If you get a traffic ticket in a Colorado county like Jefferson, Arapahoe or Adams, and move to another state without resolving the ticket in Colorado, your license in the other state will be in jeopardy. Colorado is among a group of states known as “Compact States” or “Non-Resident Violator Compact (NRVC) states”, which support each other’s efforts to resolve traffic tickets. In this example, the other state will suspend your license or not allow you to get a new one, until you resolve the Colorado matter.
All states, except Michigan, Wisconsin, California, Montana, Oregon and Alaska, are members of the compact. As a result, any traffic citation you receive in the member states can impact your Colorado driver’s license, and any ticket you receive in Colorado can impact your license in those other states. If you are from a non-member state, you may be required to post a cash bond after being cited for a traffic offense in a member state. The member state reciprocity and enforceability agreement is an effective way to keep people in member states from ignoring traffic citations. Colorado drivers in member states should be careful since driving conduct there must be resolved or your Colorado driver’s license could be suspended. Some minor traffic matters, like parking tickets, are not enforced by some member states.
I often get calls from people from around the country who go to their DMV to have their license renewed in another state. That state pulls their name up on a computer and it tells them they cannot get a new license, or renew their current license, until they get things settled in Denver, Douglas, Weld, Grand or Larimer County, Colorado. Most recently, I was hired to help a woman from Florida who left Colorado after getting a DUI in Jefferson County. The Florida DMV will not give her a license until she clears things with the Colorado Court and the Colorado DMV.
If you are living in another state and have a Colorado traffic ticket which has suspended your license or caused a revocation of your license, be smart, and call the experienced traffic attorneys at the O’Malley Law Office, at 303-731-0719. Together, we can protect your future.