By "unlicensed driver" do you mean that you are charged with the offense of driving without being licensed (misdemeanor offense, VAT Sec. 509(1)), or do you mean that you are charged with the offense of not having a valid driver's license on your person at the time you were pulled over? Please identify the statute under which you have been charged.
It sounds like they did more than that -- it sounds like they either didn't have a license (if you were aware of that and lent them the car anyway that could create a problem for you) or that they chose to lie and say that they were you so that the ticket wouldn't be issued under their name. If after you contact them they claim, "I didn't realize the ticket came back in the wrong name", then you can ask them to go correct the problem and ideally they will be able to do so without your further involvement -- although you may find that the prosecutor wants to see the proof that you were out-of-state, and you will want to verify anything your relative tells you about the status of the tickets. If they deny knowing anything about the ticket or refuse to help you, I suggest you give a similar level of regard to any instinct you might have formerly had to protect them.Quoting CarFanatic

