A resident of Oak Ridge, NJ, was recently given three years in jail for a May, 2009, drunk driving accident that left a 71-year-old newspaper delivery man with multiple injuries. As a New Jersey DWI defense attorney, my firm handles drunken driving cases through the Garden State. I know from experience that severe injury accidents involving alcohol can land a motorist in prison very easily.
In this particular case, the defendant was found guilty of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated. Furthermore, the man had apparently tried to elude Jefferson Township police while driving drunk a second time months after the accident, something that never improves one’s chances in court. As a former municipal prosecutor, I understand the strategies used by prosecuting attorneys when it comes to DWI offenders.
According to news reports, Superior Court Judge David Ironson sentenced 23-year-old Ibrahim Hasan to three years in prison for having deprived the victim, Oak Ridge resident Jerry Begley, of what should have been his golden years.
The defendant’s attorney had requested a sentence consisting of a long-term, in-patient substance abuse therapy and probation, instead of prison. Apparently the judge turned down that request.
At the time of the accident, Begley was reportedly a subcontractor who delivered the Daily Record and other newspapers. He was on his way from his Oak Ridge home to retrieve newspapers in Hibernia when the defendant crossed into his lane on Berkshire Valley Road around 1:30am on May 5, 2009. The cars collided head-on. Hasan reportedly had a blood-alcohol content (BAC) of 0.13 percent following the collision.
Police reports show that Begley was extricated by rescue workers, who cut him out of his vehicle. He reportedly has undergone multiple surgeries to repair breaks in his legs, pelvis and arm, as well as to mend his hips.
In his second instance of drunk driving in July of last year, Hasan apparently eluded police for five miles on a motorcycle after an officer signaled him to pull over for having a broken taillight. He was driving 62mph in a 45mph zone, and found to have a BAC of 0.15 percent after being stopped by police.
In addition to his prison term, Hasan was ordered to pay $2,591 in restitution to Begley and another $2,160 in fines. His license was suspended by the judge for two years.
Oak Ridge man gets prison for drunken crash, fleeing police, DailyRecord.com, March 12, 2010