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Changes to NC DWLR Law

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The North Carolina made recent changes to the statute criminalizing driving with a revoked license. Prior to the passage of the 2013-14 Budget Act, under North Carolina law, person convicted of “Driving While License Revoked” (“DWLR“) under N.C.G.S. 20-28 would be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. Under the new law, a person convicted of DWLR would be guilty of a Class 3 Misdemeanor. The only exception to this new law is that if the person convicted of DWLR was originally revoked for an impaired driving offense, the misdemeanor class would remain a Class 1.

Pertinent section of the bill is:

SECTION 18B.14.(f) G.S. 20‑28(a) reads as rewritten:

“(a) Driving While License Revoked. – Except as provided in subsection (a1) of this section, any person whose drivers license has been revoked who drives any motor vehicle upon the highways of the State while the license is revoked is guilty of a Class 3 misdemeanor unless the person’s license was originally revoked for an impaired driving revocation, in which case the person is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. Upon conviction, the person’s license shall be revoked for an additional period of one year for the first offense, two years for the second offense, and permanently for a third or subsequent offense.

To read the entire bill, go to http://ncleg.net/Sessions/2013/Bills/Senate/HTML/S402v7.html