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January 24, 2010

Man Indicted for Fatal DWI Accident in Cape May had Seven Previous Drunk Driving Arrests

Multiple drunken driving arrests or numerous DWI convictions can be devastating to a New Jersey resident’s driving record, much less a person’s life. When a traffic fatality is involved, the legal situation can become very serious very quickly. As a New Jersey drunk driving defense attorney, I and my colleagues have represented hundreds of individuals in drunk driving-related court cases. Many of these cases have had to do with the death of another person, which makes a DWI lawyer a necessity.

Recently an out-of-state motorist was indicted for what is referred to as aggravated manslaughter as a result of a fatal Cape May automobile crash in September of last year. According to news reports, John J. Lawless, 37, of Philadelphia was indicted on January 12 for aggravated manslaughter. The first-degree offense occurred on September 12 when Lawless allegedly killed Frederick Shelton, a Lower Township, NJ, resident.

Based on news reports, the chief assistant prosecutor in the case said that Lawless had a blood-alcohol content of 0.229 percent, which is nearly three times the legal limit in New Jersey. Authorities allege that Lawless was driving his Chrysler Sebring while intoxicated, when he veered into the southbound on Route 9 near Bennetts Crossing in Lower Township, hitting a Ford Escort carrying Shelton, his wife and the couple’s 13-year-old daughter.

January 21, 2010

Dover, NJ, Man Faces DWI Manslaughter Charges for Drunk Driving Deaths of Two Morris County Teens

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Being charged with drunk driving in New Jersey is bad enough without having caused an accident as a result of being intoxicated. Killing another individual while under the influence of alcohol is another thing entirely. Police all across the state of New Jersey are always on the lookout for drivers operating motor vehicles while impaired due to beer, liquor or prescription drugs.

As a New Jersey DWI defense lawyer, I have defended many clients who have been charged with drunk driving. Some of those people were involved in accidents that injured or killed vehicle occupants or pedestrians. A recent news article shows how mixing alcohol with prescription drugs can result in terrible consequences. There are very few things worse than being arrested for a fatal drunk driving accident.

According to reports, Jury selection began Tuesday in Morristown regarding the drunk driving trial of 48-year-old Eugene Baum Jr. The man is charged with being drunk behind the wheel and causing the deaths of two teenagers back in 2006 when his car hit and killed the young girls on a Morris County roadside.

Police reports indicate that on April 20, 2006, Baum was driving a rented Kia Optima along Kinnelon Road in Kinnelon, NJ, when the vehicle veered off the roadway and onto the shoulder where the two girls were walking. Police records show that the defendant’s blood-alcohol content (BAC) was 0.305 percent when the accident happened. Based on news reports, Baum’s vehicle struck 15-year-old Mayada Jafar and 16-year-old Athear Jafar. The two cousins were reportedly walking to a nearby movie theater around 8pm when they were thrown off the shoulder by the impact.

Police have said that although Baum was severely intoxicated, he still decided to drive from his home in Dover to his mother’s house in Kinnelon. During the police interview, he allegedly said that he thought he had struck a deer. He also later acknowledged that he should not have mixed Librium and vodka.

A mental health expert hired by the state has stated that Baum was “a functioning alcohol” at the time of the accident and that he could apparently tolerate high levels of alcohol in his bloodstream. In Baum’s defense, an expert has suggested that Baum became an “automaton” when he drank and the combination of vodka and Librium in his body had an unexpectedly severe reaction that led to the crash.
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January 18, 2010

NJ DWI and DUI Police Blotter: Drunken and Impaired Driving News from Across New Jersey

by Jonathan F. Marshall

As a New Jersey drunk driving defense lawyer, my office represents dozens of clients accused of a range of traffic offenses including driving under the influence of alcohol, prescription and illicit drug DUI, breath test refusal and other DWI-related charges. Not every drunken driving arrest results in a conviction, which is due to a variety of possible scenarios and different facts attached to each case.

The following is a selection of recent drunk driving arrests across the Garden State. Whether you live in Newark, Red Bank, Atlantic City or any of other cities and towns in New Jersey, a conviction for driving while intoxicated can adversely affect your life. However, you should never assume that you have don’t have options following a drug DUI or DWI arrest.

Orange
A local resident was picked up recently by police after running her vehicle up onto a curb in Orange, NJ. The incident occurred just before 2:30am on January 3, when the 23-year-old woman apparently lost control of her sedan, struck the curb and then hit a stop sign. Police responded to the accident at Orange and Elm streets apparently on a call from another motorist or resident in the area.

