Indiana Traffic Laws: Points, Tickets, License Suspension and DUI

Yes. Indiana assigns 0 to 10 points for each moving-violation conviction based on its risk to traffic safety. The BMV may require drivers 21 and older with two or more traffic convictions in 12 months (and drivers under 21 with two or more convictions) to complete a BMV-approved Driver Safety Program within 90 days, or the license is suspended until it is completed.

1–15 mph over the limit: 2 points; 16–25 mph over: 4 points; 26 mph or more over: 6 points.

Points stay active on the driving record for two years from the conviction date. Completing a Driver Safety Program does not remove the citation from the driver history.

Any Indiana driver may take a BMV-approved Driver Safety Program (at least four hours; classroom, DVD or online; maximum cost $55) and receive a 4-point credit, once every three years. It does not remove the citation from the record. Courts may also order a driver safety program, but the point credit applies only for a BMV-approved course. Some county prosecutors run infraction deferral programs with local eligibility rules.

The Indiana Judicial Branch's online services include a Pay Traffic Ticket tool (public.courts.in.gov/pay) and the MyCase case search (mycase.in.gov). Information on these sites is not an official court record; official records come from the court that maintains the case.

Check your status free through the Viewable Driver Record or your Official Driver Record (ODR) in myBMV; both list your reinstatement requirements, and the ODR shows the fee for each suspension and a reinstatement fee access code (a certified ODR costs $4 by mail with State Form 53789). Court-ordered suspensions must be resolved with the court, since the BMV accepts only court documentation to close them; insurance suspensions are cleared by proof your insurer submits electronically (Certificate of Compliance or SR22). Pay fees through myBMV, by phone at 888-692-6841 with your access code, by mailing the reinstatement coupon (or Reinstatement Fee Submission Form), or at a BMV Connect kiosk. Paying fees without required SR22 coverage may leave you suspended; BMV suggests calling before paying.

Traffic tickets are handled by the court where the ticket is filed, and procedures vary by county. Failing to appear in court in response to a citation, or not paying after a judgment, may lead to suspension of driving privileges; the court notifies the BMV to end the suspension once the driver appears or pays. The suspension can be stayed by filing SR-22 proof of future financial responsibility for the suspension period.

Suspensions include failing to complete a required Driver Safety Program within 90 days, failure to appear or pay on a ticket, driving without required insurance (or not providing proof when the BMV requests it), operating while intoxicated and chemical-test failure or refusal, delinquent child support, and paying the BMV with dishonored funds. Habitual traffic violators can face 10-year or lifetime suspensions.

0.08 for adult drivers (0.15 or more is a more serious offense); 0.02 to under 0.08 is an infraction for drivers under 21.

Operating with a BAC of 0.08 to under 0.15, or while intoxicated, is a Class C misdemeanor (up to 60 days in jail and a fine up to $500). A BAC of 0.15 or more, or intoxicated driving that endangers a person, is a Class A misdemeanor (up to 1 year and up to $5,000). Administratively, failing a chemical test brings a 180-day suspension. A court may also suspend driving privileges after conviction and may order specialized driving privileges with an ignition interlock.

A driver who refuses a chemical test faces a one-year suspension, or two years with a prior operating-while-intoxicated conviction. Specialized driving privileges are generally not available for a refusal suspension (a court may grant limited privileges in some cases).

7 years. An OWI with a previous OWI conviction within the preceding seven years is a Level 6 felony, and a court must suspend driving privileges for at least one year for an OWI with any prior OWI conviction.

Courts can grant 'specialized driving privileges' to eligible Indiana drivers whose privileges are suspended, including after OWI convictions, and may require an ignition interlock. People suspended for refusing a chemical test and some other categories are not eligible under the general rules.

Drivers may not hold or use a telecommunications device while operating a moving vehicle, except with hands-free or voice-operated technology or to call 911 in an emergency. The BMV lists a hand-held device violation as 4 points.

Operating while intoxicated (OWI) is a Level 6 felony when: (1) the person has a previous OWI conviction within the 7 years before the new offense; or (2) the driver is 21 or older, drives with a .15 or higher alcohol level, with a schedule I or II controlled substance in the blood, or while intoxicated in a way that endangers a person, and has a passenger under 18. It is a Level 5 felony if the person has a prior conviction for OWI causing serious bodily injury, death or catastrophic injury. OWI causing serious bodily injury is a Level 5 felony (Level 4 with a prior OWI within 5 years), and OWI causing death or catastrophic injury is a Level 4 felony.

The BMV pages read do not say how long an OWI stays on the Indiana driving record. For the criminal record, a misdemeanor OWI conviction can be expunged by petition no earlier than 5 years after the conviction, and a Level 6 felony OWI no earlier than 8 years after, if the person has paid all fines and costs, has no pending charges and has no new conviction in the past 5 years. An expungement order can reach records held by the Bureau of Motor Vehicles. Felonies that caused bodily injury to another person are not eligible under the Level 6 section, and the BMV may not seal certain convictions of people who held a commercial driver's license or permit at the time of the offense.

Yes, they are used. The Indiana Criminal Justice Institute partners with local police to run sobriety checkpoints during 'Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over' campaigns, and its DUI Taskforce program funds high-visibility enforcement that includes sobriety checkpoints.