New Jersey DWI Lawyer Blog

February 28, 2012

Westhampton Police Arrest School Bus Driver for DWI in Burlington County after Kids Called Parents

Although it is hardly a stretch to say that a single DWI or drug DUI conviction can change the direction of an individual’s entire life, it’s certainly not unusual for a one-time drunken driving arrest and eventual guilty verdict to greatly impact a person’s career. Aside from the damage that a DWI or DUI conviction can do to someone’s personal relationships or standing in their community, jobs have been lost and careers ruined because of drunk driving.

As New Jersey DWI defense lawyers, my firm is dedicated to representing individuals accused of driving while intoxicated, operating a motor vehicle while impaired by prescription drugs (drug DUI), as well as those arrested for possessing marijuana and other drugs in a car, truck or other motor vehicle. It may seem difficult for some people to believe the wide-ranging effect that one or more DWI or DUI convictions can have.

This is especially true for those individuals who have intimate contact with the public, or those with jobs that involve the trust and safety of individuals throughout society; the occupations that come quickly to mind would be police officers, state and local officials, judges, school officials, and even teachers and school bus drivers.

February 26, 2012

New Jersey Police Blotter: Drunk Driving and Drug DUI Arrests in Ocean and Union Counties

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Any driver who lives or works in the Garden State may already know that arrests for drunken driving occur quite often all around the state. Although being pulled over for a traffic violation does not automatically mean that a driver will be charged with driving under the influence, there are numerous opportunities for motorists to be stopped and potentially charged with a DWI.

Much of this has to do with the circumstances and whether the arresting officer is convinced that an individual is impaired at the time of the traffic stop. Not all DWI and DUI arrests result in conviction; however, as New Jersey drunken driving defense lawyers, I and my staff of experienced DWI attorneys know full well that having any amount of alcohol or drugs in one’s bloodstream at the time of a traffic stop can result in charges being pressed.

Sometimes getting a summons for DWI — or breath test refusal, if one chooses to decline taking a breathalyzer test — is just a matter of timing. Be advised that feeling you are in the right does not change the way a police officer views the situation on the roadside. As we always suggest to friends and associates, it’s better to err on the side of caution and get a sober ride home than to take one’s chances with the local police and possibly be charged with impaired driving due to alcohol or prescription drug use (drug DUI).
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February 24, 2012

NJ Drunken Driving News: Englewood Police Charge Driver with DWI following Fatal Bergen County Accident

by Jonathan F. Marshall

No matter where you drive in the Garden State, be it Middlesex, Bergen, Union or Atlantic County, when a drunk driving traffic arrest involves a fatal car wreck, the stakes for the defendant rise considerably when it comes to walking into the courtroom for the first time. As New Jersey DWI defense lawyers, my job and that of my legal staff is to represent motorists accused of driving under the influence of alcohol or prescription drugs (drug DUI). Here in Jersey, law enforcement agencies and the court system can be quite strict about drivers picked up for operating a motor vehicle while impaired by beer, wine, alcohol or drugs.

Being arrested for driving while intoxicated is one thing, but being charged with a traffic accident that resulted in one or more death is a serious situation that usually requires the assistance of a qualified DWI attorney. Understanding the law is one thing, but having experience defending people against drunken driving and drug possession or drug impairment charges is important. As a former municipal prosecutor, I have worked both sides of the aisle in DWI and DUI cases.

Not long ago, following an Englewood car accident that resulted in the deaths of two people, 50-year-old Heriberto Callas was arrested by local police and charged with numerous violations including a couple counts vehicular homicide in the first degree. Calles, according to news reports, is a Bergen County business man and owner of an Englewood, NJ, janitorial service.
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February 22, 2012

Middlesex Legal Defense Update: Cigarette Smoking Might Skew Jersey Breathalyzer Results for DWI Arrestees

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Accused drunk drivers in Bergen, Union, Monmouth and Sussex County may be surprised to hear that the breath testing devices used by state and local police agencies can be affected by the chemicals known to be present in cigarette smoke. Understanding this technical issue can sometimes help a DWI defendant to better prepare for his defense against a charge of driving while intoxicated in the Garden State.

