St. Mary's Co. Leaving a Running Vehicle Unattended is Illegal

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Whether you're warming up your vehicle in the driveway on a cold morning or leaving your vehicle running outside of a store for a quick trip inside, it is illegal in Maryland to leave an unattended motor vehicle with its engine running.

An unattended running vehicle is an open invitation to car thieves. Don't give them the opportunity.

Sec. 21-1101 of Maryland's Vehicle Laws states, "a person driving or otherwise in charge of a motor vehicle may not leave it unattended until the engine is stopped, the ignition locked, the key removed, and the brake effectively set."

The fines for violation are $70 and one point assessed on a driver's license or $110 and three points if contributing to an accident.

Disclaimer: In the U.S.A., all persons accused of a crime by the State are presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. See: https://so.md/presumed-innocence. Additionally, all of the information provided above is solely from the perspective of the respective law enforcement agency and does not provide any direct input from the accused or persons otherwise mentioned. You can find additional information about the case by searching the Maryland Judiciary Case Search Database using the accused's name and date of birth. The database is online at https://so.md/mdcasesearch . Persons named who have been found innocent or not guilty of all charges in the respective case, and/or have had the case ordered expunged by the court can have their name, age, and city redacted by following the process defined at https://so.md/expungeme.

 

[Bird Dog]

…add it to my continuing list as a habitual lawbreaker

 

[Sneakers]

Sec. 21-1101 of Maryland's Vehicle Laws states, "a person driving or otherwise in charge of a motor vehicle may not leave it unattended until the engine is stopped, the ignition locked, the key removed, and the brake effectively set."

Have to admit, I break this law too, but the law might need to be upgraded for newer vehicles. I can start mine remotely to get a head start on warming/cooling, but in order to do it, you have to lock the doors first with it in park. If the doors aren't locked, it won't remote start.

 

[TPD]

Let me guess - LEO are exempt. And I assume electric vehicles are exempt since they don't have engines. Oh wait, most modern vehicles are exempt since they don't have keys.

Sounds like the law needs to be rewritten or scrapped to catch up with technology.

 

[PrchJrkr]

**** that! There's no way in hell that I'm sitting in my little 4 banger diesel and waiting for it to get up to operating temp in the morning.

 

[OccamsRazor]

Are the MSP or law makers going to PAY to have all of the remote start options removed from any vehicle being sold in the state? If it is illegal, why is it still being offered in the state of MD?

 

[Tech]

Have to admit, I break this law too, but the law might need to be upgraded for newer vehicles. I can start mine remotely to get a head start on warming/cooling, but in order to do it, you have to lock the doors first with it in park. If the doors aren't locked, it won't remote start.

Does it shut down when the doors are open/attempt to shift if it doesn't sense the key inside?

 

[Sneakers]

Does it shut down when the doors are open/attempt to shift if it doesn't sense the key inside?

Yes. You have to use the remote or a key to unlock, and once inside you have to insert the key and turn it to RUN. Besides, the column is locked without the key and you can't shift it.

 

[Merlin99]

Wonder if it applies to fedex and ups vehicles