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August 25, 2009

North Bergen, NJ, Police Arrest Bellville Man for DWI Injury Accident

A recent accident at a roadway construction site in North Bergen was allegedly caused by a drunk driver who injured a construction worker at the site and also hurt a pregnant woman in another vehicle. As a New Jersey DWI defense lawyer, my office has represented numerous clients involved in similar accidents over the years. As an experienced attorney and former municipal prosecutor, I know how to defend such cases. In this instance, the driver was charged by police with several offenses including driving while intoxicated.

Reports indicate that while construction workers were changing a signal arrow board outside of the construction area near 91st Street, Angelo Lopez of Belleville, NJ, who was driving north on Tonnelle Avenue, appeared to try and go around a green 1995 Honda, but hit the car instead. According to witnesses, the 35-year-old driver was reportedly weaving in and out of traffic in his 2004 Audi sedan prior to the accident at the construction site.

Lopez allegedly hit the Honda, driven by an 8-month pregnant woman, forcing the woman’s car off the roadway and into one of the construction workers, causing the man to be forced to the ground, police said. The worker was treated for minor injuries to his leg. Both the pregnant woman and the construction worker were taken to Palisades Medical Center.

August 21, 2009

NJ DWI Update: Morris County Police to Step Up Drunk Driving Patrols

by Jonathan F. Marshall

According to news reports, nearly two dozen Morris County police departments will begin to crack down on drunk drivers starting today. The concentrated effort focused on intoxicated drivers, which runs through Labor Day, is part of an annual national campaign known as “Over the Limit, Under Arrest.” As an experienced New Jersey DWI defense attorney, I can say with a fair degree of certainty that a percentage of the arrests made during this initiative will involve drivers who do not deserve a drunk driving conviction on their record.

In Morris County, 21 individual police departments will be participating, including Butler, Chester Township, Jefferson, Lincoln Park, Madison, Mendham, Mount Olive, Netcong, Pequannock, Randolph, Riverdale, Rockaway, Washington Township and eight others.

As part of this national effort, which has continued annually since 1999, the Division of Highway Traffic Safety provides federally-funded grants in the amount of $6,000 to each participating police agency for the two-week program.

August 19, 2009

DWI News: Drunk Driving Patrols, Sobriety Checkpoints Scheduled across New Jersey for Next Couple Weeks

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Drivers in Monmouth and Essex Counties, along with many other parts of New Jersey, will see numerous Drunk driving patrols over the coming weeks. DWI sobriety checkpoints throughout the Garden State will also be evident during the days leading up to the coming Labor Day holiday weekend. These checkpoints, also known as sobriety roadblocks, are commonly used by law enforcement as one way to decrease the number of alcohol-related auto accidents and deaths on the state’s highways and surface streets.

As a New Jersey DWI defense lawyer, my office alerts motorists to these checkpoints due to the number of driving while intoxicated arrests in these areas. By law, state, county and municipal arms of law enforcement can only set up checkpoints in locations that have a statistically high incidence of people driving under the influence of alcohol.

Standard procedure at these checkpoints includes police giving field sobriety tests to drivers that appear to be intoxicated. If the officer is satisfied that an individual operating a vehicle is possibly drunk, a breath test will usually be administered to determine the blood alcohol content (BAC) of that driver.

August 15, 2009

Plainfield Man Arrested for Drunk Driving in Middlesex County, Charged with Child Endangerment

by Jonathan F. Marshall

If there is one thing I remind people arrested for DWI and other drunk driving violations, don’t make things worse by pulling another person in on your mistake. Of course, an adult is fully capable of deciding if he wants to ride with someone who is obviously intoxicated, but a child, well that’s a different story. As a New Jersey drunk driving lawyer, I and my staff of experienced DWI attorneys have represented clients charged with a wide range of offenses in addition to driving under the influence of alcohol, or prescription or illegal drug DUI.

A recent news article is an example of the trouble that a driver can get into when not considering the safety of his or her passengers. Apparently a 22-year-old Plainfield man was arrested for driving while intoxicated after crashing his vehicle in the driveway of a Dunellen home late in the evening of August 3.

According to police, Stanley Brown of 127 Prospect Avenue was arrested by borough police after he allegedly crashed a 1994 Nissan Maxima along the driveway as he was trying to leave the locale around 11 p.m. Officers were called to the scene by concerned neighbors, who told officers that the man had fled the vehicle and was in the backyard of the house.

According to reports, the police found a five-year-old boy sitting on the back seat of the car, but not in a child-restraint seat. The child was identified as the son of Brown’s girlfriend. Officers then searched and found the man in the backyard, where they also detected the odor of alcohol on his breath.

After having the man take a series of field sobriety tests, which he allegedly failed, police administered a breathalyzer test and found the man’s blood alcohol content (BAC) to be 0.19 percent — double the legal limit in New Jersey. Brown was then arrested and transported to the Middlesex County Adult Correction Center in North Brunswick.

