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November 15, 2009

New Jersey Police Blotter: Multiple Drunk Driving Arrests in Morris County

Numerous drunk driving arrests occur every month throughout New Jersey. Morris County, among others, sees its share of intoxicated driving traffic offenses on a weekly basis. As a New Jersey DWI defense lawyer and former municipal prosecutor, I have a wealth of experience in the area of drunk driving defense. The following is just a sample of the typical driving under the influence of alcohol and drug DUI cases that move through our court system every year.

Boonton

A 32-year-old local resident was charged with driving while intoxicated, reckless driving and refusal to submit to breath tests in the early morning hours of September 15. The woman was released, pending a municipal court appearance. Several hours later a 28-year-old man from Phillipsburg was arrested and charged with DWI as well as reckless driving.

November 11, 2009

Drunk Driving Update: Defining Impairment for New Jersey Motorists

by Jonathan F. Marshall

In the state of New Jersey, the determination of whether a motorist is driving while impaired driving, at least as it pertains to alcohol use, involves a measurement of the suspect’s blood alcohol content (BAC). As a New Jersey drunk driving defense attorney, and former municipal prosecutor, I have handled all manner of drunken driving cases throughout my career. The establishment of a defendant’s BAC plays is a major role in any drunken driving case.

Strictly speaking, the law states that if an individual who is the operator of a car, truck, SUV or other motor vehicle is found to have a BAC of 0.08 percent or more, that person is guilty of drunk driving, also known as driving under the influence of alcohol, or more commonly, driving while intoxicated (DWI).

The term BAC refers to the amount of alcohol in a driver’s bloodstream. An important point to remember is that although the law makes reference to 0.08 percent BAC as the legal limit, one can still be convicted of drunk driving even if his or her BAC is below 0.08 percent.

November 9, 2009

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

by Jonathan F. Marshall

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.

November 6, 2009

$43,000 NJ State Grant to Support Year-round DWI Checkpoints in Middlesex County

by Jonathan F. Marshall

According to a recent news report, drivers in Middlesex County will see more drunk driving checkpoints, sometimes referred to as sobriety roadblocks, at all times of the year. The state of New Jersey has funded the operation of additional checkpoints with a $43,000 grant. Normally, the county would have sobriety roadblocks during certain holidays, however now it appears they will be a more permanent fixture.

As a New Jersey DWI defense lawyer, I have represented numerous motorists who have received summonses or been arrested for drunk driving or breath test refusal. While these checkpoints may reduce the number of drunk driving arrests in an area over time, they also can result in people being falsely accused of driving while under the influence of alcohol.

This latest announcement shows that Middlesex County, NJ, will be expanding its holiday DWI checkpoint program to year-round enforcement. The program will be supported in part by a $43,000 grant from the state Office of Highway Traffic Safety. According to news reports, these DWI checkpoints are very costly to run mainly because they require police officers to work overtime, plus there are additional costs for setting up and maintaining the roadblocks over the course of an evening to the early morning hours.

November 3, 2009

New Jersey DWI News: Drunk Driving Arrests in Mercer and Middlesex Counties

by Jonathan F. Marshall

As a New Jersey DWI defense attorney and former municipal prosecutor, I use my vast background in drunk driving law to help motorists accused of driving under the influence of alcohol. I always maintain that individuals charged with drunk driving, prescription drug DUI or breath test refusal to retain a qualified legal professional to see their case through the justice system. The following police reports are just a sample of the typical cases involving driving under the influence of alcohol.

Princeton Borough

A 68-year-old man from Princeton, NJ, was observed driving his vehicle in a suspicious manner. After police saw that the driver did not keep right, Princeton police officers pulled the suspect over on Chambers Street just before 1:30am. He was evaluated and charged with driving while intoxicated and taken into custody.

November 1, 2009

Montville, NJ, Woman Convicted of DWI Vehicular Assault against Police Officer

by Jonathan F. Marshall

A Montville, New Jersey, woman was recently sentenced to 48 months in jail after being convicted for her third drunk driving arrest as well as vehicular assault charges after hitting a police officer and two other vehicles in 2008. Having defended many New Jersey motorists accused of driving under the influence of alcohol, I can only say that this type of case needed serious DWI defense work.

According to news reports, Andora Needleman, 47, pled guilty back in August to a couple counts of vehicular assault, as well as driving while intoxicated, plus leaving the scene of an accident. One assault charge was for hitting Officer Kevin Milley, while the second was for hitting a car with a five-year-old child on board.