As New Jersey drunken driving defense lawyers, I and my staff have a deep understanding of the operational and maintenance aspects of breath testing machines — such as the Alcotest device — and how this equipment might record falsely high blood-alcohol content (BAC) reading that in no way represents a driver’s actual state impairment or sobriety.

As DWI defense attorneys, my firm has represented numerous motorists who were accused of driving under the influence of alcohol, yet were in reality not legally drunk at the time. Many times the state’s primary evidence comes directly from the breathalyzer machine.
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February 18, 2012

Ocean County, NJ, Drunken Driving Arrest News: DWI Charges Abound in Lakehurst, Lacey and Forked River

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Being slapped with a charge of DWI, drug DUI, or breath test refusal can be a shock to more than one driver, especially if he or she has never before received a summons for drinking and driving. For those uninitiated in the typical process of being arrested and charged with driving under the influence, the actual reasons can sometimes seem more innocent and hardly worth mentioning; however, the consequences are far from trivial.

As New Jersey drunk driving defense lawyers, I and my staff have read of and tried enough DWI and drug DUI cases to understand that the average motorist can be stunned by the speed at which a drunken driving arrest takes place. For many, it all begins with a simple and seemingly minor infraction; consider, for instance, a driver who just made a turn without signaling.

Since New Jersey drunken driving law does not allow a police officer to stop a motorist solely on the suspicion of that individual has had too much to drink — and is possibly impaired by alcohol or prescription medication (aka drug DUI) — the patrolman must observe a chargeable moving violation being committed to effect a traffic stop.
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February 16, 2012

Ocean County Drunken Driving News: Stafford Twp., NJ, Man Charged with DWI-related Vehicular Homicide

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Regardless of where a motorist receives a traffic citation or summons for drunken driving, be it Monmouth, Hudson, Union or Somerset County, being charged with drunken driving is nothing to sneeze at, especially in the Garden State. Aside from the heavy monetary penalties, one’s career, personal relationships and standing in the community can be adversely affected simply be an arrest, much less an actual conviction.

Representing motorists accused of driving under the influence is the job of qualified New Jersey DWI defense attorneys, such as the experienced drunk driving lawyers at my firm. While no one can predict the outcome of a drunk driving case, the odds are that much worse in matters involving property damage and personal injury. Without a doubt, nobody should wish for a DWI or drug DUI arrest in connection with a fatal traffic accident.

Nevertheless, fatalities involving alleged drunken driving occur with a fair amount of frequency here in Jersey and elsewhere across the country. This is not to say that police or the courts are jaded when it comes to arrests following fatal DWI accidents; it’s well understood that the authorities take a very dim view of drivers accused of fatal car crashes where alcohol or prescription drug use may have been involved.
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February 14, 2012

Ocean County, NJ, Motorist Connected with Fatal Drunken Driving Pedestrian Crash Remains Uncharged

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Whether one lives in Sussex, Bergen, Atlantic or Middlesex County, make no mistake: state and municipal police agencies across the Garden State take a dim view of motorists who get behind the wheel while under the influence of beer, wine or hard liquor. This goes as much for alcohol as it does for prescription medication and doubly so for those who take illicit drugs and then drive on public roads.

Frankly, as New Jersey DWI defense lawyers, we know that our state’s judicial system can be quite strict when it comes to drinking and driving. State laws and legal statutes specify heavy penalties for those individuals convicted of drunken driving and drug DUI; in fact, aside from monetary penalties, there is a good chance that depending on the circumstances a driver can lose his or her license for a period of time following a drunk driving conviction.

