Quick answer: A Howard County DUI is two separate cases at once — a criminal charge in the District Court in Ellicott City, and an MVA administrative action against your license that runs on its own clock. You have only 10 days from the notice of suspension to request the MVA hearing that keeps your full options open. Winning the criminal case does not save your license, and beating the MVA case does not end the criminal charge. Both have to be fought.
I’m David Waranch, and I’ve handled thousands of Maryland DUI, DWI, and serious traffic cases, and I’m in the Ellicott City courthouse regularly. A charge is not a conviction — many of the cases I take end in a dismissal, an acquittal, a reduction, or a probation before judgment that keeps the conviction off your record. But the window to protect your license is short, and it starts running the night of the arrest.
Why a Howard County DUI Is Really Two Cases
This is the part people miss, and it costs them their licenses. Your arrest creates a criminal case and an administrative case, decided by different bodies on different timelines. The criminal charge is heard in Ellicott City; the license case is handled by the MVA. One does not control the other.
| Issue | The criminal case | The MVA case |
|---|---|---|
| Where | District Court, Ellicott City | MVA administrative hearing |
| What’s at stake | Jail, fines, a conviction, points | Your license and privilege to drive |
| Your deadline | Your assigned court date | 10 days to request a hearing |
| Runs automatically? | No | Yes — do nothing and you are suspended |
The most expensive mistake is ignoring the 10-day letter. Beating the criminal charge does not save your license. Under Md. Code, Transp. § 16-205.1 the MVA suspension runs on its own, and if you don’t request the hearing within 10 days of the notice, the suspension takes effect automatically no matter how strong your defense turns out to be in court. I have met people who won in the courtroom and still couldn’t drive because that letter sat on the kitchen table.
What Am I Actually Charged With — DUI or DWI?
Maryland’s alcohol and drug driving offenses all sit in Md. Code, Transp. § 21-902, and there are four of them, not two. Look at your citation and find yours. The dividing line is the level of impairment the State can prove. Under Cts. & Jud. Proc. § 10-307, a breath or blood result of 0.08 or more makes you “under the influence per se” (DUI); a result from 0.07 up to 0.08 is prima facie evidence of driving while impaired (DWI); and 0.05 or less is presumed not impaired at all.
| Charge | First offense | Second offense | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| DUI — under the influence / 0.08+ per se § 21-902(a) | Up to 1 year · $1,200 | Up to 2 years · $2,400 | 12 |
| DWI — impaired by alcohol § 21-902(b) | Up to 2 months · $500 | Up to 1 year · $500 | 8 |
| Drug-impaired driving § 21-902(c) | Up to 2 months · $500 | Up to 1 year · $500 | 8 |
| CDS-impaired driving § 21-902(d) | Up to 1 year · $1,200 | Up to 2 years · $2,400 | 12 |
| Any of the above with a minor in the car | Up to 2 years · $2,000 | Up to 3 years · $3,000 | — |
Twelve points revokes a Maryland license outright, which is why a DUI fight is usually about avoiding the conviction, not about the fine. Getting a DUI reduced to a DWI is a real win — fewer points, a lower ceiling, and more room to keep the conviction off your record. If you want the deeper breakdown of the statute, I explain how Maryland DUI and DWI laws work, and the numbers for a first case in detail on my first-offense DUI penalties page.
The MVA Case: Your License and the 10-Day Clock
If you tested at 0.08 or more, or refused, the officer took your Maryland license and gave you a paper temporary good for 45 days. What happens next depends on whether you act. Request the hearing within 10 days and you keep driving on the temporary and preserve every option, including the interlock alternative. Wait longer and even a request within 30 days no longer extends the temporary; miss 30 days and there is no hearing at all. The suspensions that follow are not short:
| Test result | First offense | Second / subsequent |
|---|---|---|
| BAC 0.08 to 0.14 | 180 days | 180 days |
| BAC 0.15 or higher | 180 days | 270 days |
| Refused the test | 270 days | 2 years |
Notice that refusing is punished more harshly than blowing a 0.14. People refuse thinking it protects them; on the license side it usually does the opposite, and it can add a further criminal penalty on top under § 21-902(g). Whether to refuse is more complicated than a slogan — I walk through it on my page on refusing a breathalyzer in Maryland. For 0.15-plus or a refusal, the only way to keep driving during the suspension is the Ignition Interlock System Program, and I prepare that at the same time I prepare for the MVA per se hearing so you are never left without a route to work.
