Breath Test Refusal

November 9, 2009

Ocean County Man Charged with DWI, Aggravated Assault after Drunk Driving Stop

As a New Jersey DWI defense lawyer, my firm’s primary job is to provide comprehensive representation to drivers accused of driving under the influence of alcohol, prescription drug or controlled substances. While the act of driving while intoxicated is enough to get a motorist charged with DWI or drug DUI, compounding the offense by fleeing from or fighting with a law enforcement officer is never recommended.

A recent news article shows just what this kind of behavior will net someone. According to reports, a Jackson, NJ, man was pulled for alleged drunken and erratic driving in the early evening of October 4. Officers had observed Christopher Romano’s Toyota Corolla crossing lanes and moving erratically, according to Captain John Rein.

Police reports state that as patrolman Austin Kenny approached the car he could smell alcohol and asked Romano to step out of the vehicle. Romano then allegedly tried to lock himself in the vehicle.

October 19, 2009

Morris Township, New Jersey, DWI Arrests and Other Alcohol-related Violations

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Every month dozens of drunk driving and drug DUI arrests occur in Morris Township, NJ, as well as across the Garden State. Police departments and state law enforcement agencies have a very low tolerance for driving while intoxicated. As an experienced New Jersey DWI defense attorney, my firm has defended hundreds of motorists accused of driving under the influence of alcohol. Many of their DWI stories are reflected in the various news reports shown below.

Morris Township

A 35-year-old local man was stopped by police after he was observed driving his 1997 Ford erratically and at high speed along Madison Avenue around 10pm on a Saturday evening. Upon pulling the driver over, police said he showed clear signs of drunkenness. According to reports, when the patrolman attempted to place the driver under arrest, he allegedly resisted. Additional officers were called in and the suspect was subdued and taken into custody. He was taken to headquarters where he refused to provide breath samples. Police charged him with breath test refusal, resisting arrest, failure to stop when signaled by police, failure to change address with the DMV, failure to keep right, improper passing and reckless driving, police said. He was released pending further court action, police said.

September 30, 2009

Atlantic County Man with 0.00 Percent BAC Sues over Northfield Drunk Driving Charge

by Jonathan F. Marshall

A man initially arrested for DWI at a sobriety checkpoint in November 2008, the charges for which were dropped four months later, has sued for wrongful arrest. As a New Jersey DWI defense attorney, I have represented clients over the years who have faced similar circumstances. In the case of Tyrone Foxworth’s drunk driving arrest, the claimant says that Officer Kristina Ramsi falsely arrested the Somers Point man and caused him to be prosecuted in a malicious fashion, thus violating his rights under both the Fourth and Fourteenth amendments of the United States Constitution.

According to reports, this individual was still charged with drunk driving even after Foxworth’s blood alcohol content (BAC) registered a reading of 0.00 percent via a Breathalyzer test at the Northfield police station just 15 minutes following his arrest at the checkpoint. Police records show that no blood or urine was taken for a drug test at time, because there was no drug-recognition expert available that evening.

Based on news accounts, Foxworth was driving with two friends when his vehicle was flagged down at a multi-jurisdictional DWI checkpoint along Shore Road around 3am on Thanksgiving morning. As per standard procedures, every fifth vehicle was being flagged and pulled over, according to police. The complaint states that Foxworth was instructed to pull into a secondary check area by Absecon Officer James Laughlin.

September 22, 2009

New Jersey Drug DUI-DWI Update: Police Blotter for Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset Counties

by Jonathan F. Marshall

The drunk driving defense lawyers from The Law Offices of Jonathan F. Marshall defend New Jersey Motorists against DWI, breath test refusal and drug DUI charges. The following police reports for communities in Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset counties reflect the types of cases my firm typically handles on a regular basis. A conviction for driving under the influence of alcohol can severely impact a person’s current job and future career prospects, not to mention his or her standing in the community, as well as personal and business relationships.

West Windsor

According to reports, a resident of Cranbury, NJ, attempted to evade police on foot following a traffic stop for speeding on Old Trenton Road. The 41-year-old was chased down and eventually apprehended with the help of East Windsor police. Charged with speeding, reckless driving, driving an uninsured motor vehicle, operating a vehicle on a suspended license and attempting to elude police, the suspect also allegedly was in possession of a hypodermic syringe and reportedly had an open container of alcohol in his car vehicle.