According to reports, police officers arriving on the scene found the woman’s 2001 Mitsubishi Diamante up on the curb with damage to its front end and the right-front tire. Officers also noted a street sign, which had apparently been struck by the vehicle and was now lying in the roadway.

Police reports indicate that there were five occupants in the car, including the driver, all of which were unhurt. However, law enforcement officers observed that the suspect was slurring her words, swaying and staggering as she stood outside the vehicle. Based on these observations, officers requested the woman take several field sobriety tests, which she failed. She was charged with DWI and careless driving, according to police.

Montclair
Al local motorist was stopped by police after the officers saw a 2009 Ford Flex weaving in and out of its lane around 1:45am on January 2. According to news reports, patrolmen pulled over the 42-year-old driver near the intersection of Bloomfield Avenue and Valley Road.
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January 17, 2010

NJ Law & Penalties for DWI with a Child in the Car

by Jonathan F. Marshall

A significant amount of press has been generated concerning the recently enacted NY state law governing drunk driving with a child. The law was the byproduct of a horrific DWI accident last year wherein eight individuals died as a result of an intoxicated housewife. The new law imposes a mandatory jail sentence for up to four (4) years in prison. The question that has been posed to me by several individuals is whether NJ has and/or is proposing a similar law. My response has been – YES.

In New Jersey, a parent or adult who commits a DWI with a child in the car is exposed to a charge of Endangering the Welfare of a Child. This offense is often filed as a Second Degree Crime, especially where an accident and injury is involved. A second degree offense like endangering carries a period of incarceration of between 5 and 10 years in prison.

A DWI case in NJ obviously becomes much more complicated when the operation involves a minor occupying the subject vehicle. This has been the situation for many years now unlike what has more recently occurred in New York. Notwithstanding, we have found that the vast majority of these cases can be resolved without any form of incarceration.

January 17, 2010

New Jersey DWI-DUI Defense News: New Jersey Teen Arrested for Marijuana Possession in a Motor Vehicle

by Jonathan F. Marshall

According to recent news reports, a Mercer County, NJ, teenager was arrested on charges of dealing drugs and possession of marijuana in a motor vehicle. Although there was no direct indication of drug DUI, such a situation could have resulted in a similar charge against the teen. If a charge of drug DUI was also involved, defense similar to driving while intoxicated due to the influence of alcohol could be applied, with certain differences.

As a New Jersey DWI and drug DUI defense lawyer, I know that certain conditions have to be met to charge a driver with possession of marijuana. Unless the driver is carrying the marijuana himself, he generally cannot be charged with possession in a motor vehicle. Under N.J.S.A. 39:4-49.1 the law prohibits a person from operating a motor vehicle while knowingly being in possession of pot.

According to the news reports, a traffic stop was made on December 17 just before 11pm on Route 206. At the time, police were conducting drunken driving patrols as part of the “Over the Limit, Under Arrest” anti-DWI enforcement campaign. Police reports indicate that officers pulled over a 2005 Honda with several young people inside. The driver was identified as Russell Floyd, and 18-year-old resident of Lawrenceville. The driver was issued one of several summonses by the police when they discovered the teen did not have a valid driver’s license.

January 16, 2010

Husband of Jersey “Real Housewives” Star, Teresa Giudice, gets DWI following Crash in Morris County

by Jonathan F. Marshall

According to news articles, the husband of Teresa Giudice, one of the stars in the well-known Bravo television series “Real Housewives,” was recently charged with driving while intoxicated after the man crashed his vehicle into a utility pole minutes from the couple’s home in Montville, New Jersey. Based on police reports, the accident occurred on the morning of Thursday, January 14, in Towaco.

Giuseppe Giudice was reportedly heading north on Jacksonville Road when the Ford pickup he was driving hit the utility pole just before 2am. According to Montville police, when officers arrived at the scene they detected the odor of alcohol on the 39-year-old driver. Due to the man’s possible injuries, the police did not make Giudice perform any field sobriety tests.

Based on the news, Giudice told police he had been in New York and was heading home when the accident occurred. Emergency personnel treated and then transported him to Morristown Memorial Hospital to be checked for internal injuries.