Can I Get a PBJ for a Howard County DUI?
Often yes, and it matters. A probation before judgment under Crim. Proc. § 6-220 is not a conviction — no points reach your record, and your license survives — though the court will order alcohol conditions and, on many DUIs, interlock. There is one hard limit: a court may not grant a PBJ for a § 21-902 offense if within the preceding 10 years you were convicted of, or already received a PBJ for, a DUI or DWI. A PBJ for a § 21-902(a) or (b) charge also carries a long expungement wait, so it is valuable but not free. I keep this distinct from a dismissal or reduction, and I lay out the trade-offs in full on my page explaining PBJs for drunk driving cases.
If this is a second DUI within five years, read this twice. A conviction carries a mandatory minimum of 5 days in jail (10 days on a third within five years), and the statute is blunt about it:
“The penalties provided under this subsection are mandatory and are not subject to suspension or probation.”
The judge cannot suspend that minimum. The only way around it is to not be convicted, which means the case has to be built properly from the first week. If you have any alcohol-driving history, tell me on the first call.
How I Defend a DUI in Ellicott City
Every case turns on its own facts, but the State has to prove each link in the chain, and each one is contestable:
- The stop. Did the officer have a lawful reason to pull you over? If not, much of what follows can fall with it.
- The field sobriety tests. These carry strict NHTSA administration standards. Officers deviate from them constantly, and a test given wrong proves little.
- The breath test. Calibration records, maintenance logs, the 20-minute observation period, and the operator’s certification can all exclude a result.
- The video. The written report says you were unsteady; the bodycam and dashcam often show something else.
- Your statements. Were you questioned in custody without warnings?
Depending on what that turns up, we aim at a dismissal, a not-guilty verdict, a reduction from DUI to DWI, or a PBJ. This is the same evidence-driven approach I describe in detail on my main Maryland DUI defense page. If you hold a CDL, the stakes are different again — a DUI disqualifies you commercially for a year even if you were off duty in your own car, and federal anti-masking rules mean a PBJ will not save the CDL, so I flag those cases immediately and handle them on separate terms for commercial drivers.
Where Your Howard County Case Is Heard
Howard County’s seat is Ellicott City, and DUI cases are heard in the District Court there, with the Circuit Court in Ellicott City handling jury trials and appeals. Most arrests come off the county’s main corridors — US-29, I-95, I-70, and MD-100 — and I represent DUI and DWI clients throughout the county: Columbia, Ellicott City, Elkridge, the Howard County portion of Laurel, Clarksville, and the surrounding communities. DUI charges also rarely arrive alone. If your citation carries other counts, my Howard County traffic defense page covers those, and you can browse the full DUI and DWI knowledge hub for more on any piece of the process.
Frequently Asked Questions
Ten days from the date of the MVA notice of suspension to request a hearing that keeps your full options open, including the ignition interlock alternative. This is separate from your court date, which may be months away. A request made within 30 days still gets you a hearing, but it no longer extends the 45-day temporary license.
In the District Court of Maryland for Howard County, in Ellicott City. If you request a jury trial, the case moves to the Circuit Court in Ellicott City. The MVA license hearing is a separate administrative proceeding through the Office of Administrative Hearings.
Often, yes. Depending on the evidence, a first DUI can end in a dismissal, a reduction to DWI, or a probation before judgment, which is not a conviction and adds no points. A court cannot grant a PBJ if you had a DUI conviction or PBJ within the preceding 10 years, so eligibility matters and starting early helps.
Law Offices of David R. Waranch — 301-563-9575 · toll-free 1-877-566-2408. Hablamos Español.
Last updated: August 2026. Statutory references: Md. Code, Transp. § 21-902 (DUI/DWI offenses and penalties) and § 16-205.1 (administrative per se suspension); Cts. & Jud. Proc. § 10-307 (BAC evidence); Crim. Proc. § 6-220 (probation before judgment). This page is general information about Maryland law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.