A Langhorn resident was stopped on suspicion of drunk driving at South Lane and Village Road East. Following the traffic stop, police found the driver to be 19 years of age and charged him with underage DWI

A 29-year-old from Dayton was charged with drunken driving following a traffic stop on northbound Route 1 at Quakerbridge Road. The man was stopped for speeding and observed to be intoxicated, according to police. He was also issued summonses for speeding and reckless driving.

During a routine traffic stop on Quakerbridge Road near Nassau Park Blvd, a 25-year-old Pennsauken resident was charged with possession drug paraphernalia, including a hypodermic needle and after a traffic stop.

Plainsboro

A Princeton man was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol after police responded to a single-vehicle crash in the early morning hours on Sayre Drive. Police arrived on scene around 2:30am and found a 56-year-old man asleep behind the wheel of his white 2001 Lexus, which was parked on a landscaped island after apparently striking a tree. According to reports, the man was determined to be highly intoxicated and was therefore charged with DWI, failure to submit to a chemical breath test, reckless driving, careless driving, improper parking and failure to wear a seat belt.

A 38-year-old man from Lambertville, New Jersey, was charged with DWI after a late-night traffic stop on southbound Route 1. The motorist was pulled over at about 10:30pm after he didn’t dim his high beams while passing a police officer, according to police. During the traffic stop, he was found to be intoxicated and was issued summonses for DWI, reckless driving, and failure to dim high beams.

September 9, 2009

Bridgewater Municipal Judge Charged with Drunk Driving in Ocean County, NJ

by Jonathan F. Marshall

I’ve said it here before, but I’ll say it again. As a former municipal prosecutor I find it hypocritical for anyone in law enforcement or the judiciary to act in a manner that suggests they believe themselves to be above the very laws to which they hold the rest of society. Being a New Jersey DWI defense lawyer, I work with municipal judges everyday when representing clients who have been charged with driving under the influence of alcohol.

Any police officer, prosecutor or judge who doesn’t live up to the same standards he or she sets for the rest of us doesn’t deserve our respect. This all came to mind upon reading a news report covering the recent arrest of a Bridgewater municipal court judge on drunk driving charges in Lavalette, NJ.

Police reports indicate that the car Rizzolo was driving was observed swerving on Route 35. Officers from the Lavallette Police Department pulled Rizzolo over, after which he explained his actions were caused by a ringing cell phone. The patrolman advised the judge that he was going to administer several field sobriety tests, including a balance test, which Rizzolo refused to take due to a bad back and injured ankle.

September 4, 2009

Bergen County, NJ, Police Blotter: DWI and Marijuana / Drug DUI News

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Everyday, New Jersey motorists are stopped by local and state police for drunk driving offenses, as well as driving under the influence of prescription or illegal drugs. As a New Jersey DWI and drug DUI defense lawyer, I and my staff of attorneys and experienced legal professionals work diligently to defend drivers wrongly accused of driving under the influence of alcohol and other substances. The following news items represent the types of cases we handle on a day-to-day basis.

East Rutherford
A Hackensack man was arrested on August 11 in the late evening for drunk driving, breath test refusal and careless driving. The 57-year-old was picked up after he was involved in an accident on Swan Court. The driver’s 1990 Mercury was impounded and he was later released to the custody of his daughter.

A man in his late 50s was arrested on July 24 for possession of cocaine, having an expired inspection sticker on his vehicle, possession of drugs in a motor vehicle and operating a car with an open container of alcohol. The arrest occurred after the man was stopped at a DWI checkpoint on Paterson Avenue and Everett Place. He was subsequently released on summonses to his wife.

A 39-year-old from Rochester, N.Y., was arrested on August 11 in the early morning hours after he made an illegal U-turn on Route 17. The man was stopped by a patrol car and charged with DWI, refusal to submit to a breath test, illegal U-turn, careless driving and failure to signal. The driver was held in the local jail until he was deemed sober.

North Arlington
An 18-year-old, 19-year-old and 16-year-old juvenile, all from Kearny, were arrested in the early morning of July for possession of marijuana. The arrest occurred following an inquiry at Fisher Field off Sixth Street where police reportedly found a large quantity of cigar materials and marijuana on the pavement in the park, plus two bags of marijuana in the suspects’ car. The adults were released on summonses and the juvenile was released to his parents.