Police said that child’s condition was evaluated by the Dunellen First Aid Squad and was determined to be unhurt. The boy was returned to the custody of his mother, and Brown was also charged with child endangerment.
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August 14, 2009

Drunk Driving Arrest News: New Jersey Police Blotter

by Jonathan F. Marshall

South Orange — An Essex County, New Jersey, resident was stopped by police around 1:30 a.m. on August 7 when and officer saw a car apparently speeding on Sloan Street, after which it poorly negotiated a left turn onto South Orange Avenue. After making the traffic stop, other officers arrived at the scene where they detected the scent of alcohol on the driver’s breath indicating that the man was probably drunk. A passenger in the front seat also appeared to be intoxicated. Police administered a field sobriety test to the 43-year-old Maplewood resident, which he failed. The man became upset following the test. Police arrested him for DWI, took him into custody and impounded his vehicle.

South Orange — On August 8, in the early morning hours, a patrolman noticed a vehicle parked in front of 67 South Orange Avenue with the motor running, headlights burning and right-front tire completely flat. On closer inspection, the officer could see that the 28-year-old Greenbrook, NJ, resident appeared to be sleeping. The officer attempted to awaken the man, who became somewhat responsive after several minutes. Interviewing the conscious driver, the police officer could detect the odor of alcohol on the man’s breath. Other officers were called to the scene and the man was removed from the vehicle and given several field sobriety tests, all of which he failed. Police arrested the man and transported him to headquarters where a test for blood alcohol content (BAC) showed a reading of 0.13 percent.

Madison — A 49-year-old Irvington resident was stopped for careless driving by local police officers late in the evening of July 31. During the traffic stop, officers noticed that she was inebriated, after which she was charged with drunk driving and later released to a family member.

August 13, 2009

Pedestrian Injured by Alleged Drunk Driver in Union County, NJ, DWI Traffic Accident

by Jonathan F. Marshall

A 25-year-old resident of Clark, NJ, was hit in a Westfield crosswalk by an allegedly drunk driver last week. According to reports, Gina Marotta was hit by a car driven by a Union County woman as she crossed the street outside of Lord & Taylor. As a New Jersey DWI defense lawyer, I have great sympathy for those injured as a result of drunk driving accidents. At the same time, I know that everyone deserves to have their say in a court of law. Driving under the influence of alcohol or even prescription drugs can cause impaired judgment and result in a DUI arrest, or worse.

The news reports regarding this incident indicate that 55-year-old Leslie Boughner hit Marotta around noon on August 5 on North Avenue as the woman was returning to her job at the Lord & Taylor department store. Police officers issued Boughner a summons for DWI and also took a blood sample to check the woman’s blood-alcohol content (BAC).

According to reports, Marotta suffered a broken arm, broken leg and head injuries. Emergency responders transported her to University Hospital in Newark, where she underwent surgery at the hospital’s trauma center.

At the time of the news reports, the Union County prosecutor’s office had not received any contact from the Westfield police regarding the case. Usually, the prosecutor’s office will be contacted by police whenever there is an incident involving hit and run cases or fatal pedestrian accidents, neither of which is the case in this instance Westfield. Depending on the victim’s injuries and her recovery, not to mention the driver’s blood test, it’s possible that the case could be handled in municipal court.
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August 12, 2009

New Jersey DWI News: Poll Shows Majority Approves of In-car Breathalyzer for Convicted Drunk Drivers

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Having represented hundreds of NJ residents arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, I know what drivers accused of DWI are up against. As an experienced New Jersey drunk driving defense lawyer and former municipal prosecutor, I also have the background to understand how to successfully defend many driving while intoxicated cases. What I can’t change is the public’s opinion of convicted drunk driving offenders.

That became quite evident the other day when I noticed the results of a survey recently conducted by the American Automobile Association’s Mid-Atlantic region. More than 60 percent of the respondents to the AAA Mid-Atlantic Web poll voted in favor of installing a mandatory breathalyzer ignition interlock on the vehicle of any convicted DWI offender.

This type of interlock device requires the driver to blow into a device not unlike the Alcotest breath testing machine used by the New Jersey State Police as well as other law enforcement agencies across the Garden State. If the device detects that the driver’s blood-alcohol content (BAC) is above 0.05 percent the vehicle cannot be started.

August 11, 2009

New Jersey Penalties for Repeat Drunk Driving Offenses Not Always So Harsh

by Jonathan F. Marshall

If you have been convicted of a drunk driving offense, you know the penalties for subsequent offenses can be quite stiff in the state of New Jersey. But as they say, “Only time will tell.” And while law enforcement agencies and prosecutors across the Garden State will hold out the threat of harsher penalties for repeat DWI offenders, there is one ray of light through the dark clouds of a recent driving while intoxicated arrest. And that has to do with time.

As a New Jersey drunk driving lawyer, and a former municipal prosecutor, I remind people to check their calendar should they receive a second, third or subsequent drunken driving arrest. It all goes back to a 2008 ruling by New Jersey’s intermediate appeals court. This Appellate Division of the NJ’s Superior Court actually determined when a drunk driving defendant can receive a reduced sentence for a DWI conviction.

