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September 30, 2011

Monmouth County Drunken Driving Update: Rude Wake-up Call for New Jersey Motorists Arrested for DWI

It’s safe to say that the majority of drivers in the Garden State have never been arrested for drunken driving; that said, it’s also a fair bet that many of these individuals do take a drink from time to time. What may come as some surprise to a lot of people is that one needn’t be a heavy drinker to be charged with drinking and driving. What only needs to happen is for that motorist who just left a party, maybe with a beers or two under his belt to be unlucky enough to catch the interest of a local patrolman after forgetting to signal a lane change, or other minor traffic law.

Here in Bergen County, one can also run afoul of the law by having a drink or two at a local pub and then happen upon a random DWI roadblock (also referred to as a sobriety checkpoint). In such cases, depending on the driver’s level of inebriation a police officer may ask that the suspect step out of the vehicle and perform a few relatively simple field sobriety tests. If circumstances are right, it’s possible that the motorist might end up being arrested and charged with DWI.

A breath test, using a breathalyzer machine or Alcotest device, may return a blood-alcohol content (BAC) level that meets or exceeds the legal limit for drunken driving, namely 0.08 percent. As New Jersey DWI defense lawyers, I and my staff meet dozens of people every month who have been charged with driving under the influence of alcohol or prescription medication (otherwise known as drug DUI). Some of these people likely believe that they were not impaired at the time of their arrest.

For first-time drunk driving offenders, or should we say, first-timers accused of driving while intoxicated, we understand how shocking, unnerving and embarrassing such an arrest can be. To put it mildly, it can be a rude wakeup call for many people.
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September 28, 2011

New Jersey Legal Defense Update: Proving a Driver was Legally Intoxicated can be Challenging

by Jonathan F. Marshall

As a former municipal prosecutor, I know that it is sometimes difficult for the prosecution to prove that a motorist was legally drunk at the time of a DWI, drug DWI or DUI arrest. Much of the state’s case against a driver accused of driving under the influence relies on supporting evidence collected at the time of the drunken driving stop. During this process, the suspect may be asked to exit the vehicle, execute several of the standardized field sobriety tests and eventually might be taken into custody to have his or her blood-alcohol content (BAC) level tested at police headquarters.

In instances where a driver has been arrested for DWI, the prosecutor’s office will want to have what is referred to as “proof of intoxication.” As New Jersey drunk driving defense attorneys, I my staff of experienced DWI lawyers remind those motorists charged with driving under the influence of alcohol that they should never assume that the prosecutor’s case is a strong one.

There are a number of important considerations to take into account following a traffic stop that has resulted in charges of drunken driving being levied against oneself. This goes for alcohol-related DWI and even impaired driving charges as a result of prescription medication use or possibly because of a controlled dangerous substance (CDS) such as cocaine or marijuana.
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September 26, 2011

Bergen County Police Departments Get Large Infusion of Money for Increased DWI Patrols

by Jonathan F. Marshall

With so much emphasis on curbing drinking and driving here in the Garden State it’s no surprise that a great deal of money is funneled to state and municipal law enforcement agencies for enhanced drunken driving saturation patrols and additional DWI roadblocks and sobriety checkpoints. While police agencies, government entities and traffic safety experts maintain that federal funding of anti-DWI campaigns, such as the “Over the Limit, Under Arrest” effort, is well spent, some may be concerned that the return on investment is less than optimal.

Nevertheless, as New Jersey drunk driving defense attorneys we see numerous potential clients who have been arrested or cited for driving while intoxicated in counties such as Hudson, Monmouth, Ocean and Sussex. While none of these individuals can be placed in any one category, it’s a good bet that a percentage were not aware that they may have been legally drunk when they were stopped by a patrolman, or flagged over into one of the many DWI checkpoints that pop up from time to time.

The funding for enhanced anti-drunk driving enforcement patrols from time to time means that the odds of being picked up for operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, prescription meds (drug DWI) or even illegal substances, like marijuana or cocaine, is greatly increased. In fact, towns like Elmwood Park in Bergen County, NJ, have the advantage of being funded on a fairly regular basis to fight drunken driving.

According to news articles, toward the end of August, Bergen County collected more than $100,000 in reimbursements for traffic enforcement activities by the county’s law enforcement departments. These funds included monies earmarked for anti-drunk-driving campaigns that went to municipalities such as Elmwood Park, which alone received more than $40,000 from the Bergen County prosecutor’s office for enhanced DWI enforcement patrols and roadside sobriety checkpoints.
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September 22, 2011

Police in Bergen County, NJ, Charge Teenager in DWI-related Passaic Car Accident that Injured Six

by Jonathan F. Marshall

As New Jersey DWI attorneys, I and my staff of experienced drunken driving defense lawyers are well aware of the heavy penalties levied against drivers convicted of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol on public roads. My firm also know that state law enforcement agencies and the judicial system have little tolerance for underage drinking, DWI, and other alcohol-related offenses committed by teens and other minors.