A 39-year-old man from North Arlington was arrested on July 25 for drunk driving, refusal to submit to a breath test, failure to keep right and careless driving. The traffic stop happened on Sunset and Prospect avenues. According to reports, the man’s car was impounded and he was subsequently released to a responsible party pending a court appearance.
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July 28, 2009

Former American Idol Competitor Killed in Jersey Shore DWI Pedestrian Fatality

by Jonathan F. Marshall

The death of an innocent person is no time to say I told you so, but the recent fatal DWI accident in Ocean County involving 25-year-old American Idol contestant, Alexis Cohen, points up something that no one should ever contemplate when pulled over for driving while intoxicated. As a New Jersey drunk driving lawyer, I’m holding this incident up as an object lesson of what NOT to do. Never attempt to flee from the police. Nothing good can come of it.

In this instance, what might have been a relatively simple case of driving under the influence of alcohol coupled with a minor parking lot fender-bender instead turned into a tragic case of vehicular manslaughter. According to reports, a 23-year-old Toms River, NJ, man had left the scene of the fender-bender next to Hemingway’s Bar shortly before 4 a.m. last Saturday when his 2005 Mitsubishi Galant struck and killed Cohen, who was on foot.

The driver, Daniel Bark, allegedly hit a parked car in the lot adjacent to the bar, after which a bicycle-mounted Seaside Heights police officer attempted to stop the man. According to news reports, Bark fled west on Dupont Avenue and turned right onto Bay Boulevard, traveling north in the southbound lane. Authorities believe that this is where Bark hit the pedestrian, Ms. Miss Cohen.

July 25, 2009

Police Blotter: Bergen County Drug DUI and DWI Arrests

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Police throughout Bergen County had a number of dunk driving and drug DUI arrests during the first half of July. With an office in Jersey City, our drunk driving defense attorneys can handle your Bergen County DWI, DUI or breath test refusal case quickly and efficiently. We represent many clients who have experienced situations not unlike the following driving while intoxicated arrests published in the local press.

Carlstadt — A 56-year-old man from Ridgefield Park allegedly passed out and hit a brand new 2009 Honda Accord parked on Sixth Street near Berry Avenue this past July 9. Police arrested the man for careless driving and also found 52.6 grams of marijuana in the suspect’s vehicle, as well as 54 tablets of Alprazolam. Discovery of the drugs caused the officers to write the man up for possessing drugs in a motor vehicle, being under the influence of drugs, possession of marijuana, or weed, and possession of drug paraphernalia, specifically rolling papers. The man was then transported to Hackensack University Medical Center.

Carlstadt — A Kearny man was stopped in the early morning hours of July 16 for speeding on southbound Route 17. During the stop, police determined that the 20-year-old man was intoxicated and allegedly had drug paraphernalia in his car. Officers then charged the man with driving under the influence of alcohol, possession of drugs in a car, careless driving, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia (plastic dime bags). He was released on summonses to a responsible party.

July 12, 2009

Police Blotter: New Jersey Drunk Driving and Drug DUI Arrests and Summonses

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Sparta

A 47-year-old man from Newton, New Jersey, was stopped by police for careless driving and charged additionally with driving while intoxicated. The arrest occurred on Route 15 when officers observed the man’s pickup truck being driven erratically. Following the incident, he was released pending a court appearance.

A Nutley, NJ, man was recently charged with drunk driving and refusing to submit to a breath test. The DWI stop took place after the 27-year-old was observed running a red light. Police officers charged the man with additional traffic offenses, including careless driving, not maintaining a lane, unsafe tires and not wearing a seatbelt. The man was subsequently released pending a court appearance.

July 11, 2009

NJ Legislature Seeks to Extend Drunk Driving Sobriety Testing Post-crash for Serious Wrecks

by Jonathan F. Marshall

The New Jersey statehouse wants mandatory sobriety testing for drivers involved in severe traffic accidents regardless of whether drunk driving is indicated as the cause of the crash. This is significant because the current law only allows police to administer breathalyzer tests and the like when evidence points to a case of driving while intoxicated, or at least clear suspicion that the operator of a vehicle was driving in an impaired state as a result of drug or alcohol use.

As a New Jersey DWI defense lawyer, I’ve seen drunk driving law evolve during my career as a municipal prosecutor and now as a drunk driving defense attorney. Society has little tolerance for intoxicated drivers and this bill is one more step in expanding the tools police have at their disposal. The bill states that law enforcement officers must take a blood or breath sample from the driver of a vehicle involved in a traffic accident that resulted in a fatality or that caused serious injury to another person.

A driver’s refusal to submit to such a test could result in fines up to $1,000 and a possible two-year suspension of the offender’s driver’s license — the same penalty for a conviction of refusal in relation to a drunken driving charge. According to news reports, opponents of the legislation have argued the unconstitutionality of a law that forces an individual to submit to a blood or urine test when there is no probable cause to suspect them of a crime.