Quick answer: A DUI charge in Prince George’s County runs on two tracks at once — a criminal case in the District or Circuit Court in Upper Marlboro (District Court also sits in Hyattsville) and a separate license case with the MVA. If you took a breath test at 0.08 or higher, or refused it, you have only 10 days from the arrest to request an MVA hearing and protect your license. A Prince George’s County DUI lawyer handles both tracks so a mistake on one does not sink the other.
I’m David Waranch, and I’ve handled thousands of Maryland traffic and DUI cases, appearing regularly in the Prince George’s County courts. Here is how these charges actually work and what a strong defense looks like.
What Do DUI and DWI Mean in Maryland?
Maryland charges two separate drunk-driving offenses under Transp. § 21-902. DUI — driving under the influence, § 21-902(a) — is the more serious charge. It applies when your breath or blood alcohol concentration is 0.08 or higher (that is a “per se” DUI, proved by the number alone) or when the State shows you were actually under the influence. DWI — driving while impaired, § 21-902(b) — is the lesser charge, used for lower readings or when impairment rests mainly on the officer’s observations.
The breath number drives which charge you face. Under Cts. & Jud. Proc. § 10-307, the readings sort out like this:
| Breath/blood result | What it means |
|---|---|
| 0.05 or less | Presumed not under the influence and not impaired |
| 0.07 up to 0.08 | Prima facie evidence of DWI (impaired) |
| 0.08 or more | Per se DUI — proof of impairment not required |
| 0.15 or more | Triggers the tougher interlock and administrative path |
What Are the Penalties for a DUI in Prince George’s County?
The penalties come from § 21-902 and are the same across Maryland — Upper Marlboro judges apply the same maximums as anywhere else. A DUI conviction adds 12 points to your record; a DWI adds 8. These are the criminal maximums; a first offense rarely draws the top of the range, but the exposure is real.
| Charge | First offense | Second offense |
|---|---|---|
| DUI § 21-902(a) | Up to 1 year jail / $1,200 fine / 12 points | Up to 2 years / $2,400; mandatory minimum 5 days in jail |
| DWI § 21-902(b) | Up to 2 months / $500 / 8 points | Up to 1 year / $500 |
The second-offense enhancement uses a 5-year lookback: a prior DUI within five years turns a second charge into a subsequent offense with that mandatory 5-day minimum you cannot suspend away. Transporting a minor, a crash, or a very high reading pushes the exposure higher still. For a full breakdown of a first case, see my page on first-offense DUI penalties in Maryland.
Why Does a DUI Have Two Separate Cases?
Every Maryland DUI splits into a criminal case and an administrative license case, and they are decided by different bodies on different timelines. The criminal case goes to the District Court in Upper Marlboro or Hyattsville — or to the Circuit Court in Upper Marlboro if the case is jury-eligible or appealed. That case decides guilt, jail, fines, and probation.
The license case belongs to the MVA under Transp. § 16-205.1, Maryland’s implied-consent law. If you tested at 0.08 or higher or refused the test, the officer takes your Maryland license, serves a suspension order, and issues a 45-day temporary paper license at the scene. To keep driving past those 45 days, you have to act fast — which is where most people lose ground before they ever reach a courtroom. A lawyer works both tracks together; the criminal result and the MVA result do not control each other, and beating one does not automatically fix the other. Learn what the license hearing involves on my pages about the MVA per se hearing and what to expect at an MVA hearing.
Do not sit on the 10-day deadline. To preserve every option and keep the temporary license working, you must request the MVA hearing within 10 days of the arrest. You have up to 30 days to request a hearing at all, but a request after day 10 does not extend your 45-day temporary license. Miss the window and the suspension simply takes effect — no matter how strong your criminal defense is. A DUI is also a must-appear charge, not a ticket you can quietly pay off; there is no “just pay it” option.
How Long Will My License Be Suspended?