It makes little difference if the offense occurs in Ocean, Sussex, Cape May or Mercer County, when an underage individual is caught by police with an alcoholic beverage, or worse, drunk as a result of consuming beer, wine or liquor, a potential conviction can have a serious impact on that youngster’s life going forward.

According to New Jersey law, any individual who consumes alcohol must 21 years old or more. This not only applies to drinking beer or wine, but also to purchasing or possessing it. To put it simply, underage drinking in the Garden State is strictly illegal. Not only are the police and our courts very strict about underage alcohol possession, as well as teenage drinking and driving, the legal consequences can be rather severe as well.
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September 19, 2011

Bergen County DWI Defense News: Elmwood Park, NJ, Police Catch 18 Drunk Drivers

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Whether you live or work here in Monmouth, NJ, or in Hudson, Bergen or Atlantic County, as a New Jersey motorist you have no doubt seen or been directed into one of the frequent police checkpoints used to catch drivers who may be operating their car or truck under the influence of alcohol (beer, wine, or hard liquor), prescription medication or even illicit drugs or other controlled dangerous substances (CDS) such as marijuana or cocaine.

Each of these sobriety roadblocks, also known as DWI checkpoints, is designed to bring drivers in close contact with local, municipal and state police officers so that they can determine if a driver has been drinking alcohol or ingesting some type of substance that may cause impaired driving. Upon being identified as possibly impaired by some substance, the patrolman in charge will most likely as the driver to step out of his or her vehicle in order to perform one or more standardized field sobriety tests.

Although the number and order of the standard field sobriety tests given during a DWI traffic stop tend to vary depending on the police officer and the particular situation in which the driver may find himself, the following is list of the tests that are usually used to some extent or antoher:

— Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus
— Head-tilt
— Touching a finger to one’s nose
— Balancing one leg
— Walking heal-to-toe
— Reciting the ABCs
— Counting
The most common of these tests is the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus, during which the officer attempts checks to see how smoothly an individual’s eyes are tracking a finger or pen in front of his or her face. A knowledgeable attorney knows to do a thorough analysis of the testing done by the arresting officer in order to determine whether or not the field sobriety tests were administered properly.
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September 16, 2011

NJ Drunk Driving Update: DWI Checkpoint, Sobriety Roadblock Alerts on Twitter, Facebook Raise Some Ire

by Jonathan F. Marshall

As a practicing New Jersey drunk driving defense attorney and former municipal prosecutor, I understand the importance of individual rights and how those rights and personal freedoms are protected by the Constitution of the United States. I also know that technology continues to push the envelope of what is considered acceptable regarding free speech and free expression.

Living in such an technologically advanced, diverse and informed society, it doesn’t come as much of a surprise to read of the concerns voiced by many individuals regarding the varied uses for which social media are being employed. At this point, we would have to say that this is a complex subject that likely will take years to be fully resolved.

What is clear is that there are many people, law makers and politicians included, who are concerned about how some individuals are using their smartphones and social media sites to communicate instantly the existence of drunken driving roadblocks and sobriety checkpoints, as well as speed traps and other aspects of law enforcement activities. It’s no surprise that these channels of communication are highly successful at keeping people up-to-date on all issues, not just DWI enforcement zones; just take a look at the massive changes that have taken place in Middle East, which surely have been facilitated by social media.

According to a recent editorial, there may be a group of people who would like to imprison those who use Facebook and Twitter to publish warnings as to the whereabouts of drunk driving roadblocks. Is this a legitimate concern? Perhaps. However, law enforcement agencies are already required by law to publish the locations of these DWI and sobriety checkpoints in advance. It would be hard to say that a Twitter or Facebook user was revealing secret or sensitive police information.
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September 14, 2011

New Jersey Legal Defense: Key Steps in a Typical Garden State DWI Case

by Jonathan F. Marshall

One of the more common questions that DWI defense attorneys get asked by potential clients is the particular order of events as an impaired driving case moves through our state’s law enforcement and judicial systems. Naturally, any DWI or DUI case begins with the driver being pulled over by a police officer for some other traffic offense, which could be as minor as a broken taillight. But that’s just the beginning of a long and potentially costly process.

Whether the violation occurs in Hudson, Mercer, Ocean or Monmouth County, the initial stage of a drunken driving case entails the suspect being stopped by a patrolman usually for a typical traffic violation, such as defective vehicle equipment, inability to maintain a lane (i.e. crossing over the lane markings besides that of changing lanes). To be a valid, this traffic stop should be for a legitimate violation in which the patrolman has “reasonable suspicion” that a motor vehicle violation has been committed.

Based on the New Jersey Supreme Court case, State v. Carpentieri, the officer or patrolman who pulls a motorist over must have an articulable and reasonable suspicion that a traffic law violation has occurred in order for subsequent DWI charges to be legally valid. But this is only the first qualification, as once a driver is pulled over the officer needs to have “probable cause” to believe the driver has been operating that vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or is otherwise impaired by an intoxicant, prescription medication, or other substance, such as marijuana.