January 14, 2010

New Jersey Motorist Charged with Drunken and Reckless Driving in Middle Township Crash

by Jonathan F. Marshall

A DWI-related single-vehicle crash in Swainton, NJ, resulted in the driver being sent to the hospital with minor injuries as well as causing an area-wide power outage. Police handling the case say that the driver has been charged with driving while intoxicated (DWI). As a drunk driving defense attorney serving residents of New Jersey, I have seen the result of many such accidents.

In this case, the crash occurred, according to police reports, when a pickup truck belonging to Mathew Paschal of Cape May Court House, drifted off the southbound side of Route 9, leaving the roadway and crashing into two telephone poles that support several high voltage power lines in the area.

According to news reports, the accident occurred just before 6pm on New Year’s day when the 42-year-old driver’s Dodge pick-up left the roadway. Middle Township Police arrived at the scene not long after the accident and found the vehicle laying on the left side on the shoulder of the road. Tools and other equipment, apparently thrown from the vehicle’s bed area, were found lying near the crash site.

January 12, 2010

NJ Drunk Driving Defense Update: Financial Impact of a DWI Conviction in New Jersey

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Driving while intoxicated, DWI or driving under the influence, whatever term you use it all adds up to lost driving privileges and extensive fines, not to mention possible job loss and being disgraced in the eyes of your family or local community. Here in New Jersey, being convicted of a drunk driving charge can result in a range of possible actions by the court to punish the convicted drunk driver.

As a New Jersey drunk driving defense attorney my firm represents hundreds of individuals every year in cases of driving under the influence of alcohol. A number of these cases involve human as well as social costs. Even under the best of circumstances, the financial cost of a DWI conviction can result in expensive court fines as well as higher insurance rates for years to come.

The stigma alone of a alcohol-related DWI or drug DUI conviction can affect a person’s standing in the community, possible loss of a job, or potential damage to relationships with family and friends.

January 9, 2010

Off-duty Middle Township Police Officer Injured by Allegedly Drunk Motorist in Cape May Courthouse

by Jonathan F. Marshall

As a New Jersey DWI defense lawyer, I should not have to tell anyone that injuring a police officer in a traffic-related incident can lead to serious consequences. Combine this kind of traffic offense with drunken driving and you have all the elements of a bad outcome for the motorist charged with driving while intoxicated. While this seems like a worst-case scenario, it happened recently in Middle Township, NJ.

According to new reports, a police corporal received serious injuries as a result of a collision caused by a supposedly drunk driver. The accident occurred on Saturday, January 2, when Middle Township Police received a call of a pedestrian-car traffic accident in front of a TJ Maxx in Cape May Court House. When officers arrived, they found that the injured pedestrian was an off-duty Middle Township Police officer, Corporal Fran Fiore.

Fiore was transported to Cape Regional Medical Center with serious leg injuries as a result of being pinned between two vehicles. Based on an investigation by police, Fiore was apparently parked in front of the TJ Maxx on the Route 9 side and was standing behind his minivan loading items through the open rear hatch. According to police reports, a Dodge 1500 pickup truck driven by 51-year-old Edward R. Williams backed into Fiore pinning the officer’s legs between the vehicles. Williams then pulled his vehicle forward and parked.

January 6, 2010

New Jersey DWI Police Blotter: Passaic County Drunk Driving Arrests and Summonses

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Northern New Jersey gets its share of drunk driving arrests. Depending on the situation, drivers can be stopped for reckless driving or failure to maintain their lane, after which the officer may decide that the driver is intoxicated. When a patrolman suspects that a motorist is driving under the influence of alcohol, prescription drugs or even marijuana or other illegal substances, he may request the driver to take one or more field sobriety tests.

New Jersey DWI defense lawyer, as well as a former municipal prosecutor, I have a vast amount of experience in defending individuals who have been arrested and charged with drunken driving. While circumstances vary, many DWI arrest scenarios are quite similar. The following is a short list of recent drunk driving arrests from Clifton, NJ.

A 22-year-old Maplewood resident was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated (DWI) in the early morning hours of December 29. According to reports, Officer Daniel Ishak approached a vehicle stopped on Clifton and Van Houten avenues around 2am and found the driver allegedly unconscious behind the wheel of this vehicle with the engine running. The officer opened the door and detected signs of intoxication, according to reports. The officer woke the man and gave him several roadside field sobriety tests, which he apparently was not able to complete. The officer arrested the driver. He was charged with DWI after recording a blood-alcohol content (BAC) of 0.16 percent on a breathalyzer.