New Jersey DWI Lawyer Blog
In Atlantic, Ocean, Monmouth, Middlesex, Passaic, and Morris County, not to mention the dozen-plus other counties around the Garden State, it is not appropriate to operate a motor vehicle while legally intoxicated as provided in the New Jersey legal statutes. If you or someone you know have been arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated (DWI) or driving under the influence of prescription drugs (drug DUI), you may have already started searching for a drunk driving defense attorney who may be able to assist in your defense.
One of the more important things to remember if ever you find yourself named in a DWI or DUI case is that New Jersey prosecutors, in general, are taught that confronting a defendant in court will be typically more difficult if that individual has retained a DWI lawyer to assist him or her against the state’s accusations. Being found not guilty following a charge of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, doctor-prescribed medication or illicit drugs is a matter of finding many or all of the prosecution’s key legal arguments to be defective.
As long-term DWI defense attorneys, the attorneys at my law firm have the skills and courtroom experience to identify problems with the prosecution’s case and use those to the client’s ultimate advantage. Depending on the particular circumstances surrounding the defendant’s arrest and subsequent charging in a drunk driving case, a skilled lawyer may be able to work out a favorable sentence, or better yet, help the accused motorist to avoid a conviction completely.
As a drunken driving defense attorney and former municipal DUI prosecutor, I myself have fifteen years of trial experience in the superior and municipal courts of Monmouth, Ocean and Middlesex counties. As a former prosecuting attorney, I and my colleagues understand DWI-DUI law and our state’s judicial system. As such, we know when to negotiate with a presiding judge and when to take a drunk driving case to trial.
Since it costs our clients nothing to learn how we can help (through a no-obligation initial consultation), there is little reason to avoid learning the legal ramifications of a charge of drunken driving or the potential consequences of conviction for same. If you think you have no chance of winning a DWI-DUI case, that’s hardly a good way to start. We know of many individuals who were certain that their situation was dire only to find that there were options that they had never considered.
Just consider the range of drunk driving arrests that occur on a regular basis throughout New Jersey. Just consider your local news source to see what kinds of DWI and drug DUI arrests are made daily across the state. Take some typical drunken driving incidents that took place in Middlesex County a while back.
According to news articles, Police in Plainsboro stopped a handful of drivers over the course of two days for DWI and a number of other offenses including marijuana possession and having drug paraphernalia in a car. Based on reports, the first arrest took place early on a Sunday morning when a patrolman stopped a car after the driver allegedly drove through a stop sign. The 20-year-old Cranbury resident was charged with DWI, possession of weed and related paraphernalia, not to mention reckless driving and not having proper insurance coverage. The woman was also hit with charges ranging from failure to stop and possession of a controlled dangerous substance (CDS) in a motor vehicle to failing to notify authorities of the change in her address.
In another instance not long after the first, a local police officer pulled over a late-model Honda Accord along a stretch of Dey Road after the patrolman allegedly observed the driver failing to maintain her lane. According to news reports, the 27-year-old out-of-state motorist was eventually charged with drunken and reckless driving, failure to maintain a lane as well as driving on an expired license and using cell phone while operating a motor vehicle. The woman was ultimately released to a responsible adult pending a court date.
In a third incident, police officers reportedly stopped a Toyota Sienna in the later evening hours along a stretch of George Davison Road after the officers observed the driver fail to come to a stop at a stop sign. The 58-year-old Cranbury, NJ, man was apparently taken into custody and charged with DWI, reckless driving, failure to stop, and obstructed view, according to a report.
In the last episode, the driver of an ’04 Volkswagen Golf was stopped by police after it became apparent to the officers that the driver failed to maintain his lane while travelling along a northbound portion of Rte 1. Based on police reports, the 22-year-old Sayreville resident was arrested and charged with possession of marijuana, in addition to drug paraphernalia. The motorist was also issued summonses for failure to maintain his lane, CDS possession in a motor vehicle, and failure to produce vehicle registration when requested by a police officer.
Police traffic stops in Plainsboro yield 3 drunken drivers, marijuana and drug paraphernalia; NJ.com; March 25, 2013