DUI license suspensions issued in other states could hold in TN
Ignorance of the law is no defense. That is something any experienced attorney will tell you. Because laws vary from state to state, it is possible that you could face consequences you never anticipated if you are charged and convicted of driving under the influence. If you broke the law, you will have to deal with the penalties and the record. Mounting a strong defense is called for.
Returning home doesn’t necessarily make the issue go away, either. Indeed, in some cases things can be made worse because of a thing called the Driver License Compact. This agreement among most of the states and the District of Columbia says the signatories will exchange information with each other related to driver license suspensions for traffic violations by individuals from any of the participating jurisdictions.
Tennessee is one of just five states not part of the compact. The others are Georgia, Michigan, Wisconsin and Maine. That can be a good thing because information about Tennessee violations may not automatically be shared with another state. However, Tennessee often does share DUIs with other states, and Tennessee also often learns about DUIs committed in other states.
Also it could affect someone who moves to Tennessee from a state where they were convicted of DUI. If he or she is arrested for impaired driving again in Tennessee and the police learn of the previous record, they could face enhanced DUI charges.
Tennessee already has some of the harshest penalties for first-time drunk driving offenses, and they only get worse with multiple convictions.
To ensure the greatest level of defense against a criminal charge, knowledge of the law in a given jurisdiction is essential. But not all laws are created equal, so consulting an attorney is necessary.