If you drive in the Peach State with a California license, you could go to jail.

Ariel Delegol, a junior at Clark Atlanta University, found this out the hard way when she was stopped for speeding in Atlanta. She produced a valid Michigan drivers' license, but the Wolverine State does not belong to the Non Resident Violator Compact. To Ms. Delegol's great surprise, the officer placed her in handcuffs and took her to jail.

A rather obscure provision in Georgia law requires persons who have a license from California, Michigan, Alaska, Montana, Wisconsin or Oregon to be jailed and post bond, because the individual may have unpaid traffic tickets. Asked how college students should respond, a law professor suggested that they "try not to break the law or carry some cash."

Before you tear up that ticket you received in Nevada because you think Lamont and Shafter officials will never learn about it, think again. Almost every state belongs to the Drivers' License Compact, which serves basically the same purpose as the NRVC. Member states report information to the database, which is translated and passed on to local authorities. For example, a speeding ticket is a 15-point violation in Chicago but a two-point violation in Mojave, in most cases. There is some discussion that the NRVC and DLC may be soon merged into one giant database.

A somewhat similar entity already exists. All states belong to the National Driver Register. The federal government sponsors the NDR, which keeps track of license suspensions and serious violations involving alcohol or drugs.