September 9, 2011

Legal Defense Brief: Defining Impairment for Drunken Driving Cases in New Jersey

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Here in the Garden State, a motorist can be pulled over for any number of traffic violations including excessive speed, failure to maintain one’s lane, improper use of turn signal and even defective vehicle equipment, such as a broken taillight or burned-out headlamp. It’s not that these are unusual violations, but each of them, and many others, may open the door to other potentially more serious impaired driving charges.

Whether at happens in Bergen, Essex, Ocean or Passaic County, once a patrolman has stopped a driver for one or more of the aforementioned violations, if that officer has reason to suspect that the driver of that vehicle may be drunk or otherwise intoxicated due to the consumption of beer, wine or hard liquor, there is a good chance that the patrolman will ask the motorist to step out of the vehicle and perform one or more of the standardized field sobriety tests. If the officer is satisfied that a suspect is likely drunk, impaired or otherwise driving under the influence, police headquarters may be the next stop for a breathalyzer test.

Here in New Jersey, determining is motorist was operating a motor vehicle while impaired by alcohol, involves measuring the driver’s blood-alcohol content (BAC). As New Jersey drunk driving defense attorneys, I and my staff of experienced DWI defense lawyers have handled numerous kinds of drunken driving cases over the years. Ay least for the state, establishing that a defendant’s BAC is above the legal limit (of 0.08 percent) is a key piece of evidence for the prosecution’s case against many drivers accused of DWI.

Of course, the law states that if a person who operates a car, truck, SUV or other motor vehicle is determined to have a BAC of 0.08 percent or more, that person can be found guilty of drunk driving — also known as driving under the influence of alcohol, or more commonly, driving while intoxicated (DWI).

The abbreviation, “BAC” refers to the amount of alcohol in the bloodstream of a drunken driving suspect. It is important to understand that, while New Jersey law makes reference to 0.08 percent BAC as the legal limit, a motorist can still be convicted of intoxicated driving even if his BAC measurement is actually below the 0.08 percent limit.
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September 6, 2011

Garden State Counties Join in New Jersey Law Enforcement Drunk Driving Crackdown

by Jonathan F. Marshall

For many New Jersey residents, rather than enjoy this past Labor Day weekend they likely spent most of their time cleaning up from the effects of tropical storm Irene. Still, in areas less affected, surely some Garden State drivers saw some increased drunken driving enforcement activities by state and local police. As part of the national “Over the Limit, Under Arrest” campaign, it’s a fair bet that dozens of motorists had encounters with law enforcement officers during what has become an annual anti-DWI effort.

Of course, it’s hardly a good idea to operate a motor vehicle while under the influence of beer, wine or hard liquor, as well as illicit drugs such as marijuana and cocaine. But during the last two weeks, drivers who did take their chances by drinking and driving may have met with a DWI or drug DUI arrest or summons to appear in court.

This effort took place in nearly every county across New Jersey, including Bergen, Hudson, Union, Monmouth and Ocean, just to name a few. As a drunken driving defense lawyer and former municipal prosecutor myself, I understand how some individuals can be pickup up for driving while intoxicated, though perhaps be unaware that they were legally impaired at the time of their arrest.

Whether stopped by a rolling DWI patrol for an apparent minor traffic offense, or being waved into a sobriety checkpoint (also known as a DWI roadblock for observation by a police officer looking for drunken drivers, the resulting charges of drunken driving or impairment due to prescription medication or an illegal drug (also known as a controlled dangerous substance or CDS) can be costly in terms of fines and penalties, as well as the impact on an individual’s personal and business relationships or standing in the community.
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August 31, 2011

New Jersey Woman Charged with DWI following Somerset County, NJ, Injury Accident

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Being arrested for drunken driving in New Jersey is one thing, but being charged with driving while intoxicated following a traffic accident that one may or may not have caused brings a whole new dimension to a DWI arrest. As New Jersey drunken driving defense attorneys I and my staff of experienced DWI lawyers have seen enough cases of driving while intoxicated to know that driver’s charged with an injury accident involving alcohol is a serious matter.

And the same goes for operating a motor vehicle while impaired by prescription medication (drug DUI) or illegal drugs, such as cocaine or marijuana, also known as controlled dangerous substances (CDS). While fines and other DWI penalties for those individuals convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs are already stiff, attaching an injury accident to the incident could make things much worse.

It makes little difference whether you live in Bergen, Ocean Atlantic or Passaic County, local law enforcement and the New Jersey legal system have little tolerance for driver who get behind the wheel of a car, truck or motorcycle after having something to drink. In fact, enforcement campaigns such as the “Over the Limit, Under Arrest” drunk driving effort usually put even more sobriety checkpoints and DWI patrols on the road looking for drunk drivers all across the Garden State.

A while back, the driver of a Dodge pickup truck was arrested by police for drunken driving after the vehicle was involved in horrendous accident along a stretch of East Mountain Rd. in Hillsborough, NJ. The crash happened on a Sunday in the late afternoon as the vehicle was approaching the intersection of Mountain View Rd.
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