Superior Court Judge Salem Vincent Ahto revoked Needleman’s driver’s license for 10 years, which begins when she is released from prison. She is expected to apply for early release from prison under the state’s Intensive Supervision Program, which is a stringent form of parole.

October 29, 2009

New Jersey Police Blotter: Numerous Essex and Morris County DWI Arrests in the News

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Montclair

A resident of Wayne, NJ, was stopped by police just after 12am on September 21 for allegedly running three stop signs. As a drunk driving defense lawyer with offices throughout New Jersey, I know that this kind of behavior is difficult to explain simply. However, my firm has represented many individuals arrested for DWI under similar circumstances, which is not uncommon.

According to police reports, the 44-year-old man was driving a 2006 Honda CR-V when he was pulled over by law enforcement officers at Valley Road and Church Street. Officers reportedly could smell alcohol on the man, who also exhibited other signs of possible intoxication, police said. When asked, the suspect explained that he had consumed two beers at a local bar earlier that evening.

October 27, 2009

Stand-up Comic and Howard Stern Regular, Arte Lange, Pleads Guilty to Drug DUI in Toms River, NJ

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Comedian Artie Lange who was involved in a minor Ocean County car accident last July recently pled guilty in Toms River municipal court to drug DUI charges, according to news reports. The comic, who has made frequent guest appearances on Howard Stern’s radio show, admitted to driving under the influence of a habit-producing drug in a minor traffic accident. The accident happened about 40 miles southeast of Trenton, NJ.

Whether it’s DWI or drug DUI, it is always important to have an experienced New Jersey drunk driving defense lawyer at your side. In Lange’s case, he admitted to being under the influence of legal prescription sleeping pills that he had taken the night prior to the wreck. Municipal court judge, James Ligouri, revoked the comic’s driving privileges for seven months.

The events leading up to this point were covered extensively in the media. Essentially, Toms River police arrested Lange for DUI after the 2009 Nissan Sentra he was driving ran into the back of a Pontiac Grand Am during in the afternoon of July 16.

October 25, 2009

Suspect Arrested for Drunk Driving, Marijuana Possession following Chase by Red Bank Police

by Jonathan F. Marshall

The east side of Red Bank, NJ, was the site of a police chase following an initially unsuccessful DWI traffic stop. According to reports, Captain Darren McConnell of the Red Bank traffic safety unit identified a Chevy pickup moving erratically around 2am on Saturday, September 26, just prior to running a stop sign at Wallace and McLaren streets.

As a New Jersey DWI defense attorney having defended numerous motorists charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, this is a typical scenario for an early morning drunk driving arrest. However, fleeing a police officer only complicates matters for a defendant accused of driving under the influence. In this day and age, there is no sense to making matters worse by adding resisting arrest to the list of charges.

In this case, Captain McConnell attempted to pull over Jesse Rowe, 21, who was driving his vehicle in an allegedly erratic manner. As McConnell started to pull Rowe’s truck over the suspect accelerated away in an apparent attempt to evade arrest. Pursuing Rowe eastbound on McLaren Street, then north on William Street and east again on Mechanic, the entire chase was less than a half mile, according to police reports.

October 22, 2009

Two Randolph Township Cops Lose Their Jobs in Drunk Driving Cover-up

by Jonathan F. Marshall

I’ve said it here before. As a New Jersey DWI defense lawyer, I have little patience for any malfeasance on the part of law enforcement officers or members of the prosecutor’s office when it comes to upholding the laws that they are responsible for enforcing. Every individual accused of drunk driving or other alcohol-related offense should be treated equally without favor or discrimination. A recent news story about a couple police officers from the Randolph Township police department brought this to mind.

According to reports, former officers Shawn Boyhan and Stephen J. Kepler appeared in a Morristown courtroom on October 19 having been accused of destroying, concealing or altering official records. The two were forced to give up their jobs with the township, put on probation for one year and ordered to perform community service for trying to cover up the drunk-driving arrest of a fellow officer’s relative.

The 31-year-old Boyhan entered a conditional guilty plea, saying that after he stopped a motorist on August 21 he learned the driver was related to another Randolph police officer. Boyhan said he spoke with Kepler, 49, and decided to “unarrest” the motorist and let him go. No breath tests were conducted and no paperwork filled out.