The administrative suspension length under § 16-205.1 depends on your test result and whether you refused. These are separate from any court penalty. In most cases you can elect the Ignition Interlock System Program instead of a flat suspension and keep driving — and for a 0.15+ reading or a refusal, interlock is the only way to drive during the period.
| Situation | First offense | Second offense |
|---|---|---|
| Test 0.08 to under 0.15 | 180 days | 180 days |
| Test 0.15 or higher | 180 days | 270 days |
| Refused the test | 270 days | 2 years |
| Interlock election | 180 days (0.08–0.14); 1 year (0.15+ or refusal) | Same program terms |
Refusing the breath test carries the longest administrative suspension of all — 270 days on a first offense and two years on a second. That is a deliberate trade-off you should understand before it happens; I walk through it on my page about whether you can refuse a breathalyzer in Maryland. Points from a conviction stack on top of all this — see how the Maryland point system works.
Can I Get a PBJ for a DUI?
Probation before judgment is often the goal in a DUI case. A PBJ under Crim. Proc. § 6-220 lets the court withhold a conviction and place you on probation instead, which means no conviction and no points from the case itself — though the court will usually attach conditions such as an alcohol program and, sometimes, interlock.
There is a firm eligibility limit for DUI. The statute bars a PBJ where the driver has a recent prior:
“…a court may not stay the entering of judgment and place a defendant on probation before judgment for a violation of § 21-902 of the Transportation Article … if within the preceding 10 years the defendant has been convicted under § 21-902 … or has been placed on probation before judgment …”
So a prior DUI conviction or DUI PBJ inside the last 10 years takes a PBJ off the table. When a PBJ is available it is worth pursuing, but it is not automatic and it carries a long 15-year wait before the record can be expunged. For the full picture, see my pages on DUI plea options and PBJ in Maryland and the Maryland DUI lawyer hub.
How Does a Prince George’s County DUI Lawyer Defend Your Case?
A DUI arrest is not a conviction, and these cases have more pressure points than most people expect. I read the whole file — the police report, the body-camera and dash-camera footage, the field sobriety testing, and the breath machine’s records — and look for the places the State’s case breaks down:
- The stop. The officer needs a lawful reason to pull you over. No valid stop, and the evidence that follows can be suppressed.
- Field sobriety tests. These have to be given the NHTSA-standardized way; sloppy administration undercuts the results.
- The breath test. The machine has to be properly maintained, calibrated, and operated by a certified technician within the testing window.
- Your statements and advice of rights. Were you properly advised, or pressured into answers or a decision on testing?
Depending on the facts, the outcome may be a dismissal, a not-guilty verdict, a reduction from DUI to the lesser DWI, a PBJ, or a sentence with no jail and a solid mitigation plan. Commercial drivers face an extra layer of federal exposure even from a DUI in a personal car — I cover that on my page about DUIs and commercial driver’s licenses. And if your case comes with other traffic charges, my Prince George’s County traffic lawyer page explains how I handle those together.
Prince George’s County sees heavy DUI enforcement along the I-95/I-495 Capital Beltway, US-301, MD-210, and the Baltimore-Washington Parkway. Wherever the stop happened in the county, the sooner I’m involved, the more options we have — on both the court case and the license.
Prince George’s County DUI FAQ
Most Prince George’s County DUI cases start in the District Court, which sits in Upper Marlboro and Hyattsville. If the case is jury-eligible or gets appealed, it moves to the Circuit Court in Upper Marlboro. The MVA license case is handled separately at an administrative hearing, not in either courthouse.
You have 10 days from the arrest to request an MVA hearing and keep your 45-day temporary license fully in force. You can still request a hearing up to 30 days out, but a request made after day 10 will not extend the temporary license. The MVA case is separate from the criminal case, so this deadline runs on its own.
DUI under Transportation section 21-902(a) is the more serious charge, applying at a 0.08 or higher reading or when the State proves you were under the influence. DWI under section 21-902(b) is the lesser impaired-driving charge, used for lower readings or observation-based impairment. A DUI carries up to a year in jail and 12 points on a first offense; a DWI carries up to two months and 8 points.
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; Transp. § 16-205.1; Cts. & Jud. Proc. § 10-307; Crim. Proc. § 6-220. This page is general information about Maryland law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.