR), reckless driving to endanger, and impaired driving.  The court vacated the defendant’s conviction for DWLR on the basis that … Read more