With the costs of losing a DWI or DUI case, plus the potential of having ones driver’s license suspended — which can complicate a person’s employment situation as well as their private life — look for the advice of an experienced drunk driving defense attorney is many times a good course of action. With the frequency of organized anti-DWI/DUI enforcement efforts (such as New Jersey’s “Over the Limit, Under Arrest” campaign), dozens upon dozens of motorists find themselves charged with a variety of drunk-driving-related offenses during these amplified enforcement endeavors.
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February 12, 2012

Mercer County DWI News: State Police Report More Drunken Driving, DUI Arrests this Super Bowl Weekend

by Jonathan F. Marshall

It could be an indication that economy is bouncing back more and more, or it might be that the NY Giants pulled off a nail-biting performance during Super Bowl XLVI. Whatever the reason, apparently more people were “celebrating” the occasion last weekend than this same time in 2008. And to what or whom do we owe this information? Why the New Jersey State Police, who else?

As drunken driving defense attorneys representing those Garden State residents who have been accused of DWI, drug DUI and other charges of impaired driving, we certainly understand the correlation between sporting event and holiday celebrations and the rise or fall in drunk driving arrests. Here in New Jersey, where anti-DWI campaigns are common and state and local police agencies flood the roadways with drunken driving saturation patrols and sobriety checkpoints, there should never be any surprise as to the number of DWI and DUI arrests during any particular period of time.

This is not to say that New Jersey is unique, but we do get our share of drivers hitting the road while under the influence of alcohol, prescription drugs and even illegal substances, such as marijuana, cocaine and meth-based drugs. Once charged by a state or municipal police officer, a driver typically must go before a judge to either defend himself against the charges or admit responsibility.
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February 10, 2012

Ocean County Drunk Driving News: New Jersey Woman Arrested for DWI, Aggravated Vehicular Assault

by Jonathan F. Marshall

As any one who has been arrested for drunk driving here in the Garden State probably knows already, being charged with driving under the influence of alcohol or prescription drugs — also known as drug DUI — can be difficult in and of itself to fight in court; but to add an injury accident one top of a DWI charge only complicates things for a defendant.

It doesn’t make any real difference if one is picked up in Atlantic, Essex or Hudson County, state and municipal law enforcement agencies hold a hard line against alleged drunken drivers. (The same can be said for the New Jersey court system, since state laws are very strict and contain stiff penalties for motorists convicted of driving while intoxicated, whether by liquor, doctor-prescribed medication or illicit drugs such as cocaine or marijuana.

When a driver causes a traffic accident while allegedly under the influence, the law tends to focus a little tighter on that individual. And, as mentioned above, injury accidents caused by drunk drivers can complicate a person’s defense in many cases. If the person who is injured is an officer of the law, this is without a doubt more than sufficient reason to consult with a qualified DWI defense attorney. And by all means, one should not even contemplate running from a patrolman.
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February 9, 2012

New Jersey DWI Arrest Report: Police in Bergen County Charge Fugitive with Drunk Driving following Chase

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Right off the bat, as a New Jersey drunk driving defense lawyer and a former municipal DWI prosecuting attorney, let me say that running from the police and attempting to evade arrest is highly frowned upon by law enforcement agencies; and it certainly won’t get a defendant any sympathy from the court when one comes before a judge for sentencing.

Here in the Garden State, not a day goes by that a number of local residents and out-of-state drivers get pulled over for traffic infractions all over the state. Of those dozens of drivers, some may or may not have had something to drink prior to the police stop. This is where the police officer conducting the traffic stop generally makes a determination of whether or not he feels that the driver is possibly impaired.

Impairment can come in many forms. For this forum, we usually consider that a motorist may be accused of one of a number of potentially intoxicating substances; these include alcoholic beverages, doctor-prescribed medications, illegal drugs or even illicit substances, such as marijuana, methamphetamine, or cocaine. The latter of these are sometimes referred to a CDS or controlled dangerous substances; and their use by a driver can result in drug DUI charges.
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