What many people do not realize is that state and local police officers in New Jersey do not usually pull people over for driving drunk. Law enforcement officers must have a reasonable suspicion that a driver is breaking the law, which typically means another violation such as speeding, not maintaining a lane, or even something minor like a broken taillight or other defective vehicle equipment.
Once a driver is stopped, however, the officer will carefully evaluated the motorist to see if he or she is exhibiting signs of intoxication. Being arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol or prescription medication is possible when the officer suspects that individual is impaired. As a New Jersey DWI defense lawyer, I understand the steps that lead to a drunken driving or drug DUI conviction.
That initial traffic stop, as stated above, will usually be for a routine traffic law violation. While most municipalities will deny it, there are apparently some towns and villages across the US that use speed traps to catch unwary motorists. Driving while impaired in these parts of the country may result in a costly DWI arrest to say the least.
According to reports, Mahwah, NJ, is one of the top speed traps in the U.S. This was based on information from the Milwaukee-based National Motorists Association (NMA), which published a list of places to avoid, or more to the point, places to avoid an expensive ticket. Using data from the association’s “National Speed Trap Exchange,” the group compiled a list of locations with the most speed traps as reported by users (a second list includes places with populations under 100,000).
As part of the listing, the NMA listed Mahwah as the place in New Jersey drivers felt was “most dangerous to their wallets.”
Report: Worst speed trap cities, NewJerseyNewsroom.com, September 1, 2010