As many have read here and in the news, courts typically implement harsher sentences on those individuals who have prior convictions. In the case of DWI convictions, New Jersey law does require stiffer sentencing for repeat drunk driving offenders, versus those convicted of first-time offenses.

However, if time it on your side, you may benefit from New Jersey’s 10-year “step down” rule. This portion of state law requires that courts must show leniency whenever 10 years have passed between DWI convictions. This applies to the time between first and second drunk driving DWI convictions, or between the second and third DWI convictions. Essentially, the law states that the court must treat the defendant as though he or she has one less prior conviction when it comes to determining that person’s sentence for the most recent DWI.

State v. Conroy, which was decided by New Jersey’s Appellate Division in 2008, involved a defendant who had three prior DWI convictions and was facing sentencing for a fourth time. The State argued that the step-down rule should only apply where the defendant has one or two prior convictions, but in cases where there were three prior convictions. The defendant argued that the step-down rule should apply to his case because his first DWI conviction was without an attorney and 10 years had already passed between his third and fourth DWI convictions.
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August 9, 2009

New Jersey “Click It” Traffic Safety Campaign Nets 866 Drunk Drivers across the State

by Jonathan F. Marshall

The drunk driving arrest results are finally in following the conclusion of New Jersey’s two-week-long “Click It or Ticket” seatbelt and traffic safety campaign, which ended back on May 31. In that period, state law enforcement officials report that they arrested nearly 900 motorists for driving under the influence of alcohol. As a New Jersey DWI defense lawyer, I’m proud of the job our police officers do to improve public awareness regarding the benefits of seatbelt use. At the same time, I know that not all of those 866 drivers arrested will be convicted of driving while intoxicated.

In addition to the 800-plus drunk driving arrests last May, New Jersey police also gave out 891 citations for improper use of child restraints, wrote 6,833 tickets for speeding, and ticketed more than 40,000 motorists for seatbelt-related violations. That compares favorably, according to reports, to the 46,000 tickets given out in 2008 for similar violations.

Regarding those 866 DWI arrests, in my experience as a drunk driving defense attorney, I know that not every ticket will stand up in court. When defending individuals accused of driving while intoxicated under the influence of alcohol, there are multiple factors that can affect the validity of a prosecutor’s evidence.

Take the breath test, for instance. The Alcotest device, the operation of which every attorney in my office has been fully certified, must be maintained correctly. If not, the results can turn out wrong and actually be useless during a trial. Even if the breathalyzer is working correctly, factors affecting BAC (or blood alcohol content) can vary widely. The key here is, don’t automatically assume that the machine is always right. It may say you were legally drunk, but that result may not stand up to a seasoned DWI defense lawyer.

As a former prosecutor myself, I know how the state or municipality goes about prosecuting drunk driving defendants. They may bring up certain points to try and prove that you were driving your vehicle under the influence of alcohol. A prosecutor may say that officers detected an “odor” of alcohol on your breath, that you were driving somewhat erratically, or that you exhibited a “disheveled” appearance or acted as if you were intoxicated. They may even state that you exhibited poor field sobriety test (FST) performance. You have to understand that these are all ways in which a prosecutor attempts to sway the court to find you guilty of DWI.

But what a prosecutor will rarely if ever mention is that these types of “evidence” are very ambiguous and subject to a range of interpretation. Not to mention, these previous statements and observations made by the prosecution are often quite unreliable and result in faulty assumptions.
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August 6, 2009

Union County, NJ, Man Charged with DWI after Minor Parking Lot Fender-bender

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Sometimes embarrassment seems to be the biggest part of receiving a drunk driving summons. As a New Jersey DWI defense attorney, many of the individuals I represent feel humiliated after being arrested for driving while intoxicated, but I always remind them that a drunken driving conviction itself is no laughing matter.

Being branded with a first-time conviction for driving under the influence of alcohol not only hits your wallet but also your lifestyle. In the worst case scenario, it can also jeopardize your social standing and even cost you your job. Believe me, get over the embarrassment of a drunk driving summons and contact a qualified DWI defense lawyer, fast.

It doesn’t take much to merit an arrest for DWI. Recently, a Cranford man was arrested by police on drunk driving charges at a Garwood convenience store. According to reports, this individual drove his car haphazardly through the store’s parking area and struck one of the vehicles parked there. Not an Earth-shattering event, but enough to get the attention of one of the store’s employees.

That store cleck called the Garwood Police Department, which dispatched a squad car to assess the situation. Shortly after 8am, an officer arrived and found a damaged vehicle in the parking lot, after which the officer determined that William Parisio, 21, was the driver of the 1999 Subaru Forester that hit the parked vehicle. According to reports, the man was taken into custody and transported to the Garwood Police station where he was given a breathalyzer test, which he failed. He was charged with drunk driving and released pending a